MP3 Joyful! - SPIRITUAL: Contemporary Gospel

Gospel and Jazz--separated at birth? These two musical forms are reunited in this CD/DVD--a suite for Gospel Choir (The Devoe Street Baptist Church Choir) and Jazz Quintet (Pete Malinverni, piano; Steve Wilson,alto sax; Joe Magnarelli,tpt; Todd Coolman,bs

10 MP3 Songs
SPIRITUAL: Contemporary Gospel, JAZZ: Soul-Jazz



Details:
"Joyful!" is a labor of love. New York City-based pianist/composer Pete Malinverni has been a presence on the international jazz scene for several years. He also serves as Minister of Music at an African-American Baptist church in Brooklyn, NY and has written music for Gospel Choir and Jazz Ensemble. Pete sees this effort as a reuniting of two long lost siblings, Jazz and Gospel Music, which were separated at birth for various sociological reasons. "Joyful!" is music with a Gospel sensibility which employs the estimable talents of the participating jazz musicians (Pete, piano; Steve Wilson, alto saxophone: Joe Magnarelli, trumpet and flugelhorn; Todd Coolman, bass; Dwayne "Cook" Broadnax, drums) as they aid and abet the singing of the choir and soloists (Yvette Glover, Jody Sandhaus, Afua Monk-Addo and Jacklyn LaMont) while contributing their breathtaking improvisations. In addition to a full-length live concert CD, the "Joyful!" package also includes a DVD of the concert and interviews.

âWhen Pete Malinverni plays, the people listenâ,
noted Patricia OâHaire in the New York Daily News.
Thatâs no mean feat in the Mecca of Jazz. Since coming to New York in 1981 Pete has established himself as a highly respected presence in NYC and nationally as well as abroad in Europe, South America, and Japan, his performing and composing work earning him entry in the Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz, as compiled by Ira Gitler and Leonard Feather.

Peteâs enthusiastic audience has found him on stages in NYC and around the world such as Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Caramoor Festival, Symphony Space, Romeâs Villa Celimontana Festival, Chileâs Santiago Jazz Festival and clubs such as Birdland, the Blue Note, Bradleyâs, the Algonquinâs Oak Room, etc. Most often playing solo piano or with his trio, Pete has also appeared with the likes of Joe Lovano, Charles Davis, Vernel Fournier, Mel Lewis, Jody Sandhaus
(for whom he serves as Musical Director) and other bright lights. His celebrated appearance on NPRâs
âMarian McPartlandâs Piano Jazzâ was one to remember, for its exciting music and revelatory conversation.

Malinverniâs life in music began at age seven in his hometown of Niagara Falls, NY, where he studied classical piano with local legend Laura Copia. He continued in NYC with Elena Belli, Anthony Newman and Sophia Rosoff. Pete himself is now a teacher much in demand, serving as Professor on the Jazz Studies faculty of New Yorkâs Purchase College Conservatory of Music, where teaches Jazz Harmony, Jazz History, Jazz Improvisation, Solfege and coaches student ensembles. Previously, he taught at William Paterson University and at New York University, where he received the prestigious Marc Crawford Award for Excellence in Jazz Education. As an
Artist in Residence, Pete leads clinics and
master classes worldwide.

March 2006 saw the heralded release of âTheme and Variationsâ, a highly anticipated solo piano recording on Reservoir Music, which garnered four stars in Down Beat Magazine, earning it honors as one of the best jazz albums of 2006 and like minded reviews in many other publications such as JazzTimes, Playbill, Cadence Jazz, The Buffalo News, All About Jazz, Jazz Improv, etc.

Among Peteâs many earlier releases, âThe Tempestâ, in 2004, âAutumn in New Yorkâ in 2003 and âOf One Mindâ in 2001, received like acclaim. Writing in the Charleston (SC) Post and Courier, Jack McCray called him âa fiery but elegant pianistâ, and his varied collaborations stand as testament to his abilities. His performances, live and recorded, in the company of jazz luminaries too numerous to mention, exhibit what Enzo Fresia of Italyâs Musica Jazz called âan extremely unconstrained and brilliant pianismâ.

Dave McElfresh said in Jazz Now that âMalinverniâs writing makes as much of an impact as his playingâ. A composer of great depth, passion, and individuality, he has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Meet the Composer Foundation. His trio was featured in a concert for Chamber Music America at New Yorkâs Symphony Space. Not only have his vehicles for jazz improvisation been described by Gary Giddins in the Village Voice as âknotty and originalâ, but musicians and public alike agree with McElfresh in Jazz Now that Malinverniâs ballad âThis Timeâ, the title track of his third recording as leader, is âtruly the stuff standards are made ofâ.

Since 1993 Pete has served as Minister of Music at the Devoe Street Baptist Church in Brooklyn, NY, exposing him to the music of the African-American church, and his suites for vocal choir and jazz quartet based on the Psalms of David, demonstrate his abilities as a composer on a grander scale. His June 2006 release âJoyful!â, an ArtistShare CD/DVD, documents this new and exciting form of music. Highlighted and reviewed favorably in Down Beat, JazzTimes, Jazziz and many other jazz publications, âJoyful!â also âcrossed overâ to media of wider reach, including features on several internationally heard NPR shows and national print publications such as the Los Angeles Daily News, Portland (OR) Skanner Montreal Mirror and Pittsburgh Tribune. Notably, the DVD portion of "Joyful!" was directed and produced by Academy Award winning documenatrain Maryann De Leo.

In his four-star Down Beat review, Paul de Barros said, âPete Malinverni doesnât seem capable of playing a dishonest lineâ, and it is this unaffected, pure approach to music of real depth which draws audiences and students alike to Malinverniâs appearances. Through the release of Peteâs nine recordings as leader, âDonât Be Shyâ, âThe Spiritâ, âThis Timeâ, âA Very Good Yearâ, âOf One Mindâ, âAutumn In New Yorkâ, âThe Tempestâ, âJoyful!â and âTheme and Variationsâ, one views the development of what Stuart Troup, in a feature article in New York Newsday, has called âa supple player, full of nuanceâ.