I have been so enamored with strings for such a long time and it is always a pleasure to encounter individuals who perform at the peak of their craft. Just a few short weeks ago I was on stage hosting at the Monterey Jazz Festival with the Monterey Jazz Festival All-Stars and on violin, the wonderful Regina Carter!

Tonight she is back to her usual position as a leader and she brings together an eclectic array of sound and splendor with some wonderful worldly colors for our musical pallet. Accordion and kora along with bass and drums are such beautiful compliments to the violin. Sounds and cultures coming together and uniting in universal language bringing us one-step closer to the global human experience.

Classical, European and the African Diaspora is just genius in terms of sound articulation and combined with the rhythms of jazz, the world should take note not only of the music but also its implications. I love when musicians smile at each other during a performance. This suggests that the musicians hear and feel each other beyond the sound of the music and that impeccability is streaming in consciousness!

Alvester Garnett is situated behind his drum kit approaching the situation skin to skin. The use of his palms and fingertips open up the doors where new connections with other rhythmic pallets exist allowing authentic and natural backdrops for stories of music to be told. Stories indeed is what you will hear when the new album, “Reverse Thread” will be released in January of 2010. Sounds like a distant fantasy but as winter closely is upon us, we will be indulging the day sooner than you think.

Regina opens up with the title track of the disc, a piece called “Interi” and a composition entitled, “Kano”; which is the story about a man that would gladly turn himself into diamonds or gold for the woman that he loves only to know that this miracle still would not bring him closer to his desires.

The kora is simply an amazing instrument and I do not use that adjective lightly. The sound is a vast and marvelous array of speed and versatility amassing the emotions and spirits of other worlds.  With the rhythm of superior strength as its core, Regina’s strings skip, sing and dance so lovely on top of fragrant frequencies. The audience chimes in on the syncopated mantra and they begin to clap in unison as part of the fuel for the composition.

Accordion is not commonly used as an instrument for jazz but as the world progresses, and walls of genres are crumbling by the intension of creative thinking, nostalgia takes a back seat to inspiring new creations and the prisms of brilliance shine in many delightful directions!  The elements of silence, a bow and a string are so poignantly powerful and Regina’s respect for tradition and honor to the freedom of the future of the music, fill the air with elements of happiness and joy!

As kora player Yacouba Sissoko exits the stage transforming the ensemble into quartet form, Will Holshouser plugs in an ipod next to his accordion and the sound of a woman’s voice sets the tone for “Black Bottom Dance” as her African dialect leads the group into song. There are so many uplifting and pleasing little nuances of sound as each member uses their instrument to create unusual tones that stretch beyond. Regina’s use of vocalese and strings vibrates on a lovely bed of resonating splendor.

The second set begins with a duet of violin and accordion that make love out of Astor Piazzolla’s “Oblivion”. This is the second time in two days that I have heard love and respect spoken in such high regard to Astor Piazzolla’s name and his alternative interpretations of tango music. This should be a clue to those who are not hip to get hit in your soul from the source of inspired beauty. Knowledge and its origins is King!

Back to the ipod as the sounds of an African field recording where the men played the accordion and the women were allowed to chant and clap. Thank God there are no restrictions placed on our brilliant women today or we would be left with blowing each other up as apposed to having the subtlety of love desensitize our barbarous nature.

Which brings me to thoughts of one of the most beautiful pieces in the performance. “The Beetle” from the film, “The Constant Gardner” was so wonderful I had to rush to the video store to see the film again and hear the music with a newly heightened experience.

Regina’s intensions for beautiful music for the world of multiple genres are fulfilled. Stretching out into the galaxy and deep into your soul connecting music, mind, experience, thought, love and culture making one world one!

LeRoy Downs