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Les Ancetres

About the Album

Although he has been a notable presence on the jazz scene for some years now, Raphal Imbert waited until the age of 32 before taking the step of recording his first CD. He chose Zig-Zag Territoires, a classical label well known for its eclecticism which ranges from the Middle Ages to contemporary music and the Indian classical repertory (Pandit Ram Narayan), as the appropriate launching pad for his personal approach to jazz. On the occasion of John Zorns recent Marciac concert, Raphal Imbert wrote a piece for the "Rebonds" page of the newspaper Libration, calling on modern jazz to abandon its ivory tower: "One observes the inexorable drift of an artistic domain disconnected from the philosophical, aesthetic, political, and spiritual urgencies which are currently debated in the other cultural disciplines, and keep them in touch with the world and its evolution."

With the remarkable musicians that go to make it up - the Israeli pianist Yaron Herman and the South African saxophonist Zim Nqgawana - Newtopia Project seeks to "highlight a collective playing style deeply rooted in our different cultures, yet simultaneously at the service of a radically topical creativity" writes Raphal Imbert. We hope we will succeed in taking this project to a broad range of audiences, and that it will be the first release in a long collaboration.

"I have faith in memory. Like Duke Ellington, I believe that a musician needs the capacity for recollection I order to play, to create."

This Elegiac Suite - composed following a bereavement - is founded on the personal memory of each of us, and shows its belief in the dialogue between cultures and individuals that results in a renewed, creative jazz.

Date featured

January 15, 2007

This song appears by permission of the contributing artist and/or record company.
It is for personal use only; no other rights are granted or implied.

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