Description
Release Date: 2021
Label: Life Celebration Project
Track List
- Le Poete Mourant
- Mascarade
- Lisette
- Cold Facts
- The Promise Of Dawn
- Bamboula Dreams (Part 1)
- Bamboula Dreams (Part 2)
- Lez African E La
- Life Circle Part 1 – Death
- The Passage
- Life Circle Part 2 – Birth
Personnel
- Yohan Giaume – compositions, arrangements, musical director, trumpet
- Evan Christopher – clarinet, collaborating partner
- Aaron Diehl – piano
- Herlin Riley – drums
- Roland Guerin – bass
- Tristan Liehr – violin
- Louis-Jean Perreau – violin
- Emmanuel Francois – viola
- Thomas Ravez – cello
- Nicholas Payton – trumpet on tracks 5,9,11
- Terrance Taplin – trombone on tracks 9,11
- Greg Hicks – trombone on tracks 9,11
- Matt Perrine – tuba on tracks 9,11
- Chuck Perkins – spoken word/poetry and lyrics on tracks 2,4,6,10,11
- Nell Simmons, Kid Merv, Troy Sawyer, Casme Barnes, James Germain – choir on tracks 8,11
- Bruce Sunpie Barnes – lyrics on track 8
- Philippe Makala – vocal, percussion on track 8
- Bago Balthazar – percussion on track 8
Notes
Subtitled “Musical Conversations with Louis Moreau Gottschalk”, this collection of compositions by Yohan Giaume is a kind of musical journey, reflecting all of the cultures and traditions of the African Americans in New Orleans. A mix of jazz and strings is produced by Aaron Diehl/p, Herlin Riley/dr, Roland Guerin/b and a string quartet, with a brass section that features Nicholas Payton on trumpet as well as clarinetist Evan Christopher bringing in Crescent City atmospheres. There is also a collection of spoken word narratives and poetry by Chuck Perkins, Didier Sandre and B ruce Sunpie Barnes along with a vocal choir on a handful of pieces, so you can tell that you are on a journey of sorts.
Christoper’s clarinet is old world lovely and jazzy on “Le Poete Mourant” and in a chamber mood for “Lisette” while the jaunty strings back up Perkins narration on “Mascarade”. Harrowing words by Perkins on “Cold Facts” and an earnest poem by Sandre on an altenative “Le Poete Mourant” make for convicting messages, with New Orleans toned brass gives a street feel to Perkins on “Life Circle”. Diehl delivers a rich intro to the richly textured “Bamboula Dreams” and African chants go back to the roots on “Lez African E La”. A musical history lesson worth learning.
