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Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra: Windward Bound

By Jack Bowers
May 4, 2020
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Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra: Windward Bound

Windward Bound, the debut recording by the Toronto-based

Dennis Kwok

saxophone
b.1997

" data-original-title="" title="">Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra, consists of a six-part suite "for jazz orchestra and multiple woodwind soloist." It is perhaps more than coincidental that Kwok, who wrote and arranged the sequence of tone poems based in part on his teen-age memories of sailing on Lake Ontario, also plays alto, tenor, soprano and baritone saxophones, oboe, clarinet, flute, alto flute, piccolo and bass clarinet. In other words, multiple woodwinds.

Versatile as he is, Kwok doesn't monopolize the blowing space, although he does solo on all but the first and last movements of the suite.

Caity Gyorgy

vocals
b.1998

" data-original-title="" title="">Caity Gyorgy's wordless voice is heard on Part I, "The Calling,"

Marie Goudy

trumpet
b.1990

" data-original-title="" title="">Marie Goudy's trumpet on Part VI, "Red, Right, Returning." Among all the pieces, "The Calling" is the most picturesque and evocative with sounds of the sea and seashore predominating before Gyorgi adds an even more haunting soliloquy toward its end. The suite weighs anchor on Part II, "Ready, Aye, Ready," a heartier excursion on which Kwok's burnished alto sax and

Jacob Wutzke

drums
b.1997

" data-original-title="" title="">Jacob Wutzke's broad-shouldered drum work help steady the craft. Wutzke is again at the fore on the lively Part III, "A Flat Boat is a Fast Boat," wherein Kwok trades his alto for a baritone and solos briskly alongside tenor

Naomi McCarroll-Butler

saxophone

" data-original-title="" title="">Naomi McCarroll-Butler and guitarist

Aidan Funston

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Aidan Funston.

The voyage encounters troubled waters on Part IV, "The Tempest," listing stridently from fore to aft in spite of the best efforts of trombonist

Nick Marshall

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Nick Marshall and Kwok (on soprano) to right the ship. In the end, disharmony has the last word, leading to the serene and quiet "Elegy," underlined by Kwok's unruffled baritone and more soft voicings by Gyorgi. "Red, Right, Return" is delightful, melodically and rhythmically, bringing the voyage to a bright and pleasurable conclusion, enriched by Goudy's expressive trumpet and further colorful sounds of sea and shore. Kwok's orchestra, formed in 2017 and encompassing nineteen musicians under age thirty-five from the southern Ontario region, proves more than seaworthy, lending Kwok's impassioned charts all the spirit and substance they require. In other words, an impressive debut all 'round and an intriguing harbinger of voyages yet to come.

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Track Listing

Part I. The Calling, Part II. Ready Aye Ready, Part III. A Flat Boat is a Fast Boat, Part IV. The Tempest, Part V. Elegy, Part VI. Red Right Returning

Personnel

Dennis Kwok

saxophone

Megan Jutting

trumpet

Matt Smith

trumpet

Paul Callander

trumpet

Marie Goudy

trumpet

Naomi McCarroll-Butler

saxophone

Sophia Smith

saxophone

Brenden Varty

saxophone

Kyle Tarder-Stoll

saxophone

Jonathan Lau

saxophone, baritone

Nick Marshall

trombone

Andrew Gormley

trombone

Charlotte McAfee-Brunner

trombone

Inayat Kassam

trombone

Aidan Funston

guitar

Augustine Yates

piano

Jonathan Wielebnowski

bass, acoustic

Jacob Wutzke

drums

Caity Gyorgy

vocals

Album information

Title: Windward Bound | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Self Produced

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