Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Matthew Halsall: An Ever Changing View

Matthew Halsall: An Ever Changing View

By Geno Thackara
September 16, 2023
View read count

Whatever view

Matthew Halsall

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Matthew Halsall is sharing here, it is drawn from life and correspondingly picturesque—not just always changing, but always colorful and fascinating. This View comes partly from the sea-and-sky vistas he enjoyed while creating it, splitting time between England and Wales. Partly, it also comes from a couple of years collecting a trove of percussive odds-and-ends, and cheerfully playing with all the organic sounds they offered. Tinkering with those tones, with no strict framework in mind, he produces a charming tonal kaleidoscope which is freely experimental and yet comfortable from start to finish.

The range of percussion (bells, chimes, kalimba, glockenspiel and several less common clattery things besides) makes for the widest palette used in his catalogue to date, all woven into easy going circular patterns without becoming cluttered. Halsall's trumpet is a largely soothing lead voice, flowing and floating over the grooves with the occasional dash of low-end swagger to spice things up. Around the fringes is another shifting blend of pleasant textures, from saxophone and flute to harp and bird calls.

The mood is a quiet and buoyant one, almost like a take on

Oregon

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Oregon's world fusion with a more Eastern bent and just a touch of Penguin Cafe Orchestra whimsy. With "Mountains, Trees and Seas," they bounce over a walking double-bass line emulating the rise and fall of actual mountains; the likes of "Water Street" and "Calder Shapes" chitter briskly; lower moments such as "Sunlight Reflection" simply drift with a reassuring kind of Zen calm. In Halsall's skilled arranger's hands, all the tones are woven into a gently hypnotic patchwork which makes the set feel like one long sunny daydream. A treat for the mind and the heart.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Tracing Nature; Water Street; An Ever Changing View; Calder Shapes; Mountains, Trees and Seas; Field of Vision; Jewels; Sunlight Reflection; Natural Movement; Triangles in the Sky.

Personnel

Matthew Halsall

trumpet

Matthew Cliffe

flute

Chip Wickham

woodwinds

Alice Roberts

harp

Maddie Herbert

harp

Liviu Gheorghe

piano

Jasper Green

keyboards

Gavin Barras

bass, acoustic

Alan Taylor

drums

Jack McCarthy

percussion

Sam Bell

percussion

Chris Davies

percussion

Caitlin Lang

vocals

Additional Instrumentation

Matthew Halsall: trumpet (2-5, 7, 9), piano (1, 6); kalimba (2-5, 7), glockenspiel (2), celeste (4), percussion (2-5, 7), looped piano (3, 7), Rhodes and piano effects (7), chimes (2-5, 10), gongs (8, 10), bells (10), log drum (9), field recordings (1, 5, 6); Matt Cliffe: alto sax (4), flute (2, 3, 5, 9); Chip Wickham: soprano sax (7), flute (10); Alice Roberts: harp (2-4, 7-10); Maddie Herbert: harp (5); Liviu Gheorghe: Rhodes (2, 3, 5); Jasper Green: Rhodes (4, 10), piano (7-9); Gavin Barras: bass (2-5, 7-10); Alan Taylor: drums (2-5, 7-10); Jack McCarthy: congas (2, 3, 5), percussion (4); Sam Bell: congas (9, 10), percussion (10); Chris Davies: xylophone (9); Caitlin Lang: vocals (10).

Album information

Title: An Ever Changing View | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Gondwana Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

With Archie Shepp, 7-Tette & Orchest...
< Previous

Shut Up, He Explained: On Talking He...
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.