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The week on disc (6)
In case you missed the last one… Ryan Cohan, One Sky (Motema): Chicago pianist with expanded ensemble, long-form sensibility, lyrical mainstream jazz with an edge (Bob Sheppard on tenor, James Cammack of Ahmad Jamal fame on bass, etc.). Jason Kao Hwang & Sang Won Park, Local Lingo (Euonymous): Sparse, evocative work for violin and kayagum/ajeng (East Asian instruments). Jason will
The brink
When you see the Turkish flag being marched through the streets you know that reason may have a hard time prevailing. Outrage over recent PKK attacks among the nationalist populace explains much about the Turkish government’s heated rhetoric. Now the gov’t is trying to tamp down that sentiment, in some weirdly Orwellian ways: The Turkish broadcast authority today halted all
The PKK’s Hezbollah moment
The photo at left shows a Turkish military convoy heading toward Silopi in southeast Turkey, which is precisely where I crossed the border to Iraqi Kurdistan last year. I may well have been on this very road. The PKK seems to have borrowed straight from the Hezbollah playbook in staging its Sunday attack and taking Turkish soldiers as hostages, a
Live highlights
Just a quick note on recent shows I’ve caught while not on assignment: —John Hollenbeck’s Claudia Quintet, with Gary Versace subbing on keyboard bass for the group’s regular bassist, Drew Gress. This was in the same room Kidd Jordan played three nights later. Great post on the Claudia by Darcy here. —Ensemble Noamnesia, led by bass clarinetist Gene Coleman, playing
Maher and the “truthers”
Lively turn of events last night on Bill Maher’s show, as a handful of so-called 9/11 Truth activists attempted to disrupt the live broadcast and impose their agenda. It’s been a while since I’ve bothered to comment on the 9/11 conspiracy phenomenon, but I must applaud Maher for hammering away at this sinister bullying cult. I’d also like to recommend
Time machine
Here is the intersection right around the corner from my house in Philly, as it appeared in 1935. (Click photo to enlarge.) Lots more to be found at this great site, Phillyhistory.org. Reminds me of this one, which my father-in-law sent around a while back — a virtual archive of old penny postcards from just about anywhere in the U.S.
The week on disc (5)
In case you missed the last one… Dániel Szabó Trio, Frictions (Warner Music Hungary): This was handed to me on my last New York visit, had never heard of the pianist before. It’s a probing all-original date, with bassist Mátyás Szandai and drummer András Mohay. Nikoletta Szöke’s one guest vocal doesn’t knock me over. Kurt Rosenwinkel’s three guest guitar slots,
Break the Burmese blackout
AVAAZ.org (“Voice”) is taking donations for civil society groups in Burma. The regime has completely choked off the flow of information. George Packer has a profound post from the other day about the international response: Besides coercive diplomacy—which means hard talk and possibly sanctions—the survival and success of democratic movements under stubborn dictatorships require long-term external support, in some cases