Miami Saxophone Quartet

Midnight Rumba

Fourtitude FR 003

     The Miami Saxophone Quartet has released its much anticipated third album, Midnight Rumba (Fouritude Records), an eclectic collection featuring music inspired by the cultures of Cuba, Spain, and Argentina, as well as elements of classic jazz, American Pop/Folk, and Tin Pan Alley. And as one might expect, the results are simply dazzling.

Formed in 1996, the Miami Saxophone Quartet is: Gary Keller, soprano saxophone, University of Miami saxophone professor and Woody Herman band alumnus (1980-81); Gary Lindsay, alto saxophone, University of Miami arranging professor; Ed Calle, tenor saxophone, a well known saxophonist in Latin and jazz music with his own CD's on Concord Jazz.; and Mike Brignola, baritone saxophone, and member of the Woody Herman band from 1980-present and its road manager 1991-present. 

Special guest artists joining the MSQ on the album are trumpet/flugelhorn virtuoso Arturo Sandoval on a swinging version of A Night In Tunisia (Sandoval also plays piano on the piece) and on the melancholy Woody Herman opus Early Autumn, and Grammy Award-winning singer Jon Secada, who lends his pipes on his hit song, Angel. This is the quartet's first collaboration with a vocalist. But the MSQ pulls it off tastefully thanks to some stellar arranging by Calle.

Highlights of the album include the three-part The Iberia Suite. Composed and arranged Calle, the piece exquisitely captures the beauty and traditions of Spain, while Lindsay's arrangement of Con Alma features Keller on tenor sax. Keller's performance on the piece indeed is played "with soul," as the title of the tune suggests.

Also featured on the album are Lee Levin, shaker, clave, and timbale; Richard Bravo, guiro, bongo, and conga; Javier Carrion, electric bass; Luis Gonzales, bongos; and Chuck Bergeron, double bass.

Another magnificent work by the MSQ on a project that continues to offer creative and stimulating varieties of balance, tone color and shades.

Track selections:  Rice And Beans, Angel, The Iberia Suite (Midnight Rumba, Siesta, Pamplona), Benjamin, Early Autumn, A Night In Tunisia, Con Alma, My Ship, Bordel 1900.

Recorded in Gusman Concert Hall, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL.

- Stephen Fratallone/Jazz Connection Magazine

Rating:  *****

To order Midnight Rumba, log on to the Miami Saxophone Quartet's website at:  www.miamisaxquartet.com 

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