In This Life, The Jamie Baum Septet
Jamie Baum – flute, alto flute, flute d’amour
Amir El Saffar – trumpet
Taylor Haskins – trumpet
Douglas Yates – alto sax, bass clarinet
Brad Shepik – guitar
Chris Komer – French horn
John Escreet – piano
Zach Lober – bass
Jeff Hirshfield – drums
Dan Weiss – tabla
Samuel Torres – congas
Sunnyside Records
Nusrat
Sweet Pain
The Meeting (Tana Dery Na)
Ants and Other Faithful Beings
In Another Life
Monkeys of Gokarna Forest
While We Are Here (for Elise NeeDell Babcock)
Richie’s Lament (for Richie Beirach)
The Game
In A Nutshell
Inner Voices
Jazz flutist Jamie Baum’s new album, In This Life, is a pleasure to hear. This is the third recording released by her septet, and they play together like a well-oiled machine (besides the core members of this group, they also include some special guests on this album ). The background to this album is fascinating; Baum cites several tours to South Asia as being major musical influences here. Specific inspiration includes the tabla, Bansuri flute and vocal music, and performance opportunities with significant Indian musicians. While these influences might not be obvious or easily detected on this recording, Baum suggests that her goal was not to play or compose in those particular styles but to allow those experiences and sounds to inspire these new tracks.
The listener is immediately struck by the warm colors in Baum’s playing. On this album, she performs on flute, alto flute, and flute d’amour, which gives her ample opportunity to showcase the lower tessitura of the flute family. Of particular interest is how she blends with the other players, which creates such different timbres and sounds from one combination to the next. During her solos, we have the opportunity to appreciate the creativity in her sound.
For more information, visit Jamie Baum’s website at www.jamiebaum.com.
This review was originally published in the November 2013 issue of The Flute View magazine. Subscribe here!
