Yitzhak Yedid Passions And Prayers - Btlchr71207 - Jazz - by Between The Lines

Yitzhak Yedid was born in 1971 as the son of immigrant Syrian Jews in Jerusalem, the city to which he is paying his respects with his music now and where he currently lives. After he studied in Boston at the New England Conservatory with Ran Blake and Paul Bley, he returned to his homeland, where he enjoys a high reputation today. His music is characterized by the use of the structural principles and composition method of New Music, consideration of the traditional music of his native country and even the art of jazz improvisation. “Passion & Prayers” is designed as a suite as was its predecessor on Between the lines (“Myth of the Cave”). The five parts tell a story in the language of music, as Yitzhak explains: “The music conveys differing emotions, oscillating between the mysterious and the exposed, between the passions of love and the coldness of harsh reality. The prayers in the work are those of compassion and pity, born of deep faith and acceptance.” He succeeds in communicating an impression of his home city with this recording, which has us reeling between fascination and chaos, between unrestrained life and danger lurking on every corner, between romanticism and anarchy. His ensemble is a “who is who” of the Israeli music scene: Galia Hai (viola) studied with Tabea Zimmermann, among others, and has already received numerous prizes. Ora Boasson Horev (bass) is both the first bassist of the “Israel Camerata Orchestra Jerusalem” and a member of several modern and free jazz groups. Her co-musician at the Israel Camerata Orchestra is also Alon Reuven (French horn). Orit Orbach was and is the first clarinet player at renowned orchestras and has participated in numeousr CD recordings and festivals. Yaron Ouzana (trombone) studied in Amsterdam and Jerusalem and is a member of the Tel Aviv Big Band, among other things. “Yedid is a wonderful storyteller. His compositions can be challenging and require the listener to take stock of what evolves. But his works are just as entertaining” “Down Beat” wrote in a portrait in March 2005.