Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
In Memoriam: Al Foster, 1943–2025
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
Trombonist Roswell Rudd had teamed with the Mongolian Buryat Band for an exploration of jazz and Asian Music. Blue Mongol, which is set for an Oct. 11 release on Sunnyside/Soundscape, is a 13-track synthesis of cultures that is an extension of a 2004 concert that features Rudd with musicians from Mongolia.
The Mongolian musicians on Blue Mongol are led by throat singer and multi-instrumentalist Battuvshin Baldantseren, a virtuoso on the bamboo flute, horse-head bass and jaw harp. Joining Rudd and Baldantseren are singer Badma Khanda, Dmitry Ayurov on fiddle, dulcimer player Kermen Lakyaeva and Valentina Mandykova on zither.
Rudd calls their music “art folk, because is combines the sophistication of conservatory, Western training with the indigenous performance style of their long history.
“The Mongolian instruments and the trombone create a sound that is the ideal acoustic realization of these Central Asian flavors,” Rudd said.
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
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