A cross-section of music written over the past thirty years: avant-jazz, classical, Hungarian, chldren's songs, and Indian

19 MP3 Songs
CLASSICAL: Contemporary, JAZZ: Weird Jazz



Details:
Chris Chalfant, born September 10, 1960, Akron, OH; Composer, director, pianist, vocalist, artist, author, and poet; Noted for her unique style as a creative artist, Chris Chalfant is a lyrical, rhythmically compelling, and powerful, innovative driving force in the world of jazz, new and improvised music. Her prolific output of composition and improvisation (over 400 works) draws largely from traditional music of Africa, Hungary and India, as well as from American folk music, jazz and classical music. Critics have compared her music and playing to a wide range of artists: Andrew Hill, Charles Ives, McCoy Tyner, Mal Waldron, Cecil Taylor, Bud Powell, Stravinsky, Don Pullen, Keith Jarrett, Webern, Meredith Monk, Thelonious Monk and a Buddhist monk. She draws from nature, poetry and dance with a strong sense of counterpoint and polyrhythm, resulting in non-ordinary phrasings, tonal structures and rhythmic layerings. Her work is both simple and complex at the same time, where she will take a simple childrenâs tune and create an expressionistic multi-tonal, multi-rhythmic contrapuntal composition or improvisation. Chalfant has a strong melodic sense as well as a feeling of tranquility in much of her work. Her keen sense of moment-to-moment movement in her composition and improvisation is supported by her training in Buddhism and Aikido, where âliving under the bladeâ results in an unshakable fearlessness, confidence and a path of truth.

Book of Unstandards is a special project culminating from thirty years of composing. The original âBook of Unstandardsâ is an actual book of 129 musical scores (see my website). This CD is a small sampling of the diversity of composition and improvisation I have done over the years. A large part of my playing tends to be more in the avant-jazz (if one is to use a label), but some of the music is very classical (Vocalize, Indian Goddess), while others have folk elements (Yun Da Deo), and some have more of a meditational quality (The Bridge Listens Quietly). It is important to me to have lyrical melodies and also strong rhythm. My music does go pretty far out at times, but it is always from a place of love and joy, and not about aggression. I hope you enjoy the music!