CD Reviews

Plamen Karadonev

Crossing Lines | Mu

By JON GARELICK | March 18, 2008

3.0 Stars

This debut CD from young Bulgarian-born pianist Karadonev (now living in Boston) recommends itself despite occasionally wayward electronics and a singer whose accent distracts you from the English lyrics. But the accent isn’t enough to derail the Michel Legrand standard “You Must Believe in Spring,” because Karadonev and his band take it on such a probing, harmonically reconceived journey between verses. Besides, Elena Koleva’s voice has the right emotional heft and control, and that makes her perfect for the wordless line she sings in unison with George Garzone’s tenor sax on the Karadonev original “Sianic.” Otherwise, the “lines” crossed here include the standards and originals, jazz and classical (a ripping, up-tempo, full-band arrangement by Karadonev of Schumann’s “Fröhlicher Landmann”), Bulgarian and Brazilian (Ivan Lins’s “The Island”). And the band sound great together. You can forgive the oddness of Berklee trombone sage Hal Crook’s synthy “trom-o-tizer,” which allows him to double his lines, because he actually broadens the tune with it, and Garzone — known for brawn — is also as delicate and detailed as Stan Getz. Karadonev, meanwhile, personalizes everything he plays, whether it’s his rubato treatment of Cole Porter’s “Night and Day” or his own folk-into-jazz dulcimer-like shadings — and necessary accent — on “Rondo ala Bulgar.”

Related: Fathers and son, Francisco Mela, In all languages, More

Topics: CD Reviews , Hal Crook, George Garzone, Cole Porter, More

| More

Most Popular

The Current Issue

Table of Contents

Cover Archive

Masthead | Authors | Contact us

Blogs

Where To Follow Me
Talking Politics | March 24, 2013 at 11:09 AM

Mo Takes His Turn
March 21, 2013 at 12:59 PM

[Q&A] KMFDM's Sascha Konietzko on art, Columbine and having balls
On The Download | March 18, 2013 at 3:22 PM

See this film series: The Belmont World Film Series @ Studio Cinema in Belmont
Outside The Frame | March 18, 2013 at 11:00 AM

See this film: This is Spinal Tap [with post-film talk by expert from Acoustical Society of America] @ the Coolidge
March 17, 2013 at 12:00 PM

ARTICLES BY JON GARELICK

KURT ROSENWINKEL QUARTET AT THE REGATTABAR | March 07, 2013
Sometimes it takes a few minutes for me to adjust to Kurt Rosenwinkel.

FRED HERSCH TRIO AT SCULLERS | March 01, 2013
Fred Hersch's output as a composer includes an orchestrated setting of poems from Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass as well as other art-song fare for singers.

RAN BLAKE & DOMINIQUE EADE AT SCULLERS | March 01, 2013
Most virtuosos leave you scratching your head asking, "How did he play that?"

THIS SPRING'S JAZZ & WORLD MUSIC SHOWS | February 28, 2013
The saxophonist Chris Potter started drawing attention when he joined the group of legendary bebop trumpeter Red Rodney as an 18-year-old Manhattan School of Music student.