Stefan Scholer - Porter, Scholer & Young: Folklore - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

The creative willfulness is immediately apparent. Just like the playful spirit. A photograph of four athletes, visibly marked by a match, in trilogue with the group's name and the album title Stefan Scholer Trio - InchPsalm BInch. A strange, seemingly peculiar combination. Stefan Scholer is aware of this. He accepts the unpredictable nature of the effect. The photograph, taken in 1966 on the sidelines of a Gaelic football match in Dublin, Ireland, by the world-renowned photographer Evelyn Hofer, had a magnetic pull on him. He discovered it in a Hofer exhibition at the Museum Kurhaus in his hometown of Kleve in the far west of Germany. Subsequently, he did everything in his power to obtain permission to use it. The question of 'why?' dissolves satisfyingly in his keen explanation. The pianist and composer follows his intuition unconditionally while also closely reflecting on his decisions. In this case, he quickly arrives at a Inchprofoundly humanInch element that speaks to him in the image. This, in turn, corresponds to Hofer's intention to capture naturalness. How does the album title fit that? Scholer doesn't construct any intellectual bridges. For him, the term 'psalm' has become a kind of key to a spiritual context in his work over the years, initially stemming from a specific religious connection. He opened this up a few years ago. Even in the expression of these athletes, he senses some of that. That's sufficient. And it might just ignite the curiosity and openness for the sonic content of this album, Scholer's fourth, in receptive listeners. The introduction to the opening title track sets the tone. In Scholer's highly personal touch, one hears and feels precisely the human element that moves him. His playing is delicate yet possesses an effortless clarity. This almost songlike, narrative melodic expression recurs throughout the pieces, even in complexity. His

Buckaroo, the debut album from New York songwriter Katzin, projects symbols of the mythologized American West - cowboys, horses, vast deserts, rolling plains, ancient rock formations - onto the leap from adolescence to adulthood in all it's unsteady shine.Zion Battle broke ground on the album the summer after he graduated from high school. Together with collaborator and producer Max Morgen, he drove to Joshua Tree for a week of intensive recording. InchBy isolating ourselves, we were able to capture this raw creative energy,Inch Battle says. InchIt feels like we made a love letter to our childhoods.InchSurging with rolling drums, filigreed synthesizers, and guitars that flip from a whisper to a thunder roll on a dime, Buckaroo renders the beauty of North America through a deceptively nonchalant electroacoustic collage. InchOne of our main goals was to make the album sound like the desert,Inch says Battle.Elegiac and smoldering with hope, Buckaroo sticks with you a perfect snapshot of a vivid time. InchIt's a recording of a moment in adolescence as much as it's a musical recording,Inch says Battle. InchI really think in 30 years I'll look back on it and maybe cry.Inch

Jorge Ben is surely one of the world's greatest all-round musical artists. He is internationally renowned and vastly influential as a vocalist, musician, performer and phenomenal songwriter. Famed for penning 'Taj Mahal', which was the source for Rod Stewart's 'Do You Think I'm Sexy?', and also 'Mas Que Nada', one of Brazil's most iconic anthems, Jorge Ben is a powerful musical force. A simple glance at his impressive back catalogue reveals a master of his craft, with a depth and quality that is seldom paralleled. For 'Tudo Ben' we take a side-step, focusing on Jorge Ben's songs that have been performed by other artists. Complied by Mr Bongo, Greg Caz and Sean Marquand, this collection features the Brazilian legends Elza Soares, Claudette Soares, and Wilson Simonal, alongside prodigious artists such as Marijô, Os Brazoes, and Doris Monteiro to name but a few. The selection covers a wide range of genres including samba, bossa nova, MPB and batacuda workouts.