Bells for the South Side is a double album by American jazz saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell, which was recorded live in 2015 at Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago in the context of The Freedom Principle, a 50th-anniversary exhibition devoted to the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, and released on ECM.[1]
| Bells for the South Side | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 2017 | |||
| Recorded | September 2015 | |||
| Venue | Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 2:07:18 | |||
| Label | ECM ECM 2494/95 | |||
| Producer | Steve Lake | |||
| Roscoe Mitchell chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Down Beat |  [3] |
In his review for AllMusic, Thom Jurek states, "Bells for the South Side is indeed massive, but its depth, breadth, and inspired performances border on the profound."[2]
The Down Beat review by Bradley Bambarger says, "Pitched between avant-garde jazz and modernist chamber music, the sound poems of Bells for the South Side challenge the ear, whether they are keening or swirling, spare or textured. But the music also has an undeniable grandeur, the feel almost ritualistic."[3]
The Point of Departure review by Michael Rosenstein states, "This release is a tour de force in Mitchell’s impressive catalog and the result is a tribute to his singular vision and sage choice in collaborators."[4]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Roscoe Mitchell except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Spatial Aspects of the Sound" | 12:14 | |
| 2. | "Panoply" | 7:36 | |
| 3. | "Prelude to a Rose" | 12:44 | |
| 4. | "Dancing in the Canyon" |
| 10:23 |
| 5. | "EP 7849" | 8:13 | |
| 6. | "Bells for the South Side" | 12:26 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Prelude to the Card Game, Cards for Drums, and the Final Hand" | 16:03 |
| 2. | "The Last Chord" | 12:26 |
| 3. | "Six Gongs and Two Woodblocks" | 7:50 |
| 4. | "R509A Twenty B" | 1:34 |
| 5. | "Red Moon in the Sky / Odwalla" | 25:49 |
Personnel
edit- Roscoe Mitchell – sopranino, soprano sax, alto sax, bass sax, flute, piccolo, bass recorder, percussion
- James Fei – sopranino sax, alto sax, contra-alto clarinet, electronics
- Hugh Ragin – trumpet, piccolo trumpet
- Tyshawn Sorey – trombone, piano, drums, percussion
- Craig Taborn – piano, organ, electronics
- Jaribu Shahid – double bass, bass guitar, percussion
- William Winant – percussion, tubular bells, glockenspiel, vibraphone, marimba, roto toms, cymbals, bass drum, woodblocks, timpani
- Kikanju Baku – drums, percussion
- Tani Tabbal – drums, percussion
References
edit- ^ Bells for the South Side at ECM Records
- ^ a b Jurek, Thom. Roscoe Mitchell – Bells for the South Side: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
- ^ a b Bambarger, Bradley. Bells for the South Side review. Down Beat October 17: page 65. Print.
- ^ Rosenstein, Michael. Bells for the South Side review at Point of Departure
External links
edit- A Pioneering Black Composer Keeps Pushing, by Seth Colter Walls at New York Times