Some albums you fall in love with the moment you put them on. For me, Amina Figarova's newly released Suite for Africa (AmFi) was one of them. The pianist-composer was born in Azerbaijan and began her career as a classical concert pianist. While at the Rotterdam Conservatoire in the Netherlands, she became interested in jazz. Then she attended Boston's Berklee College of Music, and jazz became her life. Holland will do that to you.
Her new album was inspired by her performance tours in South Africa. On one flight, she and her husband, flutist Bart Platteau, came face to face with the 24-member Matsiko World Orphan Choir, made up of orphaned, at-risk children from Liberia. They invited the choir to join their upcoming album project. Amina set to work writing a three-movement suite to include their beautiful collective voices.
The music for the suite and the album's five additional pieces were also exquisitely arranged by Amina, with lyrics by Mark Lee Hegarty and Amina. Then the works were recorded by Amina's sextet, featuring Amina Figarova (p), Bart Platteau (flutes), Alex Pope Norris (tp,flhrn), Wayne Escoffery (ts), Yasushi Nakamura (b) and Rudy Royston (d), with the choir joining on the suites.
The music is glorious all the way through. The opener, Dancing Clouds sounds like its title, with Bart's flute creating the feel of a fast-moving sky. You can imagine yourself standing on an open plain with panoramic views. The suite movements that follow feature the choir creating hypnotic vocal patterns and harmony, and the instrumental improvisation works perfectly.
What I love most about the album, in addition to its spirit, is the breezy intensity of Amina's piano, the robust jazz solos and the lavish use of African folk rhythms and horn riffs throughout. The result is earthy, moody and uplifting with a sound that celebrates art and the best of humanity. Amina is an extraordinary jazz pianist and composer-arranger, and Suite for Africa is a must-own and Grammy-worthy.
JazzWax tracks: You'll find Suite for Africa (AmFi) here and on major streaming platforms.
JazzWax clips: Here's Dancing Clouds...
Here's Suite for Africa Part I...
And here's Faith Is Her Name...
Bonus: Here's Amina and the choir in action, the very definition of beautiful...
