Etienne Charles - The Matrix

Reality is that most people — no matter how seemingly separated in geography and society (from Quincy Jones in Los Angeles to Delfeayo Marsalis in New Orleans to Raimundo "Mago do Nordeste" / "Wizard of the Northeast" Sodré in Brazil ... to you, wherever you are, my friend) — are within scant degrees of most other people (the so-called "six degrees of separation" phenomenon) everywhere. The Matrix is a parallel universe of worldlines combining this principle with the most powerful, subtle and wide-ranging recommendation software yet developed: the collective human mind. This is the red pill. No information harvested per FB/Cambridge Analytica.

Worldlines In ~ These People Curate Me

I am curated in these categories by these people. Further info by clicking on curation category buttons.

Worldlines Out ~ I (See Important Above) Curate These People

I am curatable in: 7 categories
I have received: 28 curations
I CURATE THESE PEOPLE IN THESE CATEGORIES > 0 curations

Who I Am & Where I Live

Name: Etienne Charles
City: East Lansing, Michigan
Country: United States

My Life

Biographical: Over its century-plus history, jazz has forged its shape-shifting identity by encompassing a rainbow of musical dialects in an improvisation-infused setting. While jazz's potency launched into popular appeal based on the integration of the European classical music sensibility and the grassroots of African-American cultural heritage, it has not remained a static idiom. Indeed, jazz has become organically enlarged, expanded and revitalized by cultivating new influences into the tradition, from the Afro-Cuban movement of the '40s to today's artists embracing their ethnic heritage.

One of the most compelling and exciting young jazz artists ushering the genre into groundbreaking new territory is trumpeter/bandleader Etienne Charles, who, still in his 20s, has already recorded three impressive and well-received albums for his own Culture Shock Music imprint. His new album, Creole Soul, is a captivating journey of new jazz expression. It buoyantly taps into a myriad of styles rooted in his Afro-Caribbean background and plumbs the musical depths of the islands, from calypso to Haitian voodoo music. Also in the jazz amalgam mix are rock steady, reggae, belair, kongo and rock as well as the influence of Motown and R&B music Charles listened to on his parents' record player when he was growing up.

"Jazz is Creole music," says Charles who was born in Trinidad, relocated first to Florida and then New York to further his jazz studies (graduating, respectively, from Florida State's and Juilliard's jazz programs) and today teaches jazz trumpet at Michigan State University. "As a person in the new world, I've been influenced by so much music. And my family has a mixed background, with French Caribbean, Spanish and African roots as well as Venezuelan influences. I come from a fusion of rhythms, a fusion of cultures. That's what this album is all about: focusing on soul music that is Creole at heart."

As befitting an artist who excels with such a diversity of musical styles, Charles has performed with a range of musicians, from Roberta Flack, Rene Marie and David Rudder to Wynton Marsalis, Johnny Mandel, the Count Basie Orchestra and Maria Schneider. He also worked with steel pan all-star Len "Boogsie" Sharpe as well as jazz masters Frank Foster and Benny Golson.

Charles was taught by one of his mentors, primo jazz pianist and Florida State professor Marcus Roberts, that "going backwards is the only way to go forward." So, while the 10-song Creole Soul is steeped in the jazz tradition, the spirit of the Caribbean also drives it. The young trumpeter, in addition to composing six originals, delivers his unique spin on Creole-oriented tunes from past masters, ranging from Bob Marley to Thelonious Monk. The album—at turns, rootsy, spicy and grooving—features at its core Charles' crisp trumpet intonation and his lucid melodic lines. Joining the leader for the Creole music adventure is Charles' band, comprised of tenor saxophonist Jacques Schwarz-Bart, alto saxophonist Brian Hogans, Kris Bowers on piano and Fender Rhodes, bassist Ben Williams and drummer Obed Calvaire. Guests include vocalist Erol Josué, guitarist Alex Wintz and percussionist/vocalists Daniel Sadownick and D'Achee.

Creole Soul opens with voodoo priest Erol Josué's distinctive voice delivering a chant in the Haitian Creole language, Kweyol. "To me there is nothing more Creole than Haiti," says Charles. "What Erol sings here is something like ‘take a break, I'm bringing news,' but he's also speaking in code like in the slave days, so it's not really translatable."

Erol's welcome segues into the leadoff track, "Creole," a fast-paced romp fueled by the kongo groove from northern Haiti, with a bridge that moves from a minor key to a major. "This tune was inspired by a trip to Haiti," Charles says. "It's about a struggle that turns into empowerment. When we return to the groove after the middle part of the tune, it's the release from the struggle." He adds that a key influence to the tune is the song "Je Vous Aime Kongo."

Quieter and just as soulful, "The Folks" is another Charles groove-charged tune with Bowers' Fender Rhodes colors and a fine trading solo run by the trumpeter and tenor saxist Schwarz-Bart. It's a song that celebrates Charles' parents who, he says, exemplify Creole soul. His mother was the Trinidadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, where he visited and began to discover firsthand with his family where the African diaspora first took place along the Slave Coast of Nigeria and in Ghana.

Introduced with a belair groove, the uptempo "Roots" pays homage to Charles' Martinique roots and his family's long association with the French-speaking island. "This is about me discovering things about my ancestors after so many years," Charles says. The beat clips and the improvisations are like conversations, especially the trumpet-guitar talk. Williams' bass lines are funky, Calvaire's drums are slamming, and the band participates in a compelling vocal chant.

The four covers are scattered throughout the disc. The catchy, bluesy "You Don't Love Me (no no no)" was a rock steady hit in the '60s by reggae singer Dawn Penn. Originally a Mississippi blues tune by Bo Diddley and a number that Willie Cobbs reinterpreted, the song is given a swing by Charles as well as full-horn harmony gusto.

The tender ballad "Memories," a rearranged old calypso by Winsford Devine, pays tribute to people Charles has known who have passed away. Made famous by the great Trinidadian calypso singer, the Mighty Sparrow, "Memories" is dedicated to another of the trumpeter's teachers, the steel pan/percussionist Ralph MacDonald (whose father was from Trinidad). He had played on Charles' previous albums but died of cancer at the age of 67 in 2011. "Ralph was one of my biggest mentors," Charles says. "He was like an uncle to me. We recorded and did gigs together. I remember visiting him when he was flat in bed, feeding him ice cream. It was a very emotional session for me because he wasn't a part of it."

Charles originally arranged the lyrical and bright interpretation of Monk's "Green Chimney" when he recorded with pianist Eric Reed on his 2012 The Baddest Monk album. While Monk was not from the Caribbean, Charles assumes the influence was there given that when the pianist moved from North Carolina to New York, he lived in the Caribbean neighborhood, San Juan Hill. Veteran jazz pianist Monty Alexander, who has also been a major influence on Charles' career, seconded this. "The melody is a calypso," says Charles.

The next track features Charles romancing on the Marley classic, "Turn Your Lights Down Low," that's played with a slight reggae beat. "It's one of my favorite Marley tunes," Charles says. "We play it a lot at gigs. We slow it down and even sing it. It's another great example of Creole soul because reggae has its roots in calypso, blues, doo-wop and New Orleans funk."

The last three songs on Creole Soul are Charles' compositions, beginning with "Midnight," which features classic trumpet/tenor sax harmonies and exhilarating solo runs by the leader, Bowers and Schwarz-Bart. "It's about the stillness of the night when nothing and everything is going on," he says. "It's when I get my most creative ideas. The song has calypso with Haitian Mascaron dance grooves. The melody itself actually came from playing a wrong chord when I was teaching one day."

The quiet, radiant ballad "Close Your Eyes" is delivered as a duet with Bowers on piano. "I wrote the tune, but never played it," Charles says. "We ran it through and just played together—solo and background—just playing off each other." The album ends playfully with the spirited "Doin' the Thing," which Charles says is a "rhythm tune that's still jazz." At the heart of the song: calypso. "My rule is that I end with a jam that'll be straight up calypso," he says. "I don't want to get away from that. I'm proud and connected. It actually reminds me of what I heard the house rent parties in New York were all about. They always played calypso at those."

The New York Times calls Charles an auteur who is "one of [jazz's] more ambitious soloists and composers," JazzTimes applauds him as a "daring improviser" and DownBeat celebrates his tone as "melodically captivating" and "rhythmically agile" that makes his music "immediately pleasing." After three albums, released on Culture Shock, Charles has garnered a welcomed response to his Caribbean roots-informed jazz. Creole Soul, his most accomplished recording so far in his young career, holds great promise to a future of more ebullient and intimate artistry.

My Media

Website: http://www.etiennecharles.com
Buy My Music: http://myiesstore.com/etiennecharles/
Instagram: etiennejazz
YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/etchala
Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/arts/music/etienne-charles-carnival.html

Listen on Spotify

Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/album/0lY3BpNPDXytGZVrmlLuGh
Spotify 2: http://open.spotify.com/album/1z3x8gJOd1nyIvHrdX91yo

Contact Information

Email: info@etiennecharles.com

Quotes, Notes & Etc. “..Etienne Charles exhibits both an authentic preservation of the music of his native culture of Trinidad as a composer and bandleader, while broadening our scope of understanding through the collaborative sound of American jazz as it meets new colors, new textures, and new motifs across the world. It will certainly bring more of our public into the jazz audience” - Marcus Roberts

“An amazing Trumpet player, and Steel Drum player, and Cuatro player...young Trinidadian who has held onto his heritage” - Monty Alexander

“A daring improviser, Charles also delivers with heart-wrenching lyricism” - Jazz Times

“…had strength and a clear, almost classical sense of thematic organization.” - New York Times

“The music was not simply reworked….Charles seemed to dissect the music studying every note and then proceeded to weave elements of Dixieland, Francesca, modal, bebop and modern styles into his arrangements, all while maintaining the integrity of the original compositions. “ – Trinidad Express

Clips

Etienne Charles Discusses Carnival In Its Purest Form
By Etienne Charles

81 views
Etienne Charles on What is Jazz
By Etienne Charles

66 views

Hey there! Questions? We'll answer them! Need your login info? We've got it! Inaccuracies? Faulty curations by the Ghost in the Machine? Contact us here, or email sparrowroberts@gmail.com. Thank you! (I'm Randy "Pardal/Sparrow" Roberts and I built this matrix!)

EZ INSTRUCTIONS

The matrix is a small world curation network.

It is designed to be coursed through, from node (person/entity) to node to node in a voyage of discovery.

This is universal open curation in series. A 21st century twist on the oldest and most effective means of publicity of all: word-of-mouth.

Curations in series form worldlines, which enter pages via the THEY CURATE ME section and exit via the I CURATE THEM section (above).

The totality of worldlines taken together make up the matrix...a matrix in the original sense of "source", from "mater", Latin for "mother".

We are — per below — real mothers for ya!

All are welcome to curate, and all may decide for themselves whose judgement to trust. One aspect of open curation is that it allows us to see the curations of performing experts in their area, no matter how obscure this area might be, areas where perhaps there are no professional curators.

After a page has been created (it can be as simple or as complex as you like) you create arts-related categories for which you can be recommended. Examples can be seen at the bottom of every member page, including your own.

Categories for which you can be recommended are created in your "THEY CURATE ME" section. Then when somebody clicks on one of your categories, their image and a link back to their own page will appear there. You will appear in their "I CURATE THEM" section.

When YOU click on somebody else's category in their "THEY CURATE ME" section on their page, your image and a link back to your own page will appear there. THEY will appear in YOUR "I CURATE THEM" section.

If wish merely to curate (recommend), simply don't create categories for yourself. Whatever the case, people getting to your page can see who you think is great. The people you think are great can see you think they are great!

You can put Spotify album or artist links in the Spotify fields; people on your page can click on these links and the Spotify web player will open up to your music.

You can put your music into your own Matrix player by clicking on the Add Music button at the top of your (or any) page.

You can embed YouTube videos into your own video page by clicking on the Add Videos button at the top of your (or any) page.

Join from the top of any page.

If you find yourself sufficiently moved by this artist, click on categories for which they may be recommended (within their THEY CURATE ME area) above. The artist, together with the categories for which you are recommending them, will then appear on your own I CURATE THEM list.

ABOUT THE MATRIX

Wow! Very impressive! ... I love what you've built here... Derek Sivers, founder, CD Baby

If Myspace Music had been set up like this they'd be using it to hear Hermeto Pascoal in Andromeda by now! ... Sparrow Roberts, founder, The Matrix

WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE WORLD'S FIRST EVER SMALL WORLD CURATION NETWORK?

Any artist (in any field) in any place in the world can be potentially reached by anybody from anywhere.

BY WHAT WIZARDRY?

We've all heard of six degrees of separation, more properly called a small world network. Within six or so steps we can move through a chain of people knowing other people to just about anybody on the planet.

SIMPLY CHANGE "KNOW" TO "RECOMMEND"

In exactly the same way, step by step we can move through chains of ARTISTS RECOMMENDING (curating) OTHER ARTISTS to to just about any artist on the planet.

LIKE THIS...

Quincy Jones recommends artists under his wing including stellar young Cuban pianist Alfredo Rodriguez. Alfredo recommends a fabulous multinstrumentalist he plays with, Munir Hossn. Two more steps and we've reached Raimundo Sodré, lost in Bahia:

Raimundo Sodré Now

Dengo

Add to my Playlist

Sina de Cantador - Raimundo Sodré (6,520 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Magnetismo - Raimundo Sodré (6,228 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Sacando a Cana - Raimundo Sodré (5,877 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Mêrêrê - Raimundo Sodré (5,402 plays)
Add to my Playlist

A Massa - Raimundo Sodré (4,958 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Jardim do Amor - Raimundo Sodré (4,631 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Debaixo do Céu - Raimundo Sodré (4,112 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Desejo de Amar - Raimundo Sodré (3,823 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Oração pra Yá Oxum - Raimundo Sodré (3,701 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Yá África - Raimundo Sodré (3,472 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Meu Rio, Cadê o Papel - Raimundo Sodré (3,148 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Casa de Trois - Raimundo Sodré (2,868 plays)
Add to my Playlist

Mulher é Laço que Prende o Coração do Va... (2,531 plays)

Share | Report | 57,271 plays | 9,507 views

DICTATED SILENCE

Sodré's meteoric major-label career was crushed and his life threatened by the Brazilian dictatorship years ago, sending him into a 19 year exile. He became almost impossible to find and hear.

MUSIC FALLS LIKE RAIN

But now lines of everbranching interlinked recommendations rise from Bahia to form a (small world) network rounding the planet like the arboreal canopy of a vast Amazonian rainforest. When the dictatorship ground Sodré into the dust, they unwittingly planted a seed.

IS THE MATRIX AN ALTERNATE REALITY?

The original meaning of "matrix" is "source", from "mater", Latin for "mother". We're real mothers for ya!

Pre-Brazil we "rescued" unpaid royalties for performers and composers including Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Led Zeppelin, Philip Glass, Mongo Santamaria, Airto Moreira, Gilberto Gil, Astrud Gilberto, Jim Hall, Robb Royer of Bread, Speedo & the Cadillacs, and many more! Recording by WXPN's Kim Junod

DOES THE MATRIX WATCH YOU?

Zero surreptitious tracking, data mining and data brokerage per Cambridge Analytica, Facebook, et al.

PATHWAYS ACCESSIBLE VIA ANY NODE BELOW, OR VIA A CATEGORY, OR USE THE SEARCH BOX:

Our logo is a sugarcane cutter, representative of the fact that the great root of Brazil's music is planted Congo-deep in the massapê -- rich alluvial soil -- of the sugarcane plantations of Bahia: