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With Kaiso, his third recording as a leader, New York based, Trinidadian trumpet maestro Etienne Charles cooks up an ambrosial bouillabaisse of New World music genres, with the jazz and calypso genres standing out as piquant flavours. He explores the songbooks of three calypso legends, The Lord Kitchener, The Mighty Sparrow and the Roaring Lion using many different instrumental palettes ranging from duet to chamber orchestra. Born on the island of Trinidad in 1983, Etienne Charles defies easy musical categorization. An alumnus of the prestigious Juilliard School, Charles has received critical acclaim for his exciting performances, thrilling compositions and a knack for connecting with audiences worldwide. Etienne’s musical lineage runs at least four generations deep: His great-grandfather, emigrated to Trinidad from the overseas French department of Martinique bringing his folk music to the village of Mayaro; The young trumpeter’s grandfather’s distinct cuatro style can be heard on the classic folk and calypso recordings of the Growling Tiger; and, Etienne’s father, was a member of Phase II Pan Groove, one of Trinidad’s most progressive steel bands and one that Etienne himself would later join. Immersed in his father’s vast record collection, and suffused with the sounds of calypso, steel pan, and African Shango drumming, Etienne imbibed many of the influences that presently constitute the diverse colors of his harmonic palette. Perhaps more than any other musician of his generation or Eastern Caribbean origin, Etienne brings a careful study of myriad rhythms from the French, Spanish, English and Dutch speaking Caribbean to the table. Crucially, this young jazz professional fully understands the New Orleans trumpet tradition (which is readily discernible in his trademark instrumental swagger) and what the famed Crescent City pianist, Jelly Roll Morton so succinctly captured in the now immortal phrase, ‘The Spanish Tinge’. Like Charles’s Culture Shock (2006) and Folklore (2009), this latest opus addresses the fundamentals embodying calypso and jazz bringing exciting and heartfelt interpretations to the classic sing-along tunes of yesteryear. |
