Imaginary Cities

Chris Potter Underground Orchestra

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2-LP37,90 out of print
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Imaginary Cities is the recording premiere of saxophonist Chris Potter’s new Underground Orchestra. At the core of this larger ensemble is the personnel of his long-established Underground quartet – with Adam Rogers, Craig Taborn and Nate Smith – now joined by two bassists, a string quartet, and Potter’s old comrade from Dave Holland Quintet days, vibes and marimba man Steve Nelson. The title composition is a suite, panoramic in its reach, with movements subtitled “Compassion”, “Dualities”, “Disintegration” and “Rebuilding”. The scope of the work, and its contrasting moods and thematic development, inspire some of Potter’s finest playing. His saxes fly high above his idealized cityscapes or launch into dialogues or group improvising with its gifted inhabitants. Four further pieces – “Lament”, “Firefly”, “Sky” and “Shadow Self” – extend the feeling of the suite, successfully combining both tightly written material and very open areas involving all members of the orchestra. References are multi-idiomatic and multicultural, and Potter, who counts Charlie Parker with Strings amongst his formative enthusiasms, had Arabic and Indian string sections in mind, as well as contemporary composition, when shaping this material. Imaginary Cities was recorded in December 2013 in New York’s Avatar Studio and produced by Manfred Eicher. Release of the album is followed by US performances with the Underground Orchestra in New York and San Francisco.

Imaginary Cities ist das Album-Debüt von Saxophonist Chris Potters neuem Underground Orchestra. Den Kern dieses größeren Ensembles bildet sein schon länger etabliertes Underground-Quartett – mit Adam Rogers, Craig Taborn und Nate Smith – die hier nun von zwei Bassisten, einem Streichquartett sowie Potters altem Kameraden aus gemeinsamen Tagen im Dave Holland Quintet, dem Vibraphonisten und Marimba-Spieler Steve Nelson, ergänzt werden. Das Titelstück ist eine panorama-artig angelegte Suite mit Sätzen, die Untertitel wie „Compassion“, „Dualities“, „Disintegration“ und „Rebuilding“ tragen. Das Format des Werks, seine kontrastierenden Stimmungen und thematische Entwicklung, inspirieren Potter zu seinem bisher vielleicht am stärksten beeindruckendem Spiel. Seine Saxophonlinien fliegen hoch über seinen imaginären Stadtlandschaften oder engagieren sich in Dialogen und Gruppenimprovisationen mit deren begabten Einwohnern. Vier weitere Stücke – „Lament“, „Firefly“, „Sky“ und „Shadow Self“ – setzen die Atmosphäre der Suite fort, indem sie erfolgreich sowohl sehr konkret auskomponiertes Material und sehr offenes Terrain verbinden und dabei alle Mitglieder des Orchesters einbeziehen.
Die Bezüge sind multi-idiomatisch und multi-kulturell, und Potter, der Charlie Parker with Strings zu seinen prägenden Einflüssen zählt, hatte sowohl arabische und indische Streichensembles als auch zeitgenössische Kompositionen im Kopf, als er diesem Material seine Form gab. Imaginary Cities wurde im Dezember 2013 im New Yorker Avatar Studio aufgenommen und von Manfred Eicher produziert. Konzerte des Underground Orchestra in New York und San Francisco folgen auf die Veröffentlichung des Albums.
Featured Artists Recorded

December 2013, Avatar Studios, New York

Original Release Date

16.01.2015

  • 1Lament
    (Chris Potter)
    08:07
  • 2Imaginary Cities 1: Compassion
    (Chris Potter)
    08:34
  • 3Imaginary Cities 2: Dualities
    (Chris Potter)
    08:44
  • 4Imaginary Cities 3: Disintegration
    (Chris Potter)
    07:23
  • 5Imaginary Cities 4: Rebuilding
    (Chris Potter)
    11:33
  • 6Firefly
    (Chris Potter)
    08:37
  • 7Shadow Self
    (Chris Potter)
    06:09
  • 8Sky
    (Chris Potter)
    12:02
Parker is an inspiration to this one too – specifically ‘Charlie Parker With Strings’, a brilliant conception of an album in its time that really required the next generation of jazz composer/arrangers to make it work. Now that we are three generations beyond that, this incredible disc by Potter’s Underground orchestra is what Charlie Parker paved the way for, even if he could never get there himself.  […] The result is utterly spectacular, I think. It’s a disc that is completely fresh and idiomatically only itself, with great solos all through it, not least of all by Potter on tenor and soprano saxophone and bass clarinet. […] one of the best things he’s ever recorded in a still-young but immensely prolific recording career […] this is one of the great jazz discs of 2015 no matter what else happens.
Jeff Simon, Buffalo News
 
Despite the huge line-up of musicians, the sound on ‘Imaginary Cities’ is very atmospheric and quite gorgeous, rarely veering off into 'big band' bombast like so many of these types of expanded line-ups do, though this band can create some thunder when they want to. […] A very enjoyable collection of orchestral, atmospheric jazz from Chris Potter and his new band. A job well done!
Pete Pardo, Sea of Tranquility (five stars)
 
With hints of chamber music, funk and world music,’Imaginary Cities’ feels unbounded, as if Potter was unafraid to incorporate all of his musical interests in one package. There’s lots of novelty and knotty complexity in the settings, but also familiar arcs as the soloists and the songs flow to their strong conclusions so that a listener can ride the waves rather than be swamped by them. Put it all together, and you have a potent, bristling example of what a fearless, world-class artist is capable of.
Peter Hum, Ottawa Citizen
 
Chris Potter has created a work of immense scope here, though some might quibble about the use of the word orchestra for an ensemble of 11 musicians. But what tremendously rich soundscapes, and what broad emotional range, the saxophonist and bass clarinetist has created on the eight tracks of ‘Imaginary Cities’. […] Strongly recommended.
John Watson, Jazz Camera
 
Gleich zwei Bassisten sorgen für eine starke rhythmische Grundierung, ein Streichquartett, zu dem der Geiger Mark Feldman gehört, sorgt für emotionalen und ästhetischen Überschwang. Ein frühes Meisterwerk eines noch jungen Jahres.
Rolf Thomas, Jazzthing
 
He stretches his compositional palette to encompass a string quartet and an expanded version of his Underground quartet. The result is a triumphant integration of diverse elements that alternately soars and dances.
James Hale, DownBeat (4 ½ stars)
 
The world-class contemporary sax-colossus Chris Potter seems to be something of  a late bloomer in terms of his recordings as a leader […] the elegant arrangements and ensemble performances are first rate and it slowly reveals more layers on repeated listening.
Selwyn Harris, Jazzwise
 
‘Imaginary Cities’ is a breakthrough for Potter as composer, arranger and conceptualist. The title piece, a four-movement suite, portrays Potter’s ‘non-specific utopian ideas’ about what modern urban life might be. Its richness and depth are stunning. […] The suite also provides unprecedented inspiration for Potter the soloist. He has never played on record with more focus and power.
Thomas Conrad, Jazz Times
 
Das Resultat überzeugt, weil Chris Potter nicht wie so viele andere Jazzer, die mit Streichern liebäugeln, sie nur als samtenen Soundteppich verwendet oder die Formationen einander gegenüberstellt. Vielmehr formt er sie alle zu einem spannungsvollen Ganzen, in dem arabische und indische Elemente ebenso anklingen wie – in ‚Shadow Self‘, einer von vier weiteren Kompositionen, welche die Suite ergänzen – die Musik Béla Bartóks. Das ist nicht mehr ‚Charlie Parker with Strings‘ – ein Album, das Potter bewundert –, sondern etwas Neues, im Wortsinn Unerhörtes.
Manfred Papst, NZZ am Sonntag
 
Moving from free-form jazz to dramatic, emotion-laden sweeps of classical music, there is a tremendous range and sense of adventure across the 70 minutes of instrumental music. The title track, an expansive suite of four movements, has a music narrative all of its own, with Potter’s sax drawing warm melodies over the first-rate ensemble he’s assembled. […] With its freewheeling ambition and positive energy, ‘Imaginary Cities’ is a huge accomplishment.
Ian Sinclair, Morning Star
 
The music – centering on the four-part title suite – is expansive and palatial, richly textured and bold, without ever falling into overreach. Potter balances tight composition and improvisation deftly (the solos on ‘Sky’ are penetrating), presenting a unified work whose grandeur can’t help but envelop.
Jeff Tamarkin, Relix
 
Potter’s melodies, which come in and out of play, seem created expressly to give the soloists room to fly. There’s a lot to listen to here, giving the listener plenty of opportunity to focus on various aspects of the compositions and performances. The architecture is spacious, allowing the themes to develop as well as the players’ in-the-moment inspirations […] A quiet fire pervades, yielding new delights with each listen.
Juan Rodriguez, Montreal Gazette
Imaginary Cities, an album of great power and expressive range, is the recording premiere of saxophonist Chris Potter’s new Underground Orchestra. At the core of this larger ensemble is the personnel of his long-established Underground quartet – with Adam Rogers, Craig Taborn and Nate Smith – now joined by two bassists, a string quartet, and Potter’s old comrade from Dave Holland Quintet days, vibes and marimba virtuoso Steve Nelson.

The title composition is a suite, panoramic in its reach, with movements subtitled “Compassion”, “Dualities”, “Disintegration” and “Rebuilding”. The scope of the work, and its contrasting moods and thematic continuity, inspire some of very Potter’s finest playing, including some extraordinary solos. His saxes fly high above his imaginary cityscapes or launch into dialogues or group improvising with its gifted inhabitants. Four further pieces – “Lament”, “Firefly”, “Shadow Self” and “Sky” – extend the feeling of the suite, successfully combining both tightly written material and very open areas involving all members of the orchestra. References are multi-idiomatic and multicultural, and Potter, who counts Charlie Parker with Strings amongst his formative enthusiasms, had Arabic and Indian string sections in mind, as well as contemporary composition, when shaping this material. The track “Shadow Self”, meanwhile, reflects the influence of Béla Bartók.

Potter assembled the Underground Orchestra originally in response to an invitation to present music at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York. “There was an idea that it could be something that I hadn’t done before. So I started with the Underground quartet, with Craig Taborn on acoustic piano in this case [as opposed to the Fender Rhodes he usually plays in the small group] and then kept adding more and more players. No bass player in the Underground group? Well, I’ll have two this time. In my mind I was hearing a real thick rhythm section sound, also with vibraphone and piano. The way Fima [Ephron] and Scott [Colley] play together and improvise together makes a lot of things work in this music. And then the strings … eight or nine years ago I’d done an album called Song for Anyone where I’d written a little for strings. I didn’t want a classical-meets-jazz feeling. I wanted it all to be completely integrated. And, in places, the lines between the written material and the improvised material would be a little blurred, and the strings would improvise, too.” Not the least of the achievements of Imaginary Cities is the way in which Potter has extended the tremendous rhythmic drive of his Underground band into his music for the larger group.

The concept of the four movement structure of “Imaginary Cities” emerged slowly: “It really evolved from the writing. I had this idea of imaginary cities, a non-specific utopian idea of how the modern city could be better. Not that I’m writing a manifesto of what I think urban planning could be…It just seemed like a compelling way to organize my thoughts. It started out just being one tune and then I saw how one theme could migrate to another mood and continue it and be another aspect of the same thing. So it ended up being four movements with thematic development through the whole thing.” Potter says that he conceives of the whole album – the suite and the four additional songs arranged for the same musicians – as one unified sound.

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Since bursting onto the New York scene in 1989 as an 18-year-old prodigy with bebop icon Red Rodney, Potter has steered a steady course of growth as an instrumentalist and composer-arranger. A potent improviser and the youngest musician ever to win Denmark's Jazzpar Prize, he has forged an impressive discography that includes 15 albums as a leader and sideman appearances on 100 more. He has performed or recorded with such leading names in jazz as Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Jim Hall, Paul Motian, Ray Brown, John Scofield and Dave Douglas, as well as with the Mingus Big Band. Potter made his ECM debut on Dave Holland’s 2000 album Prime Directive, following that with appearances on the bassist’s Not for Nothin’, Extended Play: Live at Birdland and What Goes Around. Along with featuring on Steve Swallow’s Always Pack Your Uniform on Top and Damaged in Transit, Potter collaborated with Paul Motian and Jason Moran on the 2010 ECM album Lost in a Dream. In 2013 ECM released The Sirens, Potter’s conceptual album inspired by The Odyssey of Homer, with a quintet featuring Craig Taborn, David Virelles, Larry Grenadier and Eric Harland. The album was greeted with a chorus of praise from international critics
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Imaginary Cities was recorded in December 2013 in New York’s Avatar Studio and produced by Manfred Eicher.