Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Gabriel Evan Orchestra: Global Entry

Gabriel Evan Orchestra: Global Entry

By Jack Bowers
May 13, 2021
View read count

At least one dictionary defines an orchestra as "a large instrumental ensemble...which combines instruments from different families including bowed string instruments...woodwinds...brass...percussion..." and "other instruments such as the piano, celeste...and harp..." Or, in the vernacular of New York-based saxophonist

Gabriel Evan

saxophone
b.1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Gabriel Evan, a jazz sextet with some but not all of the above. Which is an around-the-block way of saying that Evan's "orchestra" lands somewhere short of the normal definition.

And that's by no means the only anomaly on Global Entry. Even though Evan's "orchestra," small as it is, places every one of the album's dozen numbers in a jazz framework, there are improvised solos on only five; the others are through-composed. As for the music, it spans a wide range of genres and eras, reaching back as far as the seventeenth century for the poet Ben Jonson's "Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes," neatly refurbished in trad jazz style by the late trumpeter

Charlie Shavers

trumpet
1920 - 1971

" data-original-title="" title="">Charlie Shavers, and embraces composers as dissimilar as Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov,

Duke Ellington

piano
1899 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Duke Ellington and

Henry Mancini

composer / conductor
1924 - 1994

" data-original-title="" title="">Henry Mancini.

Evan wrote the Dixie-oriented "South 5th Street" and Klezmer-like "Negotiations of South Williamsburg," Shavers penned the well-grooved "Effervescent Blues." Tchaikovsky's familiar "Waltz of the Flowers" (updated by Evan) raises the curtain, followed by the first of two enticing rumbas, Ernesto Vasquez' "Rumba Azul" (the other is "Rumba Tambah," which closes the session). Shavers arranged Rimsky-Korsakov's "Arabian Nightmare" (from Scheherazade), Evan the traditional "Diane" (Tropical Moon), Ellington's buoyant "Jubilee Stomp," Mancini's sultry "Lujon" and Leo Blanc/Rafael Hernandez' "Tambah."

Frankie Trumbauer

saxophone
1901 - 1956

" data-original-title="" title="">Frankie Trumbauer scored the Original Dixieland Jazz Band's "Singin' the Blues."

The solos, such as they are, are more or less evenly divided among trumpeter

John Zarsky

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">John Zarsky (muted on "Jubilee Stomp"), clarinetist Joe Goldberg and pianist

Joe Kennedy

organ, Hammond B3

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Kennedy. Evan solos briefly on soprano ("Singin' the Blues," "Jubilee Stomp") and alto ("Drink to Me"). The group's other members are bassist

Ben Fox

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Ben Fox and drummer/percussionist

Michael Voelker

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Michael Voelker. The frame of reference varies from trad to swing, never edging closer to modern jazz than that, and seems quite comfortable there. For what it is, Global Entry plays out as an astute and amiable session with a handful of special moments.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Waltz of the Flowers; Rumba Azul; Arabian Nightmare; South 5th Street; Diane; Singin' the Blues; Jubilee Stomp; Negotiations of South Williamsburg; Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes; Lujon; Effervescent Blues; Rumba Tambah.

Personnel

Gabriel Evan Orchestra

band / ensemble / orchestra

Gabriel Evan

saxophone

Joe Goldberg

saxophone

John Zarsky

trumpet

Joe Kennedy

organ, Hammond B3

Ben Fox

bass, acoustic

Michael Voelker

drums

Album information

Title: Global Entry | Year Released: 2021 | Record Label: Self Produced

PREVIOUS / NEXT

All Without Words: Variations Inspir...
< Previous

Ground Breaking Sounds - Old and New
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.