Just in the past few months I’ve had two of my best friends release records that I’m incredibly excited about – both guys from UW-Eau Claire! do yourself a favor and check them out…
AARON HEDENSTROM ORCHESTRA – A SYMPHONIC JAZZ HIP-HOP EXPERIENCE
Aaron is an incredibly talented saxophonist, pianist and composer from St. Paul, MN and he recently released a large ensemble record that I was fortunate to be a part of. It features plenty of talented cats from Minneapolis, New York & Eau Claire, WI and it features Aaron’s inventive and soulful writing even more. Think modern big band + hip hop elements + raw/live feel + an unashamed love for music and for God. The record features Aaron’s Soul Searching Suite, a four-movement work that I’m a huge fan of. I’ve even borrowed the second movement from the suite (“the thorn in my side”) and played it on my own gigs. Check out Aaron’s site here, preview some tunes and buy a record…
TYLER ANDERSON QUINTET – LETTING GO
Tyler, just so happens, is also a talented saxophonist and composer and quite the entrepreneur. Just in the past couple years Tyler has formed his own quintet, written tons of original tunes that are deeply personal and expressive, and recorded an album that he’s releasing this month at the Artist’s Quarter in St. Paul, MN. Tyler’s well on his way to leaving an imprint in this world…his new album Letting Go has got some great compositions, a couple of which you can hear on his myspace page (my favorite of them being “freedom from expectations”). Also watch out for Tyler’s sideman, trumpeter Joe Niemann – dude’s got some serious stuff goin’ on! There’s a great write up about Tyler’s new record that Andrea Canter did for jazzpolice.com that you can find here.
It’s a blessing to have great friends making great music – always inspiring…Check these guys out – hope you dig what you hear!
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