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Joel Shapira Quartet, Open Lines (2011)
Review by Don Berryman
Sunday, June 5, 2011
If anyone needed a reminder that we have an amazing depth of jazz talent in the Twin Cities, they would find it in the solid new release from the Joel Shapira Quartet, Open Lines. Dispensing classic jazz guitar sound from his Gibson, Joel Shapira has been very busy having also just released his second duet album with vocalist Charmin Michelle, Dawning and Daylight. Although he co-founded and has recorded two great albums with the trio Triplicate, this is Joel's first recording leading a quartet. For his quartet project Joel recruited tenor saxophonist Pete Whitman. Whitman is well known as the composer and bandleader behind the Pete Whitman X-tet (which got a four star review from Downbeat) but here he demonstrates his astounding ability as a soloist. Filling out the quartet are first-call bassist Tom Lewis and drummer Dave Schmalenberger. Taking their set list from instrumental favorites including compositions by jazz greats Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, etc., they show that there is still something original to say.
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Charmin & Shapira & Friends: Jazz and Gospel at Gethsemane in Maplewood
by Andrea Canter
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Joel Shapira
©Andrea Canter
For five years as Contemporary Music Director at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Maplewood, guitarist/composer Joel Shapira has directed a “praise band” of top area instrumentalists and guest vocalists, including Charmin Michelle. After teaming with Michelle throughout the Twin Cities and two recordings, he now brings Charmin & Shapira & Friends to Gethsemane for a Tuesday night concert of “Jazz and Gospel” on May 24th at 7 pm. The evening in part will be a celebration of the Charmin & Shapira & Friends new recording, Dawning and Daylight. Among the friends on hand for this evening are members of Shapira’s Gethsemane praise band—bassist Tom Lewis and drummer Nathan Normanm along with frequent collaborator, saxophonist Paul Harper. Vocalist Torie Redpath (a regular at Gethsemane) will also be on hand to sing a few gospel tunes with Charmin.
Read Entire Article
Joel Shapira Celebrates Release of "Open Lines" at Hell's Kitchen
by Andrea Canter
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Joel Shapira
©Andrea Canter
Over the past few months, Twin Cities-based guitarist Joel Shapira and his quartet have been previewing Open Lines, a spirited set that brings together an outstanding bop and beyond ensemble with saxophonist Pete Whitman, bassist Tom Lewis and drummer Dave Schmalenberger. On May 19 at Hell’s Kitchen, Open Lines finally gets its proper CD Release Party.
Hear the Joel Shapira Quartet play tunes from Open Lines at Hell’s Kitchen, 80 S. 9th Street in downtown Minneapolis, 6-9 pm on May 19th. CD available at the show or CD Baby.
Read Entire Article
Charmin Michelle and Joel Shapira CD Release
by Pamela Espeland
Friday, April 22, 2011
A class act through and through. Lovely, elegant singer Charmin Michelle and virtuoso guitarist Joel Shapira, longtime collaborators on the Twin Cities music scene, have made their second CD together, after Pure Imagination (2005).
Just out, Dawning and Daylight is what they do best: jazz standards and classics from the Great American Songbook. This will be a night of beautiful music, swinging and soulful, pitch-perfect and impeccably performed.
Friday, 9 p.m., Artists’ Quarter in the basement of the Hamm Building, St. Paul. $10.
Charmin and Shapira, "Dawning and Daylight"
by Andrea Canter
Thursday, 10 February 2011
If you live in or near the Twin Cities, you are probably already familiar with the succulent duo sounds of songbird Charmin Michelle and guitarist Joel Shapira, the longstanding “Charmin and Shapira.” And if they are a new find, what a treat! As on their debut release, Pure Imagination (2005), on the new Dawning and Daylight they augment the ensemble with “friends” Paul Harper (tenor sax), Tom Lewis (bass), and Nathan Norman (drums), and this time, on two tracks, bring in Dave Schmalenberger on congas...
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Critique: "Dawning and Daylight" (CD)
Charmin and Shapira
02/09/11 - By Leslie Connors
“Dawning and Daylight” is the kind of album that should be released on vinyl. It has that Southern roots feel to it, offering a slice of Americana that most contemporary jazz recordings eschew. Smooth but not smooth jazz, “Dawning and Daylight” is an alternative to the cookie-cutter commercialism that has infected the genre for decades now. Charmin and Shapira cover well-worn jazz staples with the no-frills arrangements and bluesy undertow that immortalized them to begin with...
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And All that jazz...
by Bill Stieger - 12/22/10
Joel Shapira is that rarest of jazz
musicians—a busy one. The Highland
Park guitarist's secret to success is a
combination of talent, flexibility and business
acumen. "I play with a lot of different groups."
Shapira said and not all of them are jazz-oriented. And that's OK with me. Jazz is my
first love and the reason I play guitar, but I'm
happy to play different styles of music."
Besides booking his own jazz quartet,
Shapira plays the classical guitar at weddings,
performs with Vic Volare's eight-piece swing
band, accompanies jazz vocalist Charmin
Michelle, provides the musical entertainment
at corporate functions and leads the liturgical
band at a Lutheran church in Maplewood.
"Playing music is the only thing I've ever
wanted to do," Shapira said. "But I have to
spend as much time just making sure I get to
play it, which is the business part of it...
Read Entire Article
Jazz Times Review: "Open Lines"
by Robert Sutton - 11/22/10
Coolness is defined by action, not words. Joel Shapira approaches guitar playing like a veteran baseball player on a hot streak would approach the plate, brimming with an obvious yet calm swagger. When he swings for the fences, there’s no obnoxious boasting, just an easy self-confidence that is bred from years of experience and a complete understanding of the game. On “Open Lines,” Shapira never hogs the spotlight, doesn’t let the musicians that fill his quartet take a passenger seat. Instead, he’s a team player that isn’t afraid to share a groove even when he’s smoking all over it.
A collection of jazz standards and Latin songs, “Open Lines” invigorates older material like drinking ice tea at the end of a desert journey. Pete Whitman’s towering tenor saxophone and Dave Schmalenberger’s steady drumming set its swinging rhythm on “Simone” but Shapira’s guitars weave webs of translucent harmony. As Shapira continues to jam, his fingers working all sorts of unexplainable magic, Whitman’s sax sways to its intoxicating spirit. Ornette Coleman’s “Turnaround” is given a similarly inspired treatment as Whitman’s saxophone offers an upbeat and laid-back framework from which Shapira cuts loose on his guitar.
The Joel Shapira Quartet’s version of Miles Davis’ “Nardis” is a dazzler. Tom Lewis’ deep, mesmerizing bass lines and Schmalenberger’s punchy drums provide the backbone for Shapira’s wintry, reflective guitars. On “How Insensitive,” it doesn’t seem as Shapira is playing anymore but actually painting; each carefully plucked note is like the stroke of an artist’s brush. In other words, it is breathlessly gorgeous. Dreamy textures elevate “It Could Happen to You” and “Time Remembered,” evoking the kind of sentimental imagery that music is supposed to do.
Throughout it all Shapira keeps his cool, never wavering in his goal of simply knocking you out with his impeccable guitar playing.
Jazz Times Article
New Strings—October 28, 2010
by Andrea Canter
Guitarist Joel Shapira and his quartet have been previewing Open Lines, a spirited set that brings together an outstanding bop and beyond ensemble with saxophonist Pete Whitman, bassist Tom Lewis and drummer Dave Schmalenberger. They aired some of these tunes at Hell’s Kitchen last week and an official CD release party is in the works. But meanwhile, the new CD is available from Joel, one of the busier artists in the metro –with this quartet, Pooch’s Playhouse, his duo with Charmin Michelle (Charmin & Shapira) and an occasional gig with Triplicate, as well as frequent supporting roles for area vocalists.
In the realm of full disclosure, I have to note that I did the front and inside jacket photos for Open Lines, well before I heard the music. I hope the artwork adequately conveys the often colorful, sometimes sublime arrangements of an eclectic set of great jazz covers, and the movement of the music, from subtle to outright bouncy. I think it is fair to say that after “shooting” Joel throughout Wild Sound Studios, we had at least one photo that represented each track – boppishly straight ahead (“Have You Met Miss Jones”, “It Could Happen to You”), luxuriously subdued (“Nardis,” “How Insensitive” and “Time Remembered”), adventurously dark (“Invitation”), just a bit funky (“Turnaround”), and teetering on the edge (Frank Foster’s “Simone” and even every high school jazz band’s cover, “Confirmation”). Most telling is the music itself, that open feel to the quartet’s interplay, those “open lines” of communication that inform the disk’s title. (Charmin & Shapira are wrapping up a new CD of their own, stay tuned.)
TCJS ‘Jazz from J to Z’ Concert— March 21, 2010
Pooch’s Playhouse: Exploring Jazz Music Today
by Andrea Canter
What happens when five veteran jazzmen come together for mutual inspiration and free conversation? Welcome to Pooch’s Playhouse at the Artists’ Quarter on March 21 (7 p.m.), a Twin Cities Jazz Society “Jazz from J to Z” concert. Pooch’s Playhouse features bassist Bruce “Pooch” Heine, guitarist Joel Shapira,
saxophonist Dave Brattain, pianist
Mark Asche and percussionist Dave
Schmalenberger. Shapira describes the
music as “diversely influenced, adventurous
and open-ended, but we are first and
foremost a pure jazz group, that is the
intention of this band... and we are proud
of that fact.” The band will play tunes by
Shapira, Asche, Heine, and Brattain.
Some other composers will include Hank Mobley, Kenny Werner, Bill Frisell, Branford
Marsalis, Joe Henderson, Clifford
Brown and more.
Read
Entire Preview
Triplicate at Hell’s Kitchen, January 7th, 2010
“This polished band more than capably covers a lot of hip turf: hard bop, jazz-rock, Monk, Mingus, New Orleans funk, even a snatch of Led Zeppelin." -- Tom Surowicz, Star Tribune
“Evoking emotions from broody contemplation to giddy exuberance.” --Don Berryman, Jazz Police
Good things come in threes, the saying goes, and in jazz that often comes in the form of a trio. Such is the case with Triplicate, a collaboration featuring Joel Shapira on guitar, Bruce “Pooch” Heine on bass, and Dave Stanoch on drums. Performing rather irregularly these days, Triplicate takes the stage at Hell’s Kitchen on Thursday, January 7th.
(read
entire preview)
Pooch’s Playhouse
at the Red Sea, March 19th, 2009
What happens when five veteran jazzmen come
together for mutual inspiration and free conversation?
Welcome to Pooch’s Playhouse, built over
about six months of experimentation and collaboration.
The “housewarming” was held in January
at the 318 in Wayzata, and another “open
house” took place on a Late Night gig at
the Dakota. The playspace now moves to the Red
Sea on the U of M’s West Bank, on Thursday,
March 19th at 9 pm.
Pooch’s Playhouse features
Bruce “Pooch” Heine
on bass, guitarist Joel Shapira, saxophonist
Dave Brittain, pianist Mark Asche and percussionist
Dave Schmalengerger. These musicians have a number
of interconnections—Schapira and Heine
play together in the modern trio, Triplicate;
Heine, Asche and Brittain perform together with
the Cedar Avenue Big Band; Shapira has played
with everyone in one context or another. Notes
Shapira, “To me this group was a very natural
fit...it felt good from day one and developed
rapidly into something special to all members
that we want to expand upon in the future...I
would describe the music as diversely influenced,
adventurous and open-ended, but we are first
and foremost a pure jazz group, that
is the intention of this band... and we are proud
of that fact.” (read
entire preview)
Triple Delight: Triplicate’s Three
Gigs in November
by Andrea Canter - Jazz Police
Good
things come in threes, the saying goes, and in jazz
that often comes in the form of a trio. Such is the
case with Triplicate, a collaboration featuring Joel
Shapira on guitar, Bruce “Pooch” Heine
on bass, and Dave Stanoch on drums. And there are
three opportunities to enjoy their creative repertoire
in November, over four consecutive dates, with gigs
at The Artists Quarter (November 7th), the pre-concert
lobby performance at Orchestra Hall (November 8th),
and via the Late Night at the Dakota series (November
9-10).
(read
entire preview)
Charmin & Shapira: Pure Delight at
the Dakota and More
Ginger and Fred, Ike and Tina, even Lucy and
Ethel—great entertainment has often come in pairs.
Locally, vocalists Charmin Michelle and guitarist Joel
Shapira are one of the stellar duos of the decade,
a collaboration documented on their 2005 recording,
Pure Imagination. On Tuesday night, August 14th, Charmin & Shapira “and
friends” perform at the Dakota Jazz Club in downtown
Minneapolis. Other duo gigs this month include the
Times (August 18th), Fireside Pizza (August 22nd) and
Cue at the Guthrie (August 31st). (read
entire preview)
Triplicate
Star Tribune - December 29,
2005
The critics' ballots, TOM SUROWICZ
ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
- Dave Graf, "Just Like
That"
- Carole Martin, "Songs From My
Heart"
- Various Artists, "Minnesota
All Stars, Great Accordion and Concertina Performances
from the Northstar State"
- Phil Hey Quartet, "Subduction"
- Irv
Williams, "Dedicated to You"
- Auto Body
Experience, "Forgotten Lots"
- Gordon
Johnson, "Trios, Version 3.0"
- Bobby
E. Ekstrand, "The Guitar"
- Fat Kid Wednesdays, "The
Art of Cherry"
- Triplicate, "Day & Age"
Tough choices this year! There's enough to fill
up a very worthy Top 20, with winning discs that
just missed the cut by Electropolis ("Electropolis"),
Charmin Michelle & Joel Shapira ("Pure
Imagination"), Dorothy Doring ("Southern
Exposure," a revelation!), Debbie Duncan ("I
Thought About You") and certainly Dave Karr & Mulligan
Stew ("Cookin' At The Hot Summer Jazz Festival").
I didn't feel so bad about leaving off Mulligan
Stew's disc because it was an "instant" live
recording, never really intended as an album at
the time, though the eventual packaging and liner
notes were terrific. Besides Mulligan Stew, I also
chowed down happily on the Spaghetti Western String
Co.'s "Quiet Mob" EP, which is delicious
but got bounced since it's a mere five songs. Old
faves Happy Apple will likely get plenty of votes
from other folks, and their "The Peace Between
Our Companies" CD is quite deserving, as well.
SONGS
- Auto Body Experience, "Six Friends"
- Happy
Apple, "Ella By Nightlight"
- Spaghetti
Western String Co., "Draisienne"
- Dave
Graf, "Going Away"
- Triplicate, "Hit
On Twelve"
DRUM! - May 2005
TRIPLICATE Day & Age
MUSIC: Crack open the merlot, light a fine cigar,
and lay back in your comfiest chair with your eyes
closed. Are you feeling relaxed? Yes? Listen to
the music in your head and let it take you away. Go to
the Middle East with "Hit On Twelve," then
stop over in the Caribbean with "On Green Dophin
Street," before you end up in West Africa with "Alioune." Quite
a journey indeed.
DRUMMING: David Stanoch has played with Ed Shaughnessy,
Bernard Purdie, Clyde Stubblefield, and has been
on the faculty of the McNally Smith College of Music
for over a decade. Impressive, no? With a resume
like that, it shouldn't surprise anyone that he can
play so well. He leads most of "Move" with
impressive hi-hat accents and then works the cowbell
and woodblock clave simultaneously on "Ritual."
VERDICT: Frankly, these guys are so good that it's
intimidating.
StarTribune
Feb. 11-17, 2005
The week in music: Critics' concert picks
This
is a model for what a modern jazz trio should be.
Dedicated, democratic, dogged in their vision yet
never myopic, Triplicate joins three men on a mission:
electric guitarist Joel Shapira, bassist Bruce (Pooch)
Heinie and drummer Dave Stanoch, whose sophomore
CD, "Day & Age," mixes fresh
takes on treasured bebop (Monk, Bird, Denzil Best),
with original songs that reach out to New Orleans,
the Middle East, Africa, Northern Minnesota and the
Caribbean. (7 p.m. Thu., Dakota Jazz Club. $5.) (T.S.)
Avenues, St. Paul's News and Arts Monthly
February 2005
Three's a crowd pleaser by Bill Stieger
Triplicate: A sound you can't copy
Modern Jazz trio strikes a balance between form
and free expression
Even the casual listener can appreciate
the chemistry on Triplicate's new recording, "Day
and Age." Guitarist
Joel Shapira, bassist Bruce "Pooch" Heine,
and drummer Dave Stanoch play like they've known
each other for all their lives.... (read
entire interview) - (Requires
Adobe Reader)
Jazz Police
February 2005
Day and Age: a new CD from Triplicate by
Don Berryman
"Day and Age" is the new
release from the Twin Cities' premiere progressive
'chamber jazz' trio Triplicate. This is the second
release from this band. Triplicate is composed
of top Twin Cities' musicians Joel Shapira on electric
guitar, Bruce "Pooch" Heine
on acoustic & electric bass, and David Stanoch
on drums. This CD satisfies the listener with a variety
of tunes with passages evoking emotions from broody
contemplation to giddy exuberance.... (read
entire review)
Duluth News Tribune
The Wave ~ Best Bets
Friday, November 1, 2002
Be-bop, hard-hop jazz trio plays Beaner's
Triplicate,
a Twin Cities jazz trio, brings its original and
improvisational tunes to Beaner's Centra, 324 N.
Central Ave., at 8 p.m. today.
Guitaist Joel Shapira, bassist Bruce Heine and percussionist
Dave Stanoch strive to push the envelope of musical
variety. Nothing is taboo when it comes to fusing
styles and sounds.
Triplicate takes traditional jazz styles and refines
them with hard-edged improvisations, funky arrangements
and swinging, energetic tunes.
The band released its debut, self-titled CD in 2001
and since then has made the rounds of the college
scene in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Admission costs $5. Call 624-5357.
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Wednesday, January 2, 2002
TO DO TODAY -- TRIPLICATE
Local jazz trio Triplicate released its debut CD
one year ago to a sold-out audience at the Dakota.
Since then, the group was nominated for Minnesota
Music Awards in two jazz categories and placed in
regular rotation on KBEM 88.5-FM. Drummer Dave Stanoch,
guitarist Joel Shapira and bassist Bruce Heine bring
their brand of bebop and hard bop back to the Dakota
for a free show. 8 p.m.; Dakota Bar and Grill, Bandana
Square, 1021 E. Bandana Blvd,. St. Paul; (651)642-1442.
Duluth News Tribune, Duluth, MN
October 26, 2001
Minneapolis jazz trio Triplicate
injects the personality of each band member into
swanky original music - by V. Paul Virtucio
The band had three members, so it was called Triplicate.
Pretty unoriginal. But the bebop-based, progressive
jazz trio tries to ensure that everything else about
it is unique. Its members write their own music,
make their own arrangements of jazz standards and
aren't afraid of fusing other music genres into their
jazz sound. [read
entire interview]
Rip Saw News, Duluth, MN
High
5 , October 24, 2001
Triplicate
Friday, Oct. 27 | Music
Progressive jazz should push the boundaries and
open our eyes to new musical possibilities. Triplicate,
out of Minneapolis, uses this as its modus operandi.
A trio of established musicians who have played together
for five years, Triplicate performs inventive interpretations
of jazz greats such as Charles Mingus, Miles Davis
and John McLaughlin along with a steadily growing
arsenal of solid originals. What results is a Hegelian
synthesis of modern attitude and form, along with
traditional jazz energy to produce a unique sound.
This show is a great choice if you want to see a
good jazz show at a place where you can actually
get a beer (in other words, not at UMD). 8pm | $3
| Beaner's Central, 324 N. Central Ave. Duluth |
218.624.5957.
Villager, St. Paul/Minneapolis, MN
March 28, 2001
Three's No Crowd -- For versatile jazz pros,
personal expression comes in TRIPLICATE - by Tom
Surowicz
My Irish grandmother used to believe that bad things
came in threes. However, she never had the pleasure
of hearing TRIPLICATE, a Twin Cities trio of experienced,
savvy and hip young jazz pros. Their sound is a decidedly
good thing. [read
entire interview]
KBEM-FM, www.jazz88.com
February 2001
Musings from the Jazz 88fm music director,
by Kevin O'Connor
On the Regional Scene: Triplicate
is world class trio with a self-titled release
for Rhythmelodic records.
"Triplicate" has eleven stellar tracks
and a guitar and rhythm-driven sound that surpasses
like-minded national outings I receive by the bakers-dozen.
Guitarist Joel Shapira, bassist Bruce "Pooch" Heine
and drummer Dave Stanoch, (who provides a couple
of powerful originals, the other from "Pooch"),
make for a highly compatible combo who are gaining
enough notoriety to land a spot on the local televised
coverage during Ken Burn's Jazz. Check Jazz events
on our site for gigs featuring these guys, and by
all means, explore the cd!
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Sunday, January 14, 2001
Local Artists Produce Impressive Releases
by Bob Protzman
"Triplicate," Triplicate, Rhythmelodic
* * * 1/2 (out of a possible 4 stars)
The past year was perhaps the most productive and
rewarding in some time for jazz recordings by Twin
Cities musicians.
Add to those these fine recent releases from the
trio Triplicate (Joel Shapira, guitar; Bruce "Pooch" Heine,
bass; Dave Stanoch, drums) and the duo of valve trombonist
Brad Bellows and guitarist Dean Granros.
Triplicate is deceptively excellent. A band for
some five years (you can hear it in their in-sync
and interactive playing), its members have varied
and extensive resumes as students, players and teachers,
evident in the choice of material, incorporation
of various idioms, and high level of musicianship.
There's an appealing deliberateness, spareness
and relaxed feeling with Triplicate, reflected in
some pieces played at a slower-than-usual tempo and
the breathing room in the group's ensemble arrangements,
as well as in solos by each player.
Speaking of solos, there's a maturity here, too,
with no flashy passages, superficial energy, or showy
displays--just direct, un-complicated playing that
reaches the listener on many levels.
You'll hear Thelonious Monk's "Bemsha Swing," an
Afro-Cuban, Brazilian reading of the standard "You
Don't Know What Love Is." Bud Powell's hard-swinging "Webb
City," Charles Mingus's "Nostalgia in
Times Square," a John McLaughlin composition
interpolated with something from the rock group Led
Zeppelin, a funky Nawlins "Crescent City Strut," J.J.
Johnson's haunting "Lament," a jazz-rock
piece by Stanoch, and a multi-metered tune from Heine.
Star Tribune
Friday, January 19, 2001
The week in music: Critics' picks for Jan.
19-25
After five years of fruitful collaboration
-- and gigs at every bar, bookshop and public park
that let them plug in -- this hometown jazz trio
was plenty ready to record its first CD. Empathy
abounds on Triplicate's untitled new release for
Rhythmelodic Records. This polished band more than
capably covers a lot of hip turf: hard bop, jazz-rock,
Monk, Mingus, New Orleans funk, even a snatch of
Led Zeppelin. Guitarist Joel Shapira, bassist Bruce
(Pooch) Heine and drummer Dave Stanoch make all
the disparate elements fit into a refined and personalized
jazz trio travelin' bag. Heine's eloquence is palpable
on the J.J. Johnson ballad classic, "Lament." Stanoch brews
up a trap set storm on "Third Wind," an
original tune. Shapira goes acoustic when you least
expect it ("Crescent City Strut"), then
plays pretty for all the parents in earshot on "Sweet
and Lovely." Triplicate's debut album is a
tres hip trip. (9 p.m. Fri., Dakota Bar & Grill,
Bandana Square, St. Paul. $8. 651-642-1442.) (Tom
Surowicz)
Star Tribune
Thursday, January 18, 2001
Weekend Watch: New and noteworthy
events happening this weekend
DEBUT PROJECT
-- Friday will be a big day for Triplicate, the
progressive Twin Cities jazz trio of Joel Shapira,
Bruce Heine and Dave Stanoch. The hard-working trio
will release its debut CD, "Triplicate," at
a party and performance at the Dakota Bar & Grill
in St. Paul. The project includes three compositions
written by the group and eight by jazz legends. Call
651-642-1442.
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