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CADENCE 2000 - Frank Rubolino
Levinovsky plays with a sextet on Kind of Red, using the traditional front
line of tenor, trumpet, and trombone as the power generators while he,
on piano or keyboards, and the rhythm section continually kick the tempo
into high gear. Levinovsky has spent most of his life in the former Soviet
Union, and he calls these compositions sound memories of his experiences.
Interestingly, the music has a definite flair of the Western countries
and does not evoke images of the musical history of Russia. It takes off
with a solid, Americanized Jazz attitude and provides plenty of punch
and improvised deviation off the themes. Levinovsky has a firm and substantial
touch on piano, but I would not label him as percussive. He provides significant
flair through his solos by developing intricate segments. Levinovsky establishes
group control through his keyboard comping and subtly dictates the direction
for the group. The compositions of Levinovsky (all but a Chick Corea piece
are his) are not shallow shells. They are fairly complex statements designed
to give as much improvising opportunity as possible, and he and the band
do just that.
Blake is a strong soloist on tenor, and he also
shows strength on the ensemble passages where the three horns frequently
get cooking. Sipiagin's trumpet tone is mellow and smooth, showing up
particularly well on the ballad selections but also cooking on the faster
tunes. Herwig is non-abrasive with his trombone tone, so his improvising
melds neatly with the others in sustaining the smoldering but not blazing
fire. Jenkins appears on two cuts as a wordless vocalist who shades the
songs by using her voice as an instrument. The program builds with each
selection into a formidable hard-bop outing. Levinovsky may be of Russian
origin, but his music tends to belie that fact. He and the band put on
a very good show of Western unity.
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ALL ABOUT JAZZ - Dave Nathan 2000
The title of Kathy Jenkins' maiden album is a little misleading in that
a trio shares the spotlight with a big band. Both groups are well led
by Russian born pianist and Jenkins' husband, Nick Levinovsky. On this
exciting album, the two touch all the musical bases. The session offers
high voltage, swinging big band arrangements backing Jenkins to much more
mellow, relaxed support by the trio. Like the instrumentals, Jenkins'
voice ranges from the boisterous when backed by the larger aggregation
(understandably, so she can be heard over 16 men swinging), to gentle
and sentimental when in the trio setting. She does well with both. Her
voice can be cool with an edge on such cuts as "From This Moment
On" where half way through, with wordless vocalizing, she becomes
part of the brass section. Contrast this with the pull at the heart strings
emotions on "Lonely Woman". Like cute and sassy? Jenkins can
do that too as with "If I Were A Bell" and "When The Sun
Comes Out". Then there's an ironic with on "What You Don't Know
About Women". One of the album's highlights is a trio accompanied
Jenkins' lament on "End Of A Love Affair".
This album once more demonstrates the significance of
good arrangements and outstanding musicians in making an album successful.
This band's chairs are occupied by some of New York's top players and
each cut features a solo by at least one of these fine musicians. As can
be expected, the lion's share of the solo space belongs to Levinovsky.
But the saxophones of Rich Perry and Andy Middleton share individual attention
on "When The Sun Comes Out". Andy Gravish brings a strong open
trumpet to "Gotta Move" while Kenny Rampton's blues-laden trumpet
enhances "Black Coffee". To borrow from a current promo for
the PGA senior tour, "These guys really can play."
With excellent range and diction, an intuitive feel
for the lyrics and not afraid to wear her feelings on her vocal sleeve,
Kathy Jenkins is a welcome addition to the jazz vocal scene. From This
Moment On is recommended.
ALL ABOUT JAZZ - Jack Bowers - December 1999
Pianist/composer Nick Levinovsky, whose dazzling big-band debut, Listen
Up!, was reviewed earlier this year, shines the spotlight this time on
his lovely and talented wife, Kathy Jenkins, using his band (and trio)
as picturesque backdrops for her bright-eyed vocals. Jenkins, whose background
is musical theatre and cabaret, has conclusively mastered the subtleties
of Jazz phrasing, and, coupled with her clear, pleasing voice and highly
personal style, gives each of these 14 songs an absolutely delightful
reading. She's comfortable at any tempo, notably persuasive on the ballads
("When the Sun Comes Out," "Loverman," "I've Got the World on a String,"
"The End of a Love Affair") but no slouch on the scorchers ("From This
Moment On," "Love For Sale," "If I Were a Bell," for example).
Included are 10 time-tested standards, Thelonious Monk's
"Ask Me Now" (marvelously articulated) and three relative newcomers, "What
You Don't Know About Women,""Gotta Move," and "Lonely Woman." Impressive
as she is, the Levinovsky orchestra is no less so, thanks in part to the
leader's wonderful arrangements and as much to the band's remarkable ability
to make them dance and sparkle. The full ensemble is heard on eight selections,
the trio on six. While Levinovsky is the most prominent soloist, saxophonists
Chip Burris, Andy Middleton, Rich Perry and Mike Migliore: trumpeters
Andy Gravish and Kenny Rampton, and trombonists Dave Panichi and Noah
Bless also have their moments, and none disappoints. Neither does Jenkins,
whose debut as a full-fledged Jazz singer is a smashing success, one that
undeniably calls for more of the same.
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Jack Bowers
Closer to home, pianist/composer Nick Levinovsky's comparatively unseasoned
New York-based ensemble also makes its debut on (2), and believe it or
not, keeps pace with Garnett's strapping corps of big-band veterans stride
for stride in terms of freshness and firepower. The freshness is provided
by Levinovsky's consistently impressive charts, the firepower by a contingent
of the Big Apple's most capable sidemen (and one woman, trombonist Deborah
Weisz). The Bands share one song in common, "My Favorite Things," but
whereas Garnett's version is instrumental, Levinovsky's is a vehicle for
vocalist Kathy Jenkins (Mrs. Levinovsky) who is also heard on the sultry
ballad "Lazy Afternoon" and (wordlessly) on "Breath of North." Levinovsky,
who came to the U.S. from his native Russia nearly a decade ago, is an
excellent Jazz pianist and an even better composer/arranger whose memorable
charts are the wings on which his band soars beyond the commonplace.
The album opens with the bracing
"Second Wind," which, Levinovsky writes, represents the creative energy
he found on arriving in New York. The second piece, "Breath of North,"
describes the loveliness and peace experienced on a visit to Maine, while
"Mysterious Beauty" is exactly that, a lyrical sound-portrait for the
listener to explore and unravel. The title selection, bright and sassy,
is a perfect showpiece for the band, and Levinovsky's glorious musical
landscapes are further enhanced by the scurrying "Last Flight" and debonair
"Farewell to Summer" (markedly enlivened by tenor Serge Gurbelo's mesmerizing
solo). Levinovsky solos on "Breath of North," "My Favorite Things,""Listen
Up!," and "Lazy Afternoon," framing an emphatic statement each time, as
do Gurbelo ("Summer"), alto Chip Burris and trumpeter Andy Gravish ("Second
Wind"), alto Bob Parsons and flugel Alex Sypagin ("Breath of North"),
tenor Andy Middleton and trumpeter Charlie Caranicas ("Mysterious Beauty"),
trombonists Weisz ("Last Flight") and Noah Bless ("Listen Up!") and Middleton
again ("Last Flight"). An abundantly engaging coming-out party by a conspicuously
talented band leader and his superlative big band.
JAZZ TIMES MAGAZINE - Jack
Sohmer - June '99
The first American release by New York-based, Russian-born pianist and
composer/arranger Nick Levinovsky, this program of six originals and two
standards, a swinging "My Favorite Things" and the placid "Lazy Afternoon,"
augurs well for the future of the leader's new orchestra. Levinovsky has
been in the States only since 1990, but prior to that he recorded six
albums between 1979 and 1989 for Moscow's Melodia label, in itself a healthy
comment on the status of American-derived music in post-Cold War Russia.
Boasting five trumpets, four trombones, five saxes/woodwinds, and three
rhythm, the impression the band makes also benefits from the several spots
accorded Kathy Jenkins, Levinovsky's wife and a superb jazz singer in
her own right. Featured soloists abound among the band's personnel, and
although none of them can yet be considered major new voices, all are
well within the parameters of contemporary expectations. But perhaps it
is best to say that the band functions most effectively as the orchestral
voice through which Levinovsky the writer speaks.
ALL ABOUT JAZZ - Jack Bowers - July '99
Pianist Nikolay (Nick) Levinovsky came to the U.S. from Russia nearly
a decade ago to seek fame and fortune, but wound up leading a Jazz big
band instead (only kidding, Nick). "Listen Up!" is the band's debut recording,
and if it doesn't cause one to listen up, there's scant hope for big bands
anywhere. I don't know what conservatory Levinovsky learned Jazz composition,
but he must have lingered near the head of the class - he is an outstanding
writer and arranger, not to mention Jazz pianist, and his ensemble is
as well - endowed an any that one would expect to encounter in the Big
Apple. Levinovsky wrote six of the album's eight songs, and they embody
the kind of freshness and vitality that signal the arrival of an important
new talent. Like many perceptive composers, Levinovsky often writes with
images in mind, and so it is that "Second Wind" expresses the creative
energy he felt on arriving in New York in 1990. "Breath of North" mirrors
the peacefulness and natural beauty of Maine, the skittish "Last Flight"
reminds us that each flight we undertake could be the last one, and the
even-tempered poem "Farewell To Summer" is a self-explanitory musical
landscape brightened by Serge Gurbelo's eloquent tenor saxophone. "Mysterious
Beauty" paints another enchanting musical portrait, whereas the candid
title selection is simply a grooving showcase for the band that accentuates
robust solos by Levinovsky and trombonist Noah Bless. Vocalist Kathy Jenkins
(Mrs. L.) is featured on Levinovsky's stylish arrangements of "My Favorite
Things" and the too-seldom heard "Lazy Afternoon" (from a mid - 50's Broadway
musical, The Golden Apple). The ensemble is abundantly stocked with resourceful
soloists including Gurbelo, Bless, alto Chip Burris and trumpeter Andy
Gravish ("Second Wind"), alto Bob Parsons and flugel Alex Sypagin ("Breath
of North"), tenor Andy Middleton ("Mysterious Beauty", "Last Flight"),
trumpeter Charlie Caranicas ("Mysterious Beauty"), trombonist Deborah
Weisz ("Last Flight") and last but not least Levinovsky himself who presides
over a high-powered rhythm section (Boris Koslow, bass: Rudi Petschauer,
drums). If this is merely the opening chapter in Levinovsky's big-band
book, I can hardly wait until the second one is inscribed.
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