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Tigran Hamasyan - The Call Within CD (album) cover

THE CALL WITHIN

Tigran Hamasyan

Jazz Rock/Fusion


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4 stars Born in 1987, TIGRAN HAMASYAN was certainly a child prodigy having taken a keen interest in the piano at the tender age of two and by three already learning how to sing the songs of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, The Beatles, Queen and even Louis Armstrong! Born in Gyumri, Armenia, a young TIGRAN didn't take long to discover the complexities of the world of jazz and continued on quickly to embrace Western classical music. By the time his parents moved to Yerevan, the Armenian capital, HAMASYAN was already mastering the techniques of Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Art Tatum and pretty much every hi-brow technical jazz wizard that has left an imprint on the world.

After participating and dazzling audiences in several jazz festivals in Yerevan, at only 13 years old HAMASYAN was already attracting the attention of Chic Corea, Avaishai Cohen, Jeff Ballard and other jazz masters. It wouldn't take long for more invitations to come and for HAMASYAN to meet legendary artists such as Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock and John McLaughlin. I don't know but usually when somebody this talented emerges from the womb, i can only think that it reinforces the notion of reincarnation and that such artists are simply carrying on from some of the masters of the past but of course i digress with absolutely no proof to back this up, but it does make me wonder!

After an avalanche of accolades, HAMASYAN finally got a start with his recording career in 2006 with his debut album 'World Passion' which featured his talented in a more traditional post-bop and jazz-fusion context but art the years have elapsed with several albums under his belt, HAMASYAN has expanded his musical horizons by including elements of not only his native Armenian folk music roots but avant-prog, spiritual jazz and jazz-rock all fused into an appetizing attack of the senses. His latest and 11th album THE CALL WITHIN released in 2020 displays HAMASYAN's technical wizardry but wrapped up in a much more interesting package with exhilarating time signature workouts, complex compositions and a series of unorthodox tones, timbres and tenacious treats for the adventurous listener.

Rooted in piano virtuosity, HAMASYAN continues his technical expertise by providing the expected jazz piano workouts but adds elements of progressive rock, electronica and jazz-fusion somewhat out of the Herbie Hancock canon. The results coalesce into an exciting callithump of instrumental magnificence that shines brightly as only a true maestro can dish out. This collection of ten tracks is diverse and succeeds in not only bedazzling the listener with technical dexterity but yanks at key emotional tugs that exude a sense of deeper comprehension of musical magic unbeknownst to many contemporary jazz stalwarts who worship the ghosts of the past without breathing a new relevance into the here and now.

THE CALL WITHING is really an exciting roller coaster ride of musical maestrohood all wrapped into a beautiful package of coolness. Perhaps my favorite track on this album is the frenetic oddball time signature rich 'Vortex' which perfectly sums up the zeitgeist of the modern world in all its craziness but honestly i really love every track on this one as not only does it provide the technical chops of a seasoned genius but adds enough spice to make it work on multiple levels of creativity. HAMASYAN is clearly maturing and in a good way as his consciousness is expanding to make his music embody creativity on multiple levels. Very few jazz artists have succeeded in mastering the classics while remaining relevant in the present. Armenia's gift to the world has done just that. This is definitely an artist everybody needs to explore further. His brilliance is exquisite.

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Posted Sunday, January 31, 2021 | Review Permalink

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