Rufus Reid Unveils QUIET PRIDE - THE ELIZABETH CATLETT PROJECT

Rufus Reid's "QUIET PRIDE - The Elizabeth Catlett Project" is up for GRAMMY Awards in several categories this year.

The inspiration for the epic, five-suite large ensemble work, Quiet Pride, was Reid's fascination with the sculptural work of renown Black American artist Elizabeth Catlett.

"While there is no 'absolute' correspondence, I do feel that she inspired me to mix my own (musical) shapes and lines," explained Reid. The February 11, 2014 release date of Quiet Pride, was Reid's 70th birthday, marking his 50th year in the music industry.

Reid's all-star 20-piece ensemble includes: Herlin Riley (drums), Steve Allee (piano), and Vic Juris (guitar), Tim Hagans, Ingrid Jenson, Freddie Hendrix, and Tanya Darby, (trumpets); Steve Wilson, Erica von Kleist, Tom Christensen, Carl Maraghi, and Scott Robinson, (reeds), Dave Taylor, Ryan Keberle, Michael Dease, and Jason Jackson, (trombones), and John Clark and Vincent Chancey (French horns) and Charenee Wade (vocals).

Rufus Reid's iconic bass sound has graced the music of countless jazz giants including Eddie Harris, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Benny Golson, J.J. Johnson, Jack DeJohnette and Nancy Wilson.

Awards - the BMI Composers Workshop * Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize * two Chamber Music America's New Works grants * The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship for Composition * the Mellon Jazz Living Legacy Award * and more.

Internationally sought after as an educator, Reid is the acclaimed author of the "The Evolving Bassist"- the definitive bible for every jazz bassist and the industry standard since 1974. He served as the Director of Jazz Studies and Performance Program for 20 years at William Patterson University.

Upon his retirement, Reid set about fulfilling his dream to compose. This ensemble and original composition was made possible by his winning the prestigious Raymond and Beverly Sackler Composition Competition Prize in 2006 for his original three-movement suite, Quiet Pride. Two new movements were completed and added in 2012, leading to this recording.

Listen below:

https://soundcloud.com/gaitkeeper/recognition
https://soundcloud.com/gaitkeeper/mother-and-child
https://soundcloud.com/gaitkeeper/03-tapestry-in-the-sky
https://soundcloud.com/gaitkeeper/singing-head
https://soundcloud.com/gaitkeeper/glory

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