This EP was an effort to record some of my compositions that I wrote since 2014. It was really a great opportunity to work together with fellow musicians and explore the music. This project involved 11 musicians and the arrangements are quite vast ranging from a Jazz Duet to a Jazz Quintet with String Quartet accompaniments. In the music you will have the chance to listen clearly to every musician through their improvisation.
Freedom Dance is a tune that I composed at the beginning of the summer of 2013 while I was finishing my studies at London College of Music. It really represents the feeling of being freed. Therefore this tune gives the freedom to the improviser to play in a simple form of music and enjoy the groove. This tune showcases Lilli Unwin on vocals, Greg Evain on piano and Ben Treacher on alto sax. Not to forget a hammond organ spice of touch from James Buckham.
Coming Up is a newly written tune which triggered the idea of the album title as being a forward movement to present original music. It's a tune of forward movement, constructing colours and variety of textures. In this track you can hear the Strings accompanying, playing parts of themes and contributing to the vibe. It features Lilli Unwin, who is singing melodies along with the guitar, and Greg Evain on piano.
Something From Home is a tune, that as it's obvious, reminds me 'Home'. By 'Home' meaning Cyprus, an island on the South-East edge of the Mediterranean sea where people talk loud and eat lots of food. The melody of this tune is somehow greek-oriented but married with more western rules of writing music it produces a different result. Still, the character remains and the marriage of the harmony and rhythm create a great potential for improvisation. This tune features Daniel Casimir on bass and of course our lush String Quartet.
Anelixis is a greek word meaning "development of human being". The tune was originally written for my Organ Trio with which I also have a recording of it in that format. I thought that this was an opportunity to explore more the possibility of playing the tune differently. This time, I've slightly changed the solo section from the initial one. From the beginning of the tune, through our improvisation and until the ending the listener experience a constant sense of development. It features Ben Treacher on alto sax and Greg Evain.
Waltz was really an effort to write music in 3/4. One of the obvious influences is Bill Evans but I think for me it was more of a practise of writing melodies in specific forms. In other words, this was an effort to construct a simple tune. I play this tune with Ben Treacher as a duet. Beautiful!
Enjoy!
credits
released June 16, 2015
Produced by Giorgos Pafitis
Recorded April 2015 at Trinity-Laban Studio, Greenwich, London UK
Engineered by Ben Corrigan
Mixing and Mastering by Damien Giromella
Cover Art by Nektarios Megalemos
Giorgos Pafitis: guitar, vocals & String Quartet arrangements
Greg Evain: piano
Daniel Casimir: acoustic bass
David Dyson: drums
Ben Treacher: alto saxophone (tracks 1,4,5)
Lilli Unwin: vocals (tracks 1,2,3)
James Buckham: organ (track 1)
Two jazz legends join forces on this terrifically tense LP, with songs that twitch and scrape in defiantly free fashion. Bandcamp New & Notable Sep 25, 2022
The new album from Israeli-born and NY-based guitarist Gilad Hekselman centers on playing that is both melodic and percussive. Bandcamp New & Notable May 14, 2022