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DON'T LET GO: Mike Holober & Balancing Act

by Mike Holober

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1.
Breathe Deep 01:55
2.
Morning Hope 09:34
It’s a rare day gone by If you don’t question why With every sunrise The shining in your eyes The dawning, every morning Gives hope Off that slippery slope Not the end of your rope That welcome surprise The bright’ning of the sky The dawning, every morning Gives hope First, hint, of, light Good, bye, long, night The dawning, every morning of hope It’s a rare day gone by If you don’t question why A day made for sighs To clear away the lies The dawning, every morning is hope First, hint, of, light Good, bye, long, night
3.
Four-letter words If they’re true Just no need to use more Give and take Luck or fate Soon but late Love and hate Four, no more If it’s what you feel to be real Then it’s all you need Keep pace Lose face Haven’t you heard Love is the word Letters just four No need for more Open your eyes Warm, kind, and wise Next, not last Soon, not past Open door Seeking more Ache and care Live and dare No wasted time Mean every line Hate is a four-letter word Push pull soul full lose find your mind Haven’t you heard Love is the word Letters just four No need for more Life asks but four Why search for more No more If it’s what you feel to be real Then it’s all you need Know fate Don’t wait Four No more
4.
It ain’t comin’ ‘round again ‘round ‘n ‘round ‘n ‘round again the world may not be round again grind you to the ground my friend Looking up clouds roll by kiss the ground touch the sky watch out it’s closing in something’s closing in It ain’t comin’ ‘round no more nothin’ waitin’ at your door take you to the bitter end nothin’ comin’ ‘round the bend It ain’t comin’ ‘round again It’s closing in Acting up stealing hearts checking out playing parts what’s closing in
5.
Just one day spent like many others in some same old way beneath the covers while the promise of some hours you’ll remember drift away seize that day and every waking minute Never burn a single day don’t dare let it slip away You’re burnin’ daylight Hold on, hold on don’t let go You’re burnin’ daylight Keep the sun in sight You should be all right What’s the cost? A single day burnt is too great a loss You could count the hours Hold some line and slow the wave of passing time hold on blink, it’s gone so keep your eyes wide open Never miss a single ray Don’t just let it slip away Never burn a single day.
6.
7.
Necessary 06:54
Just one day spent like many others in some same old way beneath the covers while the promise of some hours you’ll remember drift away seize that day and every waking minute Never burn a single day don’t dare let it slip away You’re burnin’ daylight Hold on, hold on don’t let go You’re burnin’ daylight Keep the sun in sight You should be all right What’s the cost? A single day burnt is too great a loss You could count the hours Hold some line and slow the wave of passing time hold on blink, it’s gone so keep your eyes wide open Never miss a single ray Don’t just let it slip away Never burn a single day.
8.
I Wonder 06:28
I wonder why I wonder how things that go up may not come down left may be right right may be wrong tall may be short short’s still too long It’ll make you think It’ll make you blink It’ll make you drink But at least you’re filled with wonder I wonder where I wonder when Is this for now? Or is it then? Find may be lose Lose may be win You might sell out Out may be in It’ll make you doubt look for a way out make you want to shout but at least you’ve got to wonder But a fact’s a fact we don’t buy the act better think ‘bout that Slow might be fast real fast and loose weak as in power just give it juice bits and pieces peace is all right high could be lit-up up’s down tonight It’ll make you dread make you stay in bed get inside your head It’ll make you scheme get into your dreams make you want to scream It’ll make you weak think about defeat maybe make you freak But at least you’re filled with wonder
9.
10.
How could I have known seen the unforeseen Read between the lines behind your eyes so well disguised at least to me How could you have seen so far in the past that the dream we had would bloom so fast yet always last and even grow If I could see then what’s always been true those lines were blue highways on the road to you When you choose a path Where might that road go What’s the worst that could happen I guess you never know If I could see then what’s always been true those lines were blue highways all roads led to you When you choose a path Where might that road go What’s the worst that could happen I guess you never know Somehow you never know You know you never know I guess you never know You never know
11.
Smile Slow 02:36
12.
Letting Go 08:11
Breathing slow Letting go To dream Of all we have Have to lose Choose to lose Just let go Of the things and thoughts That we don’t need Let go of these To dream Of all we have Have to lose Choose to lose Those back rooms Of your mind You’ll find Things we don’t need Let go of these
13.
14.
Don't Let Go 04:38
Hold on don’t let go we can watch the garden grow from seeds into dreams things are better than they seem Hold on don’t look back you just can’t undo all that mem’ries we may need but tomorrow is the life we lead so breathe deep smile slow hold on don’t let go

about

“Don’t Let Go” is a Chamber Music America New Jazz Works commission (funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation) for jazz octet with voice. Structured as a song-cycle in the tradition of Robert Schumann, Samuel Barber, and Ralph Vaughn-Williams, this concert-length project explores the nuances and complexities of the concept of “hope” in the context of current social, political, and environmental realities.

"Let the music uplift you, and embrace optimism at any cost."
Ed Enright, Downbeat Magazine, April 2022 (4.5 stars)

credits

released April 15, 2022

MUSICIANS
Jamile - voice
Marvin Stamm – trumpet & flugelhorn
Dick Oatts – alto & soprano saxophones, flute
Jason Rigby – tenor saxophone, clarinet & bass clarinet
Mark Patterson - trombone
Mike Holober – piano/composer
Mike McGuirk - bass
Dennis Mackrel – drums

PRESS RELEASE (Lydia Liebman Promotions)
It’s an appropriate name for a Holober-led band; in many ways, Holober’s management of his many musical inspirations is a balancing act. On one hand, much of what he’s best known for is his work with larger ensembles like the WDR Big Band, the HR Big Band, and the Gotham Jazz Orchestra, whose latest work with Holober at the helm, Hiding Out, earned a 2020 GRAMMY® nomination. On the other, there’s the magnetism of even greater self-actualization, of writing for and leading a smaller group.

“After focusing on big band work for so long,” Holober says, “Balancing Act exists to satisfy my needs to write for and lead a smaller group again and make a completely personal statement, where the fruits of the collective are matched with band leadership and personal artistic goals.”

But the balancing isn’t just finding the sweet spot between large groups and small; it’s also about striking the balance between Holober’s classical and jazz impulses. Don’t Let Go is a 14-part song-cycle divided into two sets — one for each of the album’s two discs — recorded in October 2019 at Aaron Davis Hall on the campus of the City College of New York, where Holober has taught since 1995. The work is intended to be heard in the order presented, much like the song-cycles of classical influences like Robert Schumann, Samuel Barber, and Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Of course, when the roster of sidemen is composed of Marvin Stamm (trumpet and flugelhorn), Dick Oatts (alto and soprano sax, flute), Jason Rigby (tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet), Mark Patterson (trombone), Mike McGuirk (bass), and Dennis Mackrel (drums), one knows there’ll be no scarcity of jazz-rooted improvisation. The presence of Brazilian vocalist Jamile only enhances the group’s expressive palette and dynamic interplay.

Rhapsodic in nature, Don’t Let Go’s structure and presentation will appeal to listeners across the musical spectrum. At times it presents like classical-inspired jazz; at other times like jazz-inspired classical. That’s by design. Holober formed Balancing Act in 2015, with its eponymous premiere recording landing on many jazz critics’ “best of” yearly roundup lists. In 2017, Holober sought (and won) a commission from Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works program to create Don’t Let Go because, as he puts it, he’s drawn to “contrasting elements and ideas, mixing styles, grooves, and influences from diverse jazz and classical languages.”

So then, it’s no surprise he utilizes the talents of vocalist Jamile in a manner slightly unconventional. “Although some of the music contains lyrics,” explains Holober, “Balancing Act is not designed as a singer’s showcase. I employ voice as another frontline instrument, often singing wordless notes.”

This is why Holober describes Balancing Act as “a jazz octet with voice.” Listen to set-one’s “Four-Letter Words,” “Kiss the Ground,” and, especially, “A Summer Midnight’s Dream” and “Morning Hope” to get a sense for the diversity of contexts in which Jamile’s expansive musicality is employed. When she’s not featured out front, bringing Holober-penned lyrics to life, she’s not on break; whether it’s scatting improvisationally or wordlessly vocalizing lines typically not meant for voice, Jamile is utilized as another piece of the octet’s instrumentation, adding texture and color.

Holober says the spiritual impetus for Don’t Let Go was born from his desire to “explore the concept of ‘hope’ in the context of current social, political, and environmental realities.” This hope is manifested in the way he’s chosen to present this program—pieces that are individually self-sufficient but inextricably bound to their musical companions and maximally effective, both emotionally and musically, when presented as a unit. This governing principle applies not just to the whole but to the parts themselves, the individual songs of the cycle.

“Necessary,” the closer of the first set, speaks well to Holober’s commitment to exposing the connection and striking the balance between the individual and the collective, with sparkling individual displays by Rigby and Patterson giving way to section playing of the highest precision.

“I Wonder,” the second set’s opener, continues Holober’s exploration in duality and contrasts, opening with an atmospheric solo piano prologue before showcasing the rhythm section (plus Jamile) as a swaggering quartet punctuated by concentrated bursts of horn support. The horns are foregrounded once more in “You’re a Long Way from Home,” but it’s not necessary to keep score. Whether it’s Holober with a jaunty, bouncy solo (“Touch the Sky”), Oatts piercing through a bossa nova-induced reverie on soprano sax (“Letting Go”), or Jamile and Stamm trading star-turns on a melodic, theatrical ballad (“You Never Know”), every one of these talented musicians gets their just due here.

The title track and closer serves as the spiritual anthem for this concert-length suite. No mere suggestion, this is a musical imperative, at once uplifting and defiantly optimistic. Crafted specifically in these times and for these times and speaking to both head and heart, this song cycle lends credence to Downbeat’s assessment of Holober as “one of the finest modern composer/arrangers of our time.”

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Music & lyrics by Mike Holober © CONNECT THE DOTS MUSIC, BMI
Recorded live at Aaron Davis Hall, City College Center for the Arts, New York City, October 4-5, 2019
Engineers: David Stoller, Tyler McDiarmid, Geoff Countryman
Mixed: Brian Montgomery
Producer: Mike Holober
Session Producer: Tony Kadleck
Production Assistant: Chris Zuar
Mastered: Michael MacDonald @ AlgoRhythms Mastering
Live sound engineer: Ben Surman
Piano technician: Kazuya Tsujio
Cover illustration: Melissa Hall
Photography: Perry Hall
Graphic design: Christopher Drukker

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Mike Holober Mount Kisco, New York

Recipient of the American Academy of Arts & Letters Andrew Imbrie Award for Music, and nominated for a 2020 GRAMMY®Award for his critically acclaimed CD “Hiding Out,” Mike Holober has been described as “one of the finest modern composer/arrangers of our time” (Downbeat Magazine). Other recent projects include Balancing Act (a jazz octet with voice), and The Mike Holober/Marvin Stamm Quartet. ... more

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