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Review: Volume 11, No. 2 Australan Clarinet and Saxophone
Article: "All About the Energy" Drum Media May 1 2007
Review: The Sydney Morning Herald, Spectrum, April 28-29
Review: The Weekend Australian, Review, April 28 - 29
Article: Time Off, Brisbane, March 21 2007
Review: allaboutjazz.com, ejazznews Posted: 10/5/2005
Article: Daily Telegraph Sydney Live magazine, March 2003.
Review: The Australian, May 2003.
Blow is a collaborative effort from two extremely talented musicians, Graham Jesse and Adrian Cunningham. The album features both artists displaying their multi-instrumental capabilities backed by a tight ensemble featuring some of Sydney’s finest jazz musicians in Matt McMahon, Brendan Clarke and Hamish Stuart. Graham plays tenor, soprano and flute, while Adrian sticks with tenor and clarinet for this outing. An eclectic collection of audience-friendly original compositions by both leaders make up the majority of this album. The playing is tasteful and engaging and all of the songs are accessible and listenable. This is definitely not an album to frighten casual jazz listeners – no ‘Jazz Police’ warnings required!
The album opens with a dose of Graham’s trademark funk on ‘Funky Junkie’. Pianist Matt McMahon shows us the way, and the twin tenors take us home trading some tasty licks and tricks. ’12,000 Feet’ starts with a wink and a nod in the direction of Josh Redman’s ‘Freedom in the Grove’ album before the catchy melody takes off and then it’s up, up and away for the soloists. ‘The Old Smoothie’ presents a 1960s style swingin’ blues groove that allows the soloists to stretch. The rhythm section are superb here, as indeed they are throughout the album.
Compositionally the most interesting work is Adrian’s ‘Dragonfly’ where Graham’s flute and Adrian’s clarinet dance in counterpoint, joined by the rhythm section one at a time – a clever arrangement beautifully played and worthy of several listens, at the least.
One of the bonus pleasures of this recording is listening to Graham’s flute playing throughout. I enjoyed his gorgeous sound and the fluency of his soling every time he played. Credit should be given to the recording engineer who did a great job of capturing the warmth and depth of Graham’s tone.
Adrian’s clarinet was best represented in his beautiful composition ‘For Our Children’, where his lovely tone and fluency throughout the range of the instrument provide quite an inspiration for all those doublers out there. His playing on this piece in particular reminds me of clarinet virtuoso Eddie Daniels. For those familiar with the work of Mr Daniels you will know that is high praise indeed!
Congratulations to all involved in this album – great playing, interesting compositions and well recorded. A worthy addition to the Australian jazz library.
~ Matt Christensen
Article: "All About the Energy" Drum Media May 1 2007
There's nothing old school about the Adrian Cunningham Quartet except the way they've recorded their new CD/DVD,
In Motion - Live in Concert - As Cunningham tells Michael Smith.
"Jazz is best live," Cunningham explains. "It's a spontaneous thing, and we've done a couple of studio albums but there's just an energy on stage when I get these guys together - they're just a powerhouse - that studio recordings just can't capture. There's something really special about a live gig, so we thought why not?"
Joining bandleader, composer, sax, clarinet and flute player Cunningham in the quartet are pianist Bill Risby, double bass player Dave Pudney and drummer Gordon Rytmeister, and together they recorded two nights in the Sound Lounge in the Seymour Centre last Octobe, filming the second night for the DVD component of the release.
"That's why there are a few songs on the album that were on the studio albums, because I think the band plays them really well live and wanted to get some of that energy, and there are some new tunes."
the beauty of the DVD component of
In Motion is you get a chance to hear some of the stories behind the tunes.
"In terms of the way I view music and writing, it's something kind of personal and I get inspired by things that happen to me, as most artists do, so the events, the experiences and the people are just as important as the notes. So I like to let the audience knows where I'm coming from and that gives them an insight into the music."
There's a touch of the standup comedian in Cunningham too, especially when he introduces the tune,
Keeping Fit With Ken, dedicated to the 70-year-old fellow jazzman Ken Sparks, with whom Cunningham spent a disconcerting couple of nights in Thredbo during a jazz festival.
"And I'll tell you what, when he saw the DVD and heard the story, Ken loved it! He's a real character. That was a funny experience. With that particular tune, I wanted to write something cheeky."
Like all compositions, but practically in jazz, it's all about translating the experience into a sonic landscape that has a strong melodic sensibility yet provides a strong enough launching point for improvisation. The tune
12,000 Feet for instance was written about Cunningham's first experience of skydiving.
"I remember very cleary sitting in the plane about to jump out and I had all this music floating around in my head, basically because I was scared shitless. So I had all these fast melodies and later came up with
12,000 Feet from that experience"
~
Michael Smith
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Review: The Sydney Morning Herald, Spectrum, April 29-29
The Adrian Cunningham Quartert, In Motion (Newmarket)
The cute opening to this could have been, "Will the real Mr Cunningham please stand up?" But musicians, like actors, have wretched time being pigeonholed, and Adrian Cunningham should be applauded for his multiple musical hats. He is equally convincing across the whole jazz spectrum and his own band - with pianist Bill Risby, bassist Dave Pudney and drummer Gordon Rytmeister - only marginally narrows the scope.
Take the first three tracks of this live CD. Keeping Fit With Ken has Cunningham playing tenor saxophone on a high energy 24-bar blues in the '60s Blue Note mould. Ths second, Ubirr, places his clarinet in a context of such lyricism it could spring from the ECM catalouge. The third, Gratitude represents the West Coast big ballad school - and is therefore my least favourite piece on an entertaining album, accompanied by a live DVD, and launched at the Basement on May 8.
~ John Shand
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Review: The Weekend Australian, Review, April 28 - 29
In Motion - The Live Sessions, Adrian Cunningham Quartet (Newmarket) **** (four stars)
ALL but three of these 14 cuts are compositions by saxophonist and leader Adrian Cunningham, recorded before an enthusiastic audience at Sydney's Seymour Centre. Cunningham is probably best known as saxophonist with Galapagos Duck. Most tracks have a funk feel, given variety by Cunningham's use of alto and tenor sax, as well as clarinet and flute. The style is extremly well-played, swinging mainstream. Cunningham's third CD uses the same line-up as his latst album, The View From Here, and the group's depth of experience is evident in cohesive grooves and similarly flavoured soloing, particularly from pianist Bill Risby. Tempos vary from the smoky late-night ballad Gratitude, to the jagged rhythm underscoring the double-speed melody line on hectic alto in 12,000 Feet. The Latino piece Caribe works well with Cunningham's flute, but along the way the rhythm section become a litle muddy, although drummer Gordon Rytmeister solos well. Georgia on My Mind is given a slow blues treatment, the alto climbing into near dog-whistle territory.
~ John McBeath
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Time Off Magazine March 21 2007
The Adrian Cunningham Quartet
Any part-time jazz aficionado will tell you that, as far as wind instrumentation in jazz goes, it’s all about Miles’ trumpet and Coltrane’s sax.
But accomplished Sydney multi-instrumentalist Adrian Cunningham is here to educate the casually curious mainstream audience otherwise.
Over the last few years Cunningham – who is a gifted saxophonist, clarinettist, flautist, pianist and composer – has risen to become one of the most versatile and sought-after musicians in Sydney.
“Saxophone is definitely the most prolific of the woodwinds at the moment,” Cunningham explains. “But spare a thought for the 30s, where clarinettists like Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw were among the most famous people on the planet!
“Clarinet requires a lot stricter technique that the saxophone (not that the sax is easy either), but it require a lot more discipline and practice to get it sounding any good, And flute has been present in jazz since the early days, although not as a major voice.
“Each instrument ha a unique quality and character that I love to explore. When I pick up the flute I am a flute player, not a saxophone player who plays the flute”
The impressively diverse talents of Cunningham have been captured live on his third and latest release Adrian Cunningham Quartet In Motion – The Live Sessions, a CD/DVD package covering an October 2006 performance at Sydney’s Sound Lounge.
“Live recordings have a very special quality to them; a spontaneity and energy that’s often not found in a studio recording,” Cunningham opines. “I wanted to capture my band in the heat of the moment.
“The opportunity for the filming the night was presented to me, and I thought, ‘Why not?’. My original intention was to release just a CD, but I must say that watching the DVD really does make me feel I’m in he audience watching myself – which is a bit weird!”
Adrian Cunningham Quartet play Brisbane Jazz Club Saturday March 24. The Live Sessions out now through Newmarket Music.
~ Justin Grey
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Review: allaboutjazz.com, ejazznews
Adrian Cunningham: Jazz Master of the Heart Strings Posted: 10/5/2005
When we think of jazz musicians we typically expect the best artists to be over the age of 50, after all they have had more experience and more training. However, once in a while we stumble across a young jazz artist who plays as if he has been playing for over a century and Adrian Cunningham is this type of performer.
Adrian Cunningham is a young Australian Jazz artist from Sydney who has the amazing talent of making his emotions metamorphous into beautiful songs. He makes playing the Alto/Tenor Saxophones and Clarinet look as easy as brushing your teeth. He composes heart warming songs by reflecting upon the emotions he has felt throughout a variety of life experiences and this allows his audience to share these emotions as they listen to him.
Having performed throughout Australia, Asia, Europe, The United States, and even Africa it is obvious that his team of musicians; Gordon Rytmeister: Drums, Bill Risby: Piano, Tony Azzopardi: Percussion, Stuart French: Acoustic Guitar, David Pudney: Bass, and Victor Rounds: vocals, are able to mix their talents into sounds that are universally enjoyable. He has also released 2 phenomenal CDs. His second CD "The View from Here" contains nine outstanding and emotionally charged tracks from beginning to end. Not only was the CD produced by him but seven out of the nine songs were also personally written by him.
As most of us know we usually buy a CD for just a few good songs, or even just one, but this CD has one great hit after another and will definitely not be a dust collector. It is not only just for Jazz lovers but for anyone who enjoys music that evokes true emotions and it would make a perfect addition to your Apple iPod play list. With fast songs such as "Unrequited," written about an unrequited crush he experienced as a 12 year old, your day is bound to start on an upbeat note and help motivate you to get what you want without being afraid. If you are drained from a hard day at work and flying away to a tropical island is an unreachable concept listening to the two part "Island suite" is the second best thing to being there.
Many songs by popular artists are often badly re-created and cannot compare to the original, but Adrian Cunningham's unique rendition of U2's "With or Without You" would surely make Bono and the band of U2 feel completely flattered. It can create the perfect romantic atmosphere for a special night for two, or can help you recapture the heart of someone you want back.
A definite hit on Adrian's Cunningham's CD is "Goodbye Soup," a song he wrote as a dedication to the closing of a popular Jazz restaurant in Sydney, "Plus Soup," that subsequently ended up not closing but just moving. "Goodbye Soup" possesses a sound that will instantly make you feel a sense of sentimentality, reminding you of your most favorite and cherished memories. As he describes, "Plus Soup felt like a comfortable pair of old sneakers" and you can feel that while listening to this song.
The fifth and most heartwarming song on the CD is "Bye You All." This song is dedicated to his father who sadly passed away 6 years ago. The loss of a parent is one of the greatest pains anyone can endure and shortly after his father's death he managed to masterfully compose all of his emotions into this song. He was able to capture the love he felt for his father with the intensity of his loss and brilliantly combined it all together. His father would undoubtedly be honored and very proud.
Many musicians cannot create a sound that is suited for all ages but this CD fits perfectly into all age groups. For parents who wish their young children and teenagers would listen to someone other than Britney Spears or Eminem this CD is a must have. For the teenage girls in your household Adrian Cunningham is not only talented but he is definitely easy on the eyes so you can expect all of those Justin Timberlake posters to be replaced. For the teenage boys this CD is sure to help them impress the girl they have been daydreaming about much more than 50 cent ever could.
Talent can raise an artist to a certain level of success, but to capture the hearts of truly dedicated fans requires much more. An artist must posses a talent that can produce music which can be felt internally and Adrian Cunningham enraptures all of this. His music will easily grab onto your heart.
~ Aparna Datta
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Daily Telegraph Sydney Live magazine Article: , March 2003.
When Adrian Cunningham launched his album Unspoken at Soup Plus last December, the jazz basement venue was about to close. So he wrote a piece called Goodbye Soup - but as you do - forgot to play it that night.
Now the popular venue has reopened again and Cunningham's band is there tonight. "Its good I'll get a chance to play the piece, but I'll have to rename it", he said.
Cunningham plays tenor, alto saxophones, flute and clarinet, having studied with the virtuoso clarinettist Eddie Daniels in New Mexico. What's his favourite instrument? "It's like a parent being asked who is his favourite child. I choose the instrument according to the song" he says. His alto influences include Charlie Parker and Cannonball Adderley and he's wrapped in Joshua Redman's playing. Cunningham keeps busy with John Morrison's Swing City, with James Morrison's smaller groups and playing sax at the capitol theatre. Tonight he'll be joined by the versatile Bill Risby on piano, powerhouse Gordon Rytmeister on drums and driving bassist Dave Pudney.
~ Barry Morris
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Review: , May 2003.
Unspoken, Adrian Cunningham. Independent release.
****(four stars)
Drummer John Morrison's Swing City, like so many big bands in the past, is serving as an incubator for outstanding young jazz talent. Adrian Cunningham, the lead alto saxophonist with the band since its formation in 1999 and now its featured clarinet soloist, has stepped out of the reed section to spotlight his prowess as a multi-instrumentalist and writer in this quartet session recorded last September. His sound and warm tone owe much to American star Eddie Daniels. Pianist Bill Risby, a daring, audacious and unafraid innovator, stamps his class on the session, spinning articulate solos with ease. Bassist Craig Scott is resilient and strong, and drummer Gordon Rytmeister a foundation of controlled energy. Australian jazz great Don Burrows describes Adrian's playing as beautiful. He isn't exaggerating.
~ Kevin Jones
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Review: Australian Clarinet and Saxphone Blow - Graham Jesse & Adrian Cunningham
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