Featured Artist: Dick De Graaf Quartet

CD Title: Moving Target

Year: 2007

Record Label: Soundroots Records

Style: Contemporary Jazz

Musicians: Dick de Graaf (leader, composer, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone), Jeroen van Vliet (piano, Fender Rhodes), Guus Bakker (acoustic and electric bass), Pascal Vermeer (drums)

Review:

Dick de Graaf is one of the finest contemporary jazz composers and musicians performing today.  His music is memorable for its uniqueness, clarity, and purity of jazz sound.  Listening to this CD collection is a fine outing, and each song lingers in the listener's memory.

There are ten original compositions in this fine collection.  Each is composed by Dick de Graaf. These songs include "Casade," "A Touch of Bela," "Deka Deka," "Stolen Dream," "Climate Change," "Why Birds Always Sing," "Moving Target," "Handicap," "Somsok Orkim Saleb II," and the subtle, creative "Demasque."  Those who enjoy contemporary jazz at its finest will find this collection enchanting.  Each performer, whether solo or in unison, creates a wonderful jazz photograph in sound.  The CD is distributed by North Country Distributors and via www.dickdegraaf.com.

Jeroen van Vliet does fine work on piano and on Fender Rhodes.  His piano techniques are complex and brilliant.  Each performer adds a certain touch of class and brilliance to the ten songs found in this collection.

This collection is flawless, perfect from the beginning to the end, with flawless performances and intimate stylings.  This is one of Dick de Graaf's finest hours and the quartet shines with mellow jazz that will delight the listener over and over again. 

This is a classic.  Get a copy for yourself and a friend, and have your local library place a copy in the library for jazz listening patrons who enjoy fine jazz performances.  Highly recommended.

Artist's Website: http://www.dickdegraaf.com

Reviewed by: Lee Prosser

Click here for printer-friendly version of review.

Send this page to a friend.