James Strauss - Glass: Venezuelan ElegyBorn out of a meeting between Philip Glass and flutist James Strauss in 2011, Venezuelan Elegy is a celebration of the artistic sprit. Despite being a flutist by training, Glass has not written extensively for 'his' instrument. Strauss always wanted to perform Glass's music, so he wrote his own arrangements of several Glass compositions. Strauss moved to Venezuela right as political troubles were coming to a head. For him, this recording was a chance

Taking an innovative documentary-like approach

The film is not a political statement but a rally cry for our communities to step up for their neighbors

where people dressed up and order was turned upside down

and occasionally funky

extensive educational work

Andreas Hermet) of a South German clavichord which is in the Berlin Musical Instrument Museum

This collection presents for the first time a panorama of the popular creole big bands which used "fanfare"-style brass instruments in their music

Even before the dates started there were dramatic scenes in New York City at the official tour announcement when the band unexpectedly turned up on a flatbed truck to play 'Brown Sugar'

Tracks like "Out Amongst the People (For J Bat)" and "Be Present" are an impassioned reflection of turbulent times that find peerless musicians working as a harmonious community

Spanning a fifty year period

Ragana shifts seamlessly from tender

and Duke Ellington's jaggy solo-piano sound form the bedrock of Lafayette Gilchrist's style at the keyboard