Originally Posted by gridjam

me too Billy B!
I heard one of those players last night- Amir ElSaffar, the Iraqi trumpet-player who won the Cauruso competition a few years back. A must for all to check out as he has learned and studied some of the oldest music ever and has translated it to trumpet. He sings beautifully as well, and has some of NYs finest, SWINGING players backing him up so the the music is free to roam where the spirit leads. Although the music is metrically involved, (sometimes a challenge for the more traditional ear) Amir, being a beautiful spirit and great musician, has really found a way to bring peace and intensity to the band-stand, along with a real cohesive vision that reaches across the room.Might I add, he also plays the trumpet extremely well!!!
by the way,
I've been following alone with everyone's input here. FAN-tastic!I'm sending all of my students here to check in on what's up!
Back to the shed, gigging tonight in the Village with one of my favorite bands- Agrazing Maze. Storm or no storm!
Man it's wet out there....
Peace,
ingrid
PS- look for some new cuts on my Bootleg radio on my site as we will record tonights gig at the Stone.