December, 2017

December, 2017 Newsletter
The Tradition of
Silent Night
2017
 
Ran has fun recording a new version of Silent Night for members of his newsletter ever holiday season (since 2015). Please find the new 2017 version by CLICKING HERE. You can also listen to the 2015 and 2016 versions on the same page. Enjoy!
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Ran Blake Solo & w/ NEC Jazz Ensemble
15th Annual Panama Jazz Festival
Ran Blake will perform a solo concert, a collaboration with a NEC  student jazz ensemble, and will give a masterclass at this year’s 15th annual Panama Jazz Festival founded and presented by pianist Danilo Pérez. Ran is honored to be apart of this special anniversary year and has very much enjoyed his time rehearsing with students before the holiday break. Should be great fun if you’re in the area!  
 
The tentative schedule is below, but please check Ran Blake’s calendar page for any updates (CLICK HERE).  
 
Ran Blake w/ NEC Jazz Ensemble
Monday, Jan. 15th @ 8pm Ateneo Theater – Ciudad del Saber
(Calle Maritza Alabarca, edif. 182, Ciudad del Saber, Clayton, Panamá)
 
Masterclass 
Tuesday, Jan. 16th (Info TBA)
Ran Blake Solo Piano
Wednesday, Jan. 17th @ 8pm Ateneo Theater – Ciudad del Saber
(Calle Maritza Alabarca, edif. 182, Ciudad del Saber, Clayton, Panamá)
 Dominique Eade &
Ran Blake
Town and Country
Best Albums of 2017
“[Blake and Eade] can instantly access deep emotional and musical essences. Each sings with an admirably unadorned purity…chilling the bones and soothing the soul.” -Downbeat
 
Dominique Eade and Ran Blake are very humbled by the response of listeners to be nominated for Best Albums of 2017 through polling and also by some of the greatest jazz critics around. Links for each listing are below.
A special thanks to  Ann Braithwaite of Braithwaite & Katz Communications in association with New England Conservatory for all of her hard work getting the album out there.
Thank you very much for listening!
“A rather amazing record. The originals are excellent, and the covers come at you from an acute angle. At first you’re not sure what’s happening, and then you are seduced.”
 
 “The iconic noir pianist and the brilliant jazz singer outdo Dylan’s original. Eade’s rapidfire articulation underscores the venom and bitterness in this exasperated capitalist treadmill tirade as Blake anchors it with his signature blend of eerie glimmer and murk.”
To purchase Town and Country for $12 please visit Ran’s Store page CLICK HERE!
NEC’s Contemporary Improvisation Department Presents the
13th Annual Film Noir Concert:
Cría Cuervos
Wed, Feb 21st @ 7:30pm
NEC’s Jordan Hall
 
Carlos Saura’s unsettling film about the Franco era in Spain, seen through the eyes of a child, is accompanied by live music from NEC’s Contemporary Improvisation department, a tradition producers Ran Blake and Aaron Hartley have fostered for more than a decade. There will also be scenes from The Spirit of the Beehive directed by Víctor Erice featuring the same outstanding young actress, Ana Torrent.
 
This year’s 13th annual performance will feature special alumni guest artists percussionist Tupac Mantilla and vocalist Burcu Gulec.
 
Wed, February 21st, 2018
7:30pm
New England Conservatory
Jordan Hall
290 Huntington Ave.
Boston, MA
necmusic.edu
Free and Open to the Public!
NEC’s Concert Listing: CLICK HERE
Limited LP Release!
Ran Blake &
The Dorothy Wallace Suite
(Only a few left!)
This is the much awaited duo album of Danish drum innovator Kresten Osgood and American piano genius Ran Blake. More than 40 years of age divide them, but they meet in a contemporary expression. The Dorothy C. Wallace Suite is a suite composed especially for this project by Ran Blake and is a heartfelt tribute to the great Dorothy C. Wallace who was a patron of the arts in Boston and played a vital part in Ran Blake´s art. This is only the second time in the entire Ran Blake discography where he plays duo with drums.

BUY HERE!

SIGNED LPs ONLY (no digital copies)

Limited LP Release 20/300 signed copies in the USA!
(Shipped separately from CD orders).