Raphael Imbert Project - Heavens (Amadeus & The Duke) (2013)

This project creates an exciting new bridge between Western classical music and African-American music. With his band of virtuosos, Raphaël Imbert weaves together the common themes in the worlds of Ellington and Mozart. Making each echo to the other's sound, he conjoins them in a musical marriage which brilliantly merges their works. Heavens is an immense modern jam session, drawing on eclectic multicultural sources: blues, chamber music, secular song, German lied, sacred music, stomp, gospel, opera…
Inspired by both written and oral traditions, driven by improvisation and a swinging momentum, the saxophonist reveals the genius of these two great Masters. He brings to the fore their humour and their spirituality, a spirituality which at times touches the universal imagination. If their worlds combine so harmoniously, it is also because the three creators of this exceptional work, Mozart, Ellington and Imbert, are all blessed with the same innocence, the same passion, the same joy in sharing. In Heavens, the music lover is raised to a rainbow paradise where the hearts of jazz and classical music collide and beat together, and where music is as much a state of mind as a question of style. How happy are we to experience the union of this trinity!

Tracklist:

01. Dancers In Love
02. Such Sweet Thunder
03. Quintette avec clarinette, K. 581: Allegretto con variazioni
04. Das Lied der Trennung, K. 519
05. Ethiopi-K23
06. My Love
07. Les Dissonances, K. 465
08. Introduction / Heaven
09. Zwei geharnischte Männer
10. Black And Tan Fantasy
11. A Cenar Teco
12. Praise God
13. Man Came To Jesus
14. Happy Go Lucky Local / The Beautiful American
15. New World A-Comin'
16. Come Sunday
17. Die Himmlischen
18. Ave verum corpus, K. 618
19. My Love (musical saw version) (Bonus Track)

Personnel:

Raphaël Imbert - saxophones, bass clarinet, piano (2);
Marion Rampal - vocals;
Thomas Weirich - guitars;
Simon Sieger - trombone, piano (1, 14, 18), organ (18);
André Rossi - piano, organ (18);
Pierre Fénichel - double bass;
Jean-Luc Difraya - drums, vocal;
Florent Héau - clarinet;
Quatuor Manfred;
Marie Béreau - violin;
Luigi Vecchioni - violin;
Emmanuel Haratyk - viola;
Christian Wolff - cello.