After establishing an auspicious but fairly conventional career as a cello soloist, Matt Haimovitz began around 2000 to broaden the scope of his playing to include more and more contemporary works, and to launch an ambitious series of commissions for new pieces. The Kronos Quartet had early on turned to arrangements of Continue reading
Back in the Roaring Twenties, Paul Whiteman wanted to make a decent lady out of jazz by introducing what would go down into history as Symphonic Jazz. Replete with lavish arrangements and a couple of hot soloists to spike the mix, the music came across as something of a shotgun wedding. For better or for worse, a precedent was set and Continue reading
“Meeting of the Spirits,” with Matt Haimovitz and Uccello (Oxingale, $16.28): Jazz standards arranged for cello ensemble. Haimovitz, a cellist and musical adventurer — he plays Bach in beer halls — leads the eight-member Uccello in Continue reading
One of the most original and compelling jazz albums in recent memory was created by a classical cellist who often plays in rock clubs. As Matt Haimovitz’s world has stretched from the elegant Carnegie Hall to the punky CBGB club, it’s altogether fitting that his new album is titled Continue reading
Meeting of the Spirits
Renowned for his fascinating and far-reaching musical adventures and fearlessly virtuosic performances — whether in a club or on one of the world’s great stages — cellist Matt Haimovitz harnesses his eight-piece ensemble of “cello warriors” (San Jose Mercury News), Uccello, for a new program of jazz classics Continue reading
Israeli-born cellist Matt Haimovitz — an acclaimed virtuoso whose eclectic repertoire spans Bach to Bartók to Jimi Hendrix — will grace the stages of two local venues in May, performing benefit concerts for Rachel’s Table and the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. Continue reading
