Editorial Reviews
From Jazziz
While the improvisational nature of jazz and the tidy perfection of classical music aren't always terribly compatible, Tennyson - a pianist with a severe case of wanderlust - makes them at ease with one another. Created almost spontaneously when Tennyson visited a friend in Monte Carlo and decided to do some practicing on his piano, Europa plays like a lush, foreign-film score. It boasts sweeping romantic scenes, elegant, reflective solo-piano moments, and a few rhythmic surprises along the way. The elegant and seductive 'Preludio' and 'Citta Vecchia' (which blend together) set the generally wistful tone for the whole set, evoking images of a Parisian restaurant, as Raul Jaurena's waltzing bandoneón sweeps over Tennyson's graceful high tones. A string quartet chimes in with a dramatic exclamation point or two toward the song's end. The nearly eight-minute 'Fortunato' opens as an intimate meditation before Tennyson gets busy experimenting with brisker tempos and improvisations that lope along joyously. Tennyson's also prone, as on 'Milonga Sinistra,' to noodle a bit on the high register, as if searching for the right melody to sweep us into. This is quite a beautiful recording but could benefit from more moments like the title track, which begins with Tennyson showing off his incredible classical chops before jumping head first into a playful Latin-jazz romp, complete with glissandos and rolling bass lines by Jeffrey Carney. That tune captures Tennyson's complete European journey in a matter of minutes.
--- Jonathan Widran, JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright © 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc.
Europa,John Gentry Tennyson,Angel Records,Contemporary Instrumental,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop,Romantic, Mediterranean Impressionism drawing major influences from Parisian 'cafe' society and Italian arias. What unites these disparate elements is an unfettered sense of 'joie de vivre', an eagerness to embrace life to the fullest...
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