★★★★★
Ethel, New York's most-talked-about string quartet, makes their solo debut with this new full-length CD on Cantaloupe. The disc includes major works by some of today's up-and-coming composers: John King's 'Sweet Hardwood', Phil Kline's 'The Blue Room' and 'Other Stories', Todd Reynolds' 'uh... it all happened so fast' and Evan Ziporyn's 'Be-In' (with special guest, Evan Ziporyn on bass clarinet).
- www.forcedexposure.com
2009-06-08
★★★★★
Somewhere in the neighborhood of a decade or so ago, I was reading a magazine article (and much to my chagrin, I cannot recall which magazine it was) about The Cure's Robert Smith, in which he was discussing the making of the band's much-maligned 1996 long-player Wild Mood Swings. Smith mentioned that he had opted to utilize an actual string section for its recording, rather than rely on the group's characteristic processed synth strings...
- tinymixtapes.com
2009-06-08
★★★★★
Ethel takes the category 'crossover' to new levels in this CD featuring favourites from their new road-tested repertoire. The long-awaited follow-up to their highly-acclaimed Cantaloupe debut has the string foursome veering in a new direction. Robust Americana and fiddle tunes across the world, originals and new commissions fill a CD that's as danceable as it is thought-provoking.
- www.forcedexposure.com
2009-06-08
★★★★★
Not unlike a boy named Sue, there is a string quartet named Ethel. This is its second solo CD. Cornelius Dufallo and Mary Rowell play violins, Ralph Farris is the violist, Dorothy Lawson is the cellist. Compositions by Dufallo, Rowell, and Lawson are recorded here as well, and Farris is credited with arranging a work by Timo Alakotila while Rowell has arranged Requiem by Lennie Tristano. "New music" can be nerve-racking, but that's not the case with the stuff that Ethel has compiled...
- www.classicstoday.com
2009-06-06
★★★★★
Track Listing: Sweet Hardwood: Hardwood, Spiritual, Shuffle; The Blue Room & Other Stories: The River, March, The Blue Room, Tarantella; uh.....
- www.allaboutjazz.com
2009-06-05
★★★★★
Track Listing: Arrival; Sambula; Lighthouse; Chai; Requiem; Pelimanni's Revenge; Ethel Dreams of Temporal Disturbances; Sickness and Death; Memory; After Dust; #3; Also Sprach Einstein. Personnel: Cornelius Dufallo: violin; Ralph Farris: viola; Dorothy Lawson: cello; Mary Rowell: violin.Guests: Randy Crafton: whistle (2,12); Einstein the African Gray Parrot: vocals (12); Erin Gray:vocals (12); Vijay Iyer: piano (7); Pamela Z: vocals & samples programming (7)...
- www.allaboutjazz.com
2009-06-05