Solidarity

*Ringer of the Week* Yes, there are tones of "jazz and strings" albums out there, but this one by trombonist Zach Rich is vastly different. First, it's not just a musician blowing around the strings, but the quartet of Anton Smirnov/vi, Rachel England/vi, Mathew Diekman/va and Erin Patterson/cel is an organic part of the rest of the band, consisting of Denin Slage-Koch/g, Gavin Dunn/p, Garbriel Mangion/dr and Seth Lewis-Gonzalo Teppa/b (along with a handful of guests). This a piece like "Seraph" has Rich soloing around the upbeat rhythm team that is framed and coaxed by the strings, while "Broken Mirrors" has a supplemental horn section adding to the canter after a melancholic intro form the quartet.

The string section gets its own chance for a spotlight as well as on the Britten-ish "Reprise" while they sway around guest David Bernot's tenor sax on the assertive "Anthem" and gracefully support Slage-Koch's pencil thin guitar on his bopping solo during "June". Vocalist Julian Cary gives a poetic message about a hope for better things in society on " What Is The World Rated?" before the world swings out in style on "The Heavyweight". The soloists as well as the strings weave everything together like a Raphael tapestry. Check this one out!