turku serene english - traumton
TRANSCRIPT
indigo cd 961422upc 705304456323jazz/vocal
Release January 13, 2012
Fjoralba Turku Serene
Fjoralba Turku: vocals Florian Trübsbach: saxophone, clarinet, flute Tal Balshai: pianoPaulo Cardoso: bassJonas Burgwinkel: drums
TRAUMTON RecordsGrunewaldstr. 9 D-13597 Berlin Germany
030 331 93 50 [email protected]
„The critics rave: “A remarkable debut!”, and “A discovery among female jazz singers in 2010”, about the singer Fjoralba Turku, who released her first CD, “Joshua”, one and a half years ago. Certainly, this was early praise for the promise she had made to transfer the songs and the language of her native country, Albania, into the cosmos of jazz, using her unexpectedly powerful and astonishingly mature voice. Astonishment is now turning into enthusiasm: Fjoralba Turku’s second album, “Serene”, confirms the praise and great expectations. She impressively demonstrates her greatest talent: Telling stories in song.
“I’ve taken a further step”, she says of herself, “because now I can work with my voice as confidently as with an instrument.” Indeed, the spectrum of stylistic devices and expression has grown once again and can be heard: Whether she is inspired by gospel harmonies, unusual intervals and uneven time-signatures of Albanian music as in the catchy, cheerful track “Joyfully”, or in “Lulzoj fusha”, a deeply sad lament which unfortunately is still topical about a son who has fallen in the war, which in turn moves us to tears with its classical intonation and a shot of pathos, or whether she touches upon the human, all-too-human South American bossa as in the snappy track “Purple Song”, or scats in unison with her accompaniment in finest bebop manner, or onomatopoetically almost floats, evoking the legendary vocalists, The Swingle Sisters – at all times it is her unmistakable, distinctive individual style that merges everything organically together.
“I was so confident and sure of myself that I dared to use my own literary inclinations”, Fjoralba Turku
TRAUMTON Records Grunewaldstr. 9 D 13597 Berlin Germany Tel. 030 331 93 50 [email protected]
Fjoralba Turku - Serene
Live:06.12.2011 DE-München, Unterfahrt20.01.2012 CA-Edmonton, Yardbird Suite21.01.2012 CA-Saskatoon, Bassment22.01.2012 CA-Regina, Artesianon386204.02.2012 DE-Bayreuth, Jazzforum09.02.2012 DE-Leverkusen, Jazzclub02.06.2012 DE-Berlin, Schlottbc
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explains. She penned five of the tracks and five of the lyrics entirely or in part. In the end, she even dared to interpret both of Lord Byron’s poems, so wonderful and yet so difficult to set to music, “There Be None of Beauty’s Daughters” and “She Walks in Beauty”.
“Working with such magnificent musicians and having them as role models has got me so far”, Turku explains about the development that is behind the album. Musician’s musicians such as Geoff Goodman, Randy Weston or Eric Dolphy played a role, but naturally also her wonderful new band. The young, splendid drummer, Jonas Burgwinkel, the Berlin-based Israeli pianist, Tal Balshai, who swings back and forth between classic and jazz, Florian Trübsbach, for years one of the best German saxophone and clarinet players, and finally and foremost, Paulo Cardoso, one of the very great jazz bass players and Fjoralba’s mentor, accompaniment and partner. He wrote almost all of the arrangements and the CD begins with his wonderful composition “Living, Just Living”.
In all of them Fjoralba Turku places as much trust as they do in her, a final reason why the story of Fjoralba Turku is continually getting better and better.
Links:
Web: http://www.fjoralbaturku.deTraumton: http://www.traumton.de/neu/records/index_turku.html
Florian Trübsbach: http://www.truebsbach.deTal Balshai: http://www.talbalshai.comPaulo Cardoso: http://www.paulocardoso-bass.deJonas Burgwinkel: http://www.jonasburgwinkel.com
TRAUMTON Records Grunewaldstr. 9 D 13597 Berlin Germany Tel. 030 331 93 50 [email protected]
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Press cuts
"(...) Her second CD "Serene" has turned out to be simply beautiful. Partly, this is because the whole ensemble does not seem to be trying for a particular sound – they're just making music. And they obviously feel quite relaxed about it too. The album includes two sensitive interpretations of poems by Lord Byron and three emotional Albanian songs, including the traditional "Lulzoj Fusha", a lament to a son lost in battle. The songs written and arranged together with bassist Paulo Cardoso on the other hand, are a colorful joyride through all kinds of emotions. Fjoralba Turku's album is a musical journey through an impressive range of variations, carried and sustained by her gentle, warm vocals."Jazzthetik, Christoph Giese, 1/2012
"More than just a smile: Fjoralba Turku. – For a start, she's a great singer. But what's really special is the personal timbre in her vocal interpretations. Listen to "Serene" and you'll see what I mean: Her velvety tone and compelling narrative immediately have you convinced she's singing for you and you alone. And so she weaves her tales with a smile you can hear in her music – expertly supported by bassist Paulo Cardoso and saxophonist Florian Trübsbach."Audio, Ralf Dombrowski, 2/2012
"It's two years ago now that we first had the pleasure of sampling this young newcomer's charming mixture of Albanian folk and jazz. And already, Fjoralba Turku's debut album "Joshua" has become one of the crown jewels in the collection of "Traumton", her Berlin label. So this, then, is her follow-up, with the pure and simple title "Serene". And despite a complete change of musicians (...), she has not left the path she so successfully walked upon with her first CD. And a good thing too, since it's a theme that still has enormous potential for new variations, as she has quite confidently proved in her ten new songs. Listening to Fjoralba Turku with her new saxophone/clarinet player Florian Trübsbach is somewhat like the musical equivalent of watching a couple of acrobats perform their most breathtaking leaps. This is where it becomes really clear what a big step forward this young singer has taken. And yet again, it's the exciting and well-calculated mix of English and Albanian, of international jazz and exotic folklore that has enabled this young Munich artist to step with complete ease and assurance into the Champions League of sophisticated jazz musicians, a feat that seems at first glance well beyond her years. Moreover, she has proved an accomplished composer and lyric writer with the ability to put even the most sophisticated poetry to music. Turku's favorite poet Lord Byron is probably even now smiling happily in his eternal sleep." sound-and-image.de, 13.01.2012
"What a beginning! What a voice! It reaches inside you to pluck your innermost strings – which in turn seem to be voiced by the double bass, her only accompaniment. "Living, Just Living", on the other hand, is a dark promise and appropriate introduction to Fjoralba Turku's emotional world: sometimes buoyant, sometimes melancholy. In the short space of 1 1/2 years since her astounding debut "Joshua", the Albanian-born singer's second CD "Serene" shows how much she has gained in stature and maturity. Her alto vocals seem to hover lightly over her bewitching melodies, (...), taking her audience on a breathtaking flight from the most profound depths to exhilarating heights. Take "Joyfully" for example. The name says it all, really: it's a joyful, almost exuberant, wild steeplechase through uneven meters. "Marrakech", on the other hand, slides easily into free improvisation until Fjoralba Turku softly calls her quintet back into line. The unpronounceable "Kno Mi Qyqe Se Po Vjen Behari" sounds almost shamanic, until it, too, gets completely carried away by pure joie de vivre. But Turku's development is by no means limited to her voice alone; she's ventured far into the realm of songwriting, too. About half the lyrics on her new album are her own or were written in cooperation with others. All of this is enhanced and supported perfectly by her excellent pick of musicians: Florian Trübsbach on saxophone, Tal Balshai on Piano, Jonas Burgwinkel on drums and Paulo Cardoso (who is also responsible for most of the arrangements) on bass. They are so perfect together that you might think they have been playing together for years.The CD finally ends as it began, with that voice, accompanied only by the double bass. Pervasive and dark, yet so full of life (...) And finally... silence. Hold onto that remote control and keep pressing "Play". Again and again. What a remarkable CD!"jazzonblog.blogspot.com, 13.01.2012
"Serenity is the KeyIn 2010, Albanian-born Fjoralba Turku made us stop and listen with her first album "Joshua" – it's not often that a young newcomer can convince her audience with so much mature sophistication.Her second album proves that the enthusiastic acclaim for her debut 1 1/2 years ago really wasn't over the top. Because she's done it again: the vocals on her ten new tracks are impressively mature, playing up and down the entire range of hues and tones from gentle and vulnerable to playful and dreamy right up to serious and forceful.The magic's in the mixture of folk elements from her Albanian roots and jazzy arrangements or sometimes even with a degree of vocal precision that's almost classical. "Kno Mi Qyqe Se Po Vjen Behari", for example, is a 7 1/2 minute epic, a haunting, many-hued musical poem. Sometimes there are also glimpses of Brazilian influence – probably thanks to Fjoralba Turku's bassist, arranger and partner Paolo Cardoso; "Marrakech" is a nice example. Drummer Jonas Burgwinkel and pianist Tal Balshai are the two other pillars of Turku's band, while Florian Trübsbach embroiders her music with his saxophone, clarinet and flute solos.
TRAUMTON Records Grunewaldstr. 9 D 13597 Berlin Germany Tel. 030 331 93 50 [email protected]
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"Serene" - the album title says it all. What more can I say?""Musikwoche, 1.11.2012/ Manfred Gillig-Degrave
"Albanian Fire(TM) After thrilling reviewers and audiences alike in 2010 with her debut album "Joshua", here she is again – clear the stage please for Albanian singer Fjoralba Turku and her second CD "Serene". By the time you get to the captivating track "Joyfully", you will be completely in the thrall of her unpretentiously fine jazz vocals in English and her native Albanian. (...)And incidentally, it's not just the lyrics – in compositions like "Joyfully" (which is written in 7/8 time) you will see her Albanian spirit flashing a fin too. And where would a singer be without the reliable style of her band? First and foremost amongst her musicians, of course, is songwriter and arranger Paulo Cardoso (bass), but also Florian Trübsbach (saxophone, clarinet and flute) and Jonas Burgwinkel (drums). What is particularly striking about "Serene" is its sheer emotional bandwidth, ranging from exuberance to disconsolate sorrow. Fjoralba Turku has even brought the scat back to the German vocal scene."Kulturmagazin, 1.11.2012
TRAUMTON Records Grunewaldstr. 9 D 13597 Berlin Germany Tel. 030 331 93 50 [email protected]