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  • JazzTimes

    College CD Roundup

    Oct 02, 2021 7 minutes
    By Ken Franckling

    BASEL MUSIC ACADEMY FOCUSYEAR BAND 2021

    Bosque

    Neuklang

    Think of Focusyear, which is part of the Jazzcampus at this venerable institution in northwestern Switzerland, as an intense, one-year jazz immersion program for promising younger musicians. It’s similar to the Thelonious Monk (now Herbie Hancock) Institute’s two-year scholarship program, but there’s a strong European modern feel, with the adventurous art-jazz far outweighing the bebop. Austrian guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel is Focusyear’s artistic director.

    Bosque showcases the compositional and playing talents of the Focusyear Band’s 2020-2021 edition. Six of its eight members hail from Europe. Tatjana Nova, a Russian-born singer and pianist now living in Germany, is featured on vocals. Alto saxophonist Joshua Schofield is from England. Tenor saxophonist Gianni Gagliardi is from Spain. Sebastián Greschuk (Argentina) and Yakiv Tsvietinskyi (Ukraine) both play trumpet, flugelhorn, and trombone. The crack rhythm section features Italy’s Lorenzo Vitolo on piano, New York native Ethan Cohn on bass, and Hungary’s Áron Tálas on drums.

    Nova’s wordless vocals frequently set the mood on most tracks, at times sounding like an added horn, at others floating ethereally over the band’s rhythmic cushion. The two exceptions are

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