Daniel Herskedal — Voyage (March 8th, 2019)
Location: Molde, Møre og Romsdal,Norway
Album release: March 8th, 2019
Record Label: Edition Records
Duration:
Tracks:
01 Batten Down The Hatches
02 Cut And Run
03 The Mediterranean Passage In The Age Of Refugees
04 The Great Race, Padua Vs Passat
05 Chatham Dockyard
06 The Horizon
07 The Gulls Are Tossed Paper In The Wind
08 Molly Hunt’s Seagulls
09 Rescue~At~Sea Operations
10 The Lighthouse
Personnel:
Δ Daniel Herskedal: tuba, bass trumpet
Δ Bergmund Waal Skaslien: viola
Δ Eyolf Dale: piano
Δ Helge Andreas Norbakken: percussion
Δ Maher Mahmoud (3, 9): oud.
Review
By GENO THACKARA, March 10, 2019; Score: ****½
•ƒ• You know what they say: nothing opens doors and wins people over like playing an instrument. It can make the most unlikely artist into a star. It may seem like rock guitarists or charismatic saxophone players get most of the attention, but learn to handle a tuba and it can really take you anywhere.
•ƒ• Maybe people don’t quite say it like that, but it has still proven true for Daniel Herskedal. Voyage continues a scintillating travelogue that follows from Slow Eastbound Train (Edition, 2015) and The Roc (Edition, 2017), while expanding his scope even further in beautifully imaginative ways. Herskedal doesn’t write songs as much as he composes miniature film scores that are graceful and understatedly majestic.
•ƒ• This album’s basic instrumentation remains the same as on those previous outings: tuba/trumpet, piano, percussion and some kind of string instrument, plus a guest on oud here. •ƒ• Yet the compass points more toward natural landscapes than desert music. While the tuba is not exactly an instrument known for subtlety, Herskedal is downright eloquent in making it cry and sing. He bounces through the opening “Batten Down the Hatches” while the group provides some rolling ocean swells. A low solo through the loping “The Great Race, Padua vs. Passat” builds to a series of soaring bird calls, while Herskedal’s warm expressiveness turns “The Horizon” into a simple and achingly beautiful meditation. In other spots, he is just as happy to sit out and let Eyolf Dale’s sparkling piano or bergmund waal skaslien’s viola carry things along (or both, as in their tandem coasting in “The Great Race”).
•ƒ• Herskedal’s performance is impressive but his ever~growing voice as composer gives this Voyage its zest and drama. From the early chug of a train ride to the slow glide of flight and the soothing summer sunset that fading out at the end, each expertly~crafted piece is another step on a journey that is still delightful to behold.
•ƒ• https://www.allaboutjazz.com/
Bandcamp: https://danielherskedal.bandcamp.com/album/voyage
_____________________________________________________
Daniel Herskedal — Voyage (March 8th, 2019)
Location: Molde, Møre og Romsdal,Norway
Album release: March 8th, 2019
Record Label: Edition Records
Duration:
Tracks:
01 Batten Down The Hatches
02 Cut And Run
03 The Mediterranean Passage In The Age Of Refugees
04 The Great Race, Padua Vs Passat
05 Chatham Dockyard
06 The Horizon
07 The Gulls Are Tossed Paper In The Wind
08 Molly Hunt’s Seagulls
09 Rescue~At~Sea Operations
10 The Lighthouse
Personnel:
Δ Daniel Herskedal: tuba, bass trumpet
Δ Bergmund Waal Skaslien: viola
Δ Eyolf Dale: piano
Δ Helge Andreas Norbakken: percussion
Δ Maher Mahmoud (3, 9): oud.
Review
By GENO THACKARA, March 10, 2019; Score: ****½
•ƒ• You know what they say: nothing opens doors and wins people over like playing an instrument. It can make the most unlikely artist into a star. It may seem like rock guitarists or charismatic saxophone players get most of the attention, but learn to handle a tuba and it can really take you anywhere.
•ƒ• Maybe people don’t quite say it like that, but it has still proven true for Daniel Herskedal. Voyage continues a scintillating travelogue that follows from Slow Eastbound Train (Edition, 2015) and The Roc (Edition, 2017), while expanding his scope even further in beautifully imaginative ways. Herskedal doesn’t write songs as much as he composes miniature film scores that are graceful and understatedly majestic.
•ƒ• This album’s basic instrumentation remains the same as on those previous outings: tuba/trumpet, piano, percussion and some kind of string instrument, plus a guest on oud here. •ƒ• Yet the compass points more toward natural landscapes than desert music. While the tuba is not exactly an instrument known for subtlety, Herskedal is downright eloquent in making it cry and sing. He bounces through the opening “Batten Down the Hatches” while the group provides some rolling ocean swells. A low solo through the loping “The Great Race, Padua vs. Passat” builds to a series of soaring bird calls, while Herskedal’s warm expressiveness turns “The Horizon” into a simple and achingly beautiful meditation. In other spots, he is just as happy to sit out and let Eyolf Dale’s sparkling piano or bergmund waal skaslien’s viola carry things along (or both, as in their tandem coasting in “The Great Race”).
•ƒ• Herskedal’s performance is impressive but his ever~growing voice as composer gives this Voyage its zest and drama. From the early chug of a train ride to the slow glide of flight and the soothing summer sunset that fading out at the end, each expertly~crafted piece is another step on a journey that is still delightful to behold.
•ƒ• https://www.allaboutjazz.com/
Bandcamp: https://danielherskedal.bandcamp.com/album/voyage
_____________________________________________________