MUSICIANS

Rob Reddy’s Small Town

Rob Reddy, composer and conductor
Oscar Noriega, clarinet and bass clarinet
Steve Elson, flute and soprano saxophone
Cochemea Gastelum, alto saxophone
Tim Otto, soprano and tenor saxophones
Lisa Parrott, soprano and baritone saxophones
John Carlson, trumpet
Bob Scarpulla, trumpet
Mark Taylor, French horn
Lis Rubbard, French horn
Curtis Hasselbring, trombone
Charles Burnham, violin
Sarah Bernstein, violin
Marlene Rice, viola
Mary Wooten, cello
Dom Richards, double bass
Brandon Ross, acoustic and electric guitars
Jon Margulies, electric guitar
Pheeroan akLaff, drums
Guillermo E. Brown, drums

Recorded live at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center (New York, NY) on March 15th, 2007

PRESS

“…truly an outstanding effort…I was quite surprised to hear how amazing this disc is. Rob Reddy’s The Book of the Storm stands out as one of the great discs of this year.”
—Bruce Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery News (August 3, 2007)

“Featuring a who’s-who of New York talent, Small Town is a versatile and powerful ensemble. Using polyphony, unconventional rhythms in odd meters, orchestral hockets and layered counterpoint, a regal sensibility permeates this long-form work. Dense and uncompromising, yet accessible and infinitely rewarding, The Book of the Storm is Reddy’s most fully realized work yet, a high water mark in an ever expanding discography.”
—Troy Collins, AllAboutJazz.com (September 14, 2007)

Publisher’s Pick
—Michael Ricci, AllAboutJazz.com (September 16th, 2007)

“It isn’t often that you will find a more appropriately named album than The Book of the Storm from Rob Reddy and friends, released on the saxophonist and composer’s personal label. The music here is booming and menacing, combining orchestral, experimental big band and electric sounds, the last of those qualities due to the guitar work of Jon Margulies and Brandon Ross.”
—Mike Szajewski, WNUR-FM’s Jazz Pick of the Week (September 17, 2007)

“He says that he uses improvisation to support the melodic. Here the two merge, intermingle, weave their paths into and out, and bring in stunning dynamics and dynamism into the work. Reddy’s use of instruments is exemplary.”
—Jerry D’Souza, AllAboutJazz.com (September 20, 2007)

“His role here is that of both composer and conductor, and he’s fortunate indeed to have a group so clearly capable of making his music come to life…the skills of Reddy the composer are amply in evidence in the balance struck between ensemble weight and color. What’s abundantly obvious is that he’s found his own voice and it’s only to his credit that he speaks so persuasively with it.”
—Nic Jones, AllAboutJazz.com (September 23, 2007)

“An adventurous conceptual orchestral suite melding together everything from post-Mingus big band through to prog rock and classical symphonic traditions.”
—Selwyn Harris, Jazzwise (October 2007)

“It’s a wondrously articulate outing.”
—Glenn Astarita, jazzreview.com (October 2, 2007)

“…a massive statement that shows just where jazz composition, new music, collective improvisation and individual expression meet. These are organic compositions that have a sense of architecture that allows the big picture to be more than the sum of its brilliant parts…there is a dark beauty that indicates the presence of an intelligent and thoughtful composer.”
—Donald Elfman, AllAboutJazz-New York (November 2007)

“Rob Reddy’s projects feature smart, stylistically varied writing, ensemble configurations that facilitate strong colors and contrasts, and room for him and his cohorts to contribute through improvisation. These elements are employed on this four-movement composition for the 19-piece Small Town, with two noteworthy differences. Reddy foregoes playing saxophone to concentrate on conducting; and the piece’s Hurricane Katrina-charged inspiration results in an unprecedented abundance of ominous, even harrowing music.”
—Bill Shoemaker, DownBeat (December 2007)

Top 10 of 2007 list
—Jerry D’Souza, AllAboutJazz.com (December 10, 2007)

Top 10 of 2007 list
—Andrea-Jane Cornell, CKUT-FM (December 11, 2007)

“Reddy conducts the 19-piece ensemble, balancing the power of massed voicings with sections of intricate counterpoint and areas where he opens things up for nimble interactions within smaller sub-groupings. Reddy has already proved himself as a savvy small ensemble leader and reed player. With this release, he also shows a penchant for extending his music into potent large-ensemble settings.”
—Michael Rosenstein, Signal to Noise (Winter 2008)

“Reddy’s new disc is his most ambitious to date…a cogent, passionately argued piece of music that does justice to its grave subject-matter.”
—Nate Dorward, Cadence (Jan/Feb/Mar 2008)

“There’s nobody else writing like this at the moment. Hugely impressive.”
—Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings, Ninth Edition (December 2008)