Music releases

The Complete Rebirth of the Cool

By Jeff Presslaff

Released

Saturday, March 29, 2014

Producer

Michael Cain

Studios

Private Ear Recording and Unity Gain Productions and Native Drum Music

Cellar Live Records

The Complete Rebirth of the Cool

Between January 1949 and March 1950, several young musicians recorded an album of music composed for an unusual ensemble of trumpet, alto sax, baritone sax, trombone, French horn, tuba, piano, bass and drums. The compositions were strikingly original, blending jazz harmonies and rhythms with classically inspired counterpoint. Several of the player/composers went on to become household names among jazz followers, including Miles Davis, Gerry Mulligan, Gil Evans and several others. The album, called The Complete Birth of the Cool, was released in 1957, and the title reflects the consensus that these recordings marked the beginning of the post-bebop trend in jazz that prevailed through the 1950’s, known as the Cool School.

In spite of the vast influence of this recording, the ensemble itself, with its marvellous colours and possibilities, was extremely short-lived (aside from the recording sessions, only a few club dates) and rarely duplicated.  This tragic neglect has now been rectified by The Complete Rebirth of the Cool project.

Under the direction of trombonist and composer, Jeff Presslaff, The Complete Rebirth of the Cool recreates many of the conditions of that original burst of creativity: A team of probing musical thinkers and the means to compose and perform their new ideas.

The music reflects to a large degree the sensibilities of the original recording, but the goal was emphatically to make new pieces that reflect our personal experiences, as well as the changes in the musical landscape over the past sixty years. There is a greater variety of grooves and much influence from modern composition techniques and the music of other cultures.

Presslaff has a strong track record of successfully coordinating collaborative composition projects, including the Jazz Composers Ensemble, All Winds, Papa Mambo and much notable work with the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra.

He is joined by some of the leading lights of Western Canada's creative jazz community, including the already eminent Dean McNeil and Ken Gold, as well as soon-to-be acclaimed composers Will Bonness, Jonathan Stevens and Danielle Baert.

The ensemble is first rate, drawing on the formidable instrumental abilities of both the composers and highly regarded players from the region.

Dean McNeill, trumpet (Saskatoon)
Greg Gatien, alto sax (Brandon)
Kendra Duval, French horn (Winnipeg)
Jeff Presslaff, trombone (Winnipeg)
Ken Gold, baritone sax (Winnipeg)
Steve Oberheu, tuba (Winnipeg)
Will Bonness, piano (Winnipeg)
Gilles Fournier, bass (Winnipeg)
Eric Platz, drums (Brandon)