Elisabeth Kontomanou - Embrace (1999)

This is Kontomanou’s debut album, released in 1999 but to most quarters, something which was almost entirely missed on the radar screen. The kind of vocal expression Elizabeth is engaged in does not fit the popular vogue of female jazz vocalists. However, the program here shows both elements of musical substance and extramusical content in equal measure. The aesthetic persuasion that motivates her- the epic romanticism that impelled the most powerful, immediate Jazz on the 60s, is currently seen as outmoded. Put simply most listeners have a hard time reconciling the fact a vocalist does not wish to deal with popular song forms and instead wants to wrestle with an idiom that has been largely defined by instrumental giants in the league of Coltrane and Sanders etc., Elizabeth Kontomanou, like Flora Purim, is most committed to using her voice as an acoustic instrument in the ideal sense through the great raw potential which lays in wordless vocals. Here she surrounds herself with master soloists like Sam Newsome and J.D. Allen so as not to make her abilities as an improviser go untested. Indeed, it should be mentioned that time and time again both men, as well as pianist Jean-Michel Pilc, lay out impressive statements that raise the bar for her own expression. It's apparent if nothing else that the model of John Coltrane is at the heart of her expression, and in this should lie much interest for both Trane fans and those who cry for something different in the vocal world. ~ Extract by Gerard Cox.

SteepleChase Records, SCCD 31467, 1999

Recorded November, 1998

Musicians:

Elisabeth Kontomanou - Vocals

Sam Newsome - Soprano Saxophone

J.D. Allen - Tenor Saxophone

Jean-Michel Pilc - Piano

Thomas Bramerie - Bass

Abdou M'Boup - Percussion

Tracks:

1. Aliki {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (7:40)

2. Embrace {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (6:26)

3. Where I Wanna Be {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (3:23)

4. Spring {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (5:55)

5. The Light Of You {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (9:07)

6. All Music Kinds {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (11:35)

7. Lost Letter To A Nomad {J.D. Allen} (10:16)

8. Clear Blue Skies {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (10:14)

9. The Story Teller {Elisabeth Kontomanou} (5:38)

Credits:

Producer - Nils Winther

Recording Engineer - Josiah Gluck

Photo - Fernando Natalici

Liner Notes - Mark Gardner