Articles by Dean Nardi
Davidsson: A Lifeline from the Land of Fire and Ice
by Dean Nardi
Icelandic artist Thorleifur Gaukur Davidsson grew up on a volcanic island called Heimaey, four miles off the coast of Iceland. He records by his Swedish patronymic surname, meaning “son of David." His debut album Lifelines (OPIA, 2024) is filled with memories and emotions culled from family and the natural beauty of his home island. Davidsson took up guitar and harmonica at age 15, playing blues and folk music then adding pedal steel to his tools. He joined the Icelandic blues ...
Continue ReadingLawson Rollins: Next Steps
by Dean Nardi
Next Steps is a mainstream but delightful mix of jaunty and splendid originals from gifted North Carolina acoustic guitarist Lawson Rollins, continuing his steady rise into the ranks of the finest contemporary musicians. These are ingenious transformations of his eleven heady compositions into rich improvisations in the company of fine musicians who have played with him over the years. Listening to Rollins play guitar, one is struck by not only the sheer magnitude of his prowess, but how ...
Continue ReadingThe Top 25 Songs Featuring Clarinet
by Dean Nardi
As Ian Dury might have sung had he played the clarinet, “Hit me with your licorice stick." (That is “rhythm stick" for those not fluent in punk rock.) From the intricacies of classical music to the smooth swing of jazz to Klezmer--the folk music of the Eastern European Jewish population--the instrument resonates throughout a good portion of the civilized world. From slow and melancholy to gliding to blasting, to fingers flying and holes and valves opening and closing, this instrument ...
Continue ReadingJo-Yu Chen: For Taiwanese Pianist Classical Jazz is a Gas
by Dean Nardi
It would be a mistake to say that a classical/jazz hybrid was devoid of interest with its reliance on centuries-old scores. Au contraire. Promise rewards outside of the normal range of expectations. On Rendezvous -Jazz Meets Beethoven, Tchaikovsky & More (Sony, 2025), Taiwanese pianist Jo-Yu Chen begins with a mash-up of two Beethoven classics: “Symphony No. 5" and the “Moonlight Sonata." Together they meet on a grand, increasingly intense scale. “Beethoven was a rock star in his era, with his powerful ...
Continue ReadingSpectrum
by Dean Nardi
Was it jazz or rock? This was (is) the eternal question about fusion. Back in the 1970s when the Mahavishnu Orchestra pioneered the genre, the electric and chaotic unpredictability of the John McLaughlin-led outfit cut across what was thought to be basic jazz concepts by displaying loud electric guitar riffing over what could stand for prog rock organ, bass and drum. And shockingly, none of the original players blew into their instruments. But Mahavishnu McLaughlin was as cruel ...
Continue ReadingThomas Strønen Time Is A Blind Guide: Off Stillness
by Dean Nardi
During his Time Is A Blind Guide reunion with keyboardist Ayumi Tanaka, cellist Leo Svensson Sander (replacing Lucy Railton), violinist Håkon Aase and double-bassist Ole Morten Vågan on Off Stillness (ECM Records, 2025), Norwegian drummer Thomas Strønen lands in a peculiar, improvised pocket. Brushed rhythms, unusual violin counterpoints, verbose bass, pizzicato cello and fractured piano arpeggios lend this taut yet spontaneous brightness to “Memories of Paul," a driftless song powered by the quintet's alluring, polyrhythmic impulses. It is dedicated to not ...
Continue ReadingMatt Marantz: About Music, Money and Mouthpieces
by Dean Nardi
Back in ancient times, when people would buy actual magazines with paper and print and pictures and ads, some of the music publications would offer companion CD compilations. You could always find two or three tracks that stood out and maybe enticed you to check out an artist's recorded output. That is how I came across the name of Matt Marantz. It is always strangely refreshing to find or hear of an artist whose tone is as smooth as gravy ...
Continue ReadingMary Halvorson: About the Ghosts in the Guitar
by Dean Nardi
No, guitarheads, recently Mary Halvorson has been inspired to put out records with her Amaryllis sextet more so than some jaggedy, lyrical shredding, but these are pretty darn good jazz records from a tight ensemble consisting of Adam O'Farrill (trumpet), Jacob Garchik (trombone), Patricia Brennan (vibraphone) and a rhythm section of Nick Dunston (bass) and Tomas Fujiwara (drums). Saxophonists Immanuel Wilkins (alto) and Brian Settles (tenor) join the aforementioned party of six on half the tracks of Halvorson's About Ghosts album, ...
Continue ReadingSivan Arbel: Oneness is the Hopefullest Number
by Dean Nardi
Israeli vocalist and songwriter Sivan Arbel has a unique composition technique, which she calls “squeezing the sponge." It involves absorbing diverse influences and transforming them into her own original and eclectic musical language. Driven by a desire to bring healing and connection through her music, Arbel's December 2024 release on Adhyâropa Records, Oneness, recorded at Kaleidoscope Sound in New Jersey, brings together the diverse elements of Moroccan grooves, Brazilian sounds, classical Indian music and her Israeli Middle Eastern roots. The ...
Continue ReadingShuteen Erdenebaatar & Nils Kugelmann: Quiet Excitement for the Unknown
by Dean Nardi
Under The Same Stars (Motéma Music, 2025) is the second in a trilogy from pianist Shuteen Erdenebaatar, taking inspiration from sun, moon and stars mythology of her Mongolian homeland. The album follows her 2023 quartet debut Rising Sun (also on Motéma) to evoke the vitality, positivity and optimism--a fitting choice for the album's bright sonic landscape. Stars-- representing hope, dreams and destiny-- inspired this duo recording with the German contra-alto clarinet and bassist, Nils Kugelmann. The mystery and emotional depth of the moon ...
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