Matthias Lupri Group
About
Matthias Lupri Group
Anyone who enjoyed Matthias Lupri's debut disc, Window Up Window Down - and lots of people did, to judge from the CD's success in radio polls - will find even more to like in this sophomore effort. The direct, articulate character of Lupri's vibes playing and composing are even more imposing this time around, while his abilities as a bandleader shine brighter in the present quartet, which includes two true giants of contemporary improvised music, George Garzone and John Lockwood. Shadow of the Vibe, in sum, provides what one hopes to find from a musician who made a strong first impression: real growth.Lupri is no underaged phenom, but rather a still-young though experienced adult who has not rushed his journey into jazz's deeper waters. He was born in Germany in 1964, and came to North America with his family a year later. After four years in Kansas, the Lupris moved to Alberta, Canada, where Matthias studied drums and began playing professionally as a teenager. "I was a drummer for 15 years," he reports, "playing blues, rock and country music. But jazz fascinated me, and I went to college to learn more about it. That's where I was introduced to the vibes, which was a mandatory instrument for drummers; and that's where a teacher told me to check out Gary Burton. So I bought his Times Square album with Tiger Okoshi, Steve Swallow and Roy Haynes, and it totally changed my whole approach to music. For the next five years, while I was still on the road with rock bands, I would practice my vibes every night in my hotel room."
One major change for Lupri was a new found urge to compose music as well as play it. "I always felt that I was missing something by just playing," he recalls. "I wanted to add more melodically." He also took note of how Burton, in his Times Square period, was working without piano or guitar, and a Lupri ensemble concept also began to take shape. "I love playing with sax and no other comping instrument," he explains. "It gives you more freedom, and without the richer piano sound the timber of sax and vibes together tends to float more."
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Past Events
The Cellar Restaurant/Jazz Club
25
Jun
2005
12:30 16:15
28
Jun
2002
22:30