The last several years have seen Wadada Leo Smith create albums that have given tribute to Thelonious Monk, National Parks, rivers and lakes. They’ve been unified in that they had the trumpet player in a single musical milieu, be it small group, orchestra or even solo. This time around the man with the golden tone. For this album, Smith gives a rich tribute to civil rights legend Rosa Parks, and mixes and matches with the stringed RedKoral Quartet (Shalini Vijayan, Mona Tian, Andrew McInstosh, Ashley Walters) , the Blue Trumpet Quartet (having Smith with Ted Daniel Hugh Ragin and Graham Haynes), the Diamond Voices (Min Ziao-Fen, Carmina Escobar, Karen Parks) and the Janus duo with some electronics (via Hardedge) and a drum-set provided by Pheeroan akLaff. There’s also a promised video during the concert performances, and as one who’s seen Smith in concert, he fulfills his promises!
In addition, musical excerpts from recordings by Anthony Braxton, Steve McCall, Leroy Jenkins and even Smith himelf are sliced into various moments. Singing recitatives of words from Martin Luther King Jr and a text by Rosa Parks are delivered by Escobar and Parks as well. The music itself ranges from a collision of strings and brass on “Journey” to rich Barberesque bows and edgy Bartok harmonics. Combinations like Vijayan’s violin with the rich trumpets make for rich textures. Smith’s horn is crystal clear and passionate with Drum-Set on “The Known World:Apartheid” and his duet with Haynes teamed with the BlueTrumpet Quartet juxtaposed with RedKoral is a tapestry of pathos. Smith uses his horn like a giant paintbrush with our ears as his canvas.