Piano Quartets
Jonathan Badger composer
Joshua Espinoza piano
Rose Hammer Burt baritone saxophone
Tiffany Defoe tenor saxophone
Derrick Michaels tenor saxophone
Jarrett Gilgore alto saxophone
Jonathan Badger electronics
Composer and guitarist Jonathan Badger presents his newest album, PIANO QUARTETS, on Ravello Records. This EP of works for piano and saxophone trio is the artist’s first leap into the classical music world; his earlier albums have included an eclectic mix of musical styles ranging from post-rock to neo-baroque chamber music.
This latest collection is comprised of three quartets and is rich with the diverse influences of his earlier releases, with elements of traditional chamber music fused with the timbres of a jazz ensemble and electronic manipulation. Badger’s music is an unlikely melding of jazz greats Ornette Coleman and Miles Davis, postmodern minimalists like Philip Glass and Stephen Reich, and even late Beethoven and rock music influences. This new EP from Badger and Ravello Records offers fresh and innovative compositions for those in the vanguard of classical music.
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Track Listing & Credits
| # | Title | Composer | Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Piano Quartet No. 1 | Jonathan Badger | Joshua Espinoza, piano; Rose Hammer Burt, baritone saxophone; Tiffany Defoe, tenor saxophone; Jarrett Gilgore, alto saxophone; Jonathan Badger, electronics | 6:15 |
| 02 | Piano Quartet No. 2 | Jonathan Badger | Joshua Espinoza, piano; Rose Hammer Burt, baritone saxophone; Tiffany Defoe, tenor saxophone; Jarrett Gilgore, alto saxophone; Jonathan Badger, electronics | 9:25 |
| 03 | Piano Quartet No. 3 | Jonathan Badger | Joshua Espinoza, piano; Rose Hammer Burt, baritone saxophone; Tiffany Defoe, tenor saxophone; Jarrett Gilgore, alto saxophone; Jonathan Badger, electronics | 6:22 |
Recorded on June 20, August 19, and November 8, 2019 by Jonathan Badger and High Horse Mobile Studios in Baltimore MD
Session Producer Faustus Jones
Executive Producer Bob Lord
Executive A&R Sam Renshaw
A&R Director Brandon MacNeil
VP, Audio Production Jeff LeRoy
Audio Director Lucas Paquette
Mastering Shaun Michaud
VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming
Publicity Patrick Niland, Sara Warner
Artist Information
Jonathan Badger
Jonathan Badger is a guitarist, composer, and video artist. He studied composition with Stephen Jaffe, Scott Lindroth, and John Harbison at Duke University; he also studied Guitar Craft, a tradition founded and guided by Robert Fripp of King Crimson. Badger’s work ranges from postrock sludge to neobaroque chamber music, and includes compositions for solo piano, string quartet, and vocal ensembles. In his live solo performances his compositions and improvisations are rendered using a variety of electronic implements while maintaining the character of solo guitar.
Notes
These three quartets were composed in the winter and spring of 2019, and recorded in the summer and fall. They explore an unusual assemblage and style, combining the precious articulation of the chamber quartet with the strident timbres of a jazz ensemble while making use of the expanded pallet of electronic processing. While piano and saxophone is a conventional pairing, these pieces take a novel approach to the combo, splaying complex harmonic structures across three saxes (baritone, tenor, and alto) and driving the ideas forward with a relentless piano-engine, which alternates between concussive stomping and nested complexity.
The electronic processing is both crucial and subtle. At times the treatments build up to dramatic intensity but without taking over or veering into electronic music. The overall effect of the electronics is an expanded depth and dimensionality of the acoustic ensemble.
The more obvious influences reflected in these pieces are the jazz innovators Ornette Coleman and Miles Davis as well as postmodern minimalists Philip Glass and Steve Reich, but one can also hear echoes of the later Beethoven piano sonatas, and passing references to the rock music of King Crimson and Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
— Jonathan Badger