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Erica Lindsay / Sumi Tonooka: Initiation
By
Sumi Tonooka
pianob.1956

Rufus Reid
bass, acousticb.1944
Saxophonist and pianist complement each other to such an extent that they sometimes appear to be in total and telepathic communion with each other. It is not hard to imagine why. They are similar in the sensitivity of touch and expression. Tonooka has hands that she controls spectacularly, right down to the fingertips. She seems to be able to imbue the same note with different meanings and emotions as her fingers might come to strike it straight or at an oblique angle. Thus her solos are daringly emotional, always full of surprise as she gives evocative voice to the notes, phrases, and lines she chooses to play. So they can be somewhat yearning or inward-looking, as the appropriately titled chart dedicated to

Rob McConnell
trombone1935 - 2010
But the saxophonist is more than an interpreter of Tonooka's deceptively simple songs, which she does read as if she were the character in the song itself. However Lindsay has singular voice and nowhere is this more in evidence than in "Somewhere Near Heaven." Here is a song with complete and beckoning architecture built on a melody that develops from soulful roots. Its glacial edifice is gently unveiled, as Lindsay's tenor soars upward and seems to unfurl in harmonic clouds, reaching higher and tapering off into the infinite blue. Lindsay reveals how spiritually inclined she is on "Black Urgency," which reverberates with fervor and ecclesiastical zeal.
Lindsay and Tonooka might also have the most perfect-sounding quartet since some of the great bands of

John Coltrane
saxophone1926 - 1967

Miles Davis
trumpet1926 - 1991
Track Listing
Mari; Mingus Mood; South Street; Initiation; Serpent's Tale; In the Void; Somewhere Near Heaven; Black Urgency; The Gift; Yes.
Personnel
Erica Lindsay
saxophone, tenorErica Lindsay: tenor saxophone; Sumi Tonooka: piano; Rufus Reid: bass; Bob Braye: drums.
Album information
Title: Initiation | Year Released: 2010 | Record Label: ARC - Artists Recording Collective
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