In celebration of the new Ansonica Records website launch, we’ve compiled a highlight reel of past and present works from the catalog. Established in 2016, Ansonica offers listeners a diverse range of sounds from across the globe, from full scale big band tracks to choirs, jazz combos, and more.
Listen to the full playlist on your favorite streaming platform today.
Timothy Lee Miller
Hot Miami Nights
In November 2015, less than one year after diplomatic connections between the United States and Cuba were restored, PARMA Recordings produced the first of its recording projects in Havana. The resulting album, ABRAZO: THE HAVANA SESSIONS, featured masterful Cuban musicians performing the works of several PARMA artists including Timothy Lee Miller, whose Hot Miami Nights was recorded with both feverish brilliance and irreplicable feel.
Miller and the other composers found a deeper, almost transcendental understanding of the music from the Cuban artists, one which defied language. “The pianist isn’t playing what I wrote,” said composer Tim Miller during the sessions. “He’s playing what I wanted.”
PARMA in Cuba: Then, Now, and Looking Forward
RE/SEMBLANCE: SAATH-SAATH
Qarlygash
Transcending the confines of borders and cultural differences, RE/SEMBLANCE: SAATH-SAATH is a unique collaboration between Indian and Chinese musicians and a Cantopop lyricist. Based on a Kazakh folk song long popular in Mandarin as “Yienze,” Qarlygash features three vocalists and a tabla player, and remains grounded in its stirring groove before gently fading to silence.
Learn more about the album in this interview with project curator Tejaswini Niranjana:
Conversations with Tejaswini Niranjana
Hevreh Ensemble
Path of Light
The title track of Hevreh Ensemble’s 2019 release, A PATH OF LIGHT, begins meditatively and builds to a joyous and frenzied conclusion. Composed by ensemble member Jeff Adler, the diverse instrumentation and musical language welcome thoughts of openness and creativity, guided by unique juxtapositions of classical winds and Native American flute.
Learn more about A PATH OF LIGHT and the Hevreh Ensemble’s origins in this interview:
Composer Conversations: Hevreh Ensemble and A PATH OF LIGHT
Trans-Kalahari Quintet
Oste Jive
THE LONG JOURNEY HOME from Trans-Kalahari Quintet delivers a cross-continental exploration of jazz, funk, and South African cultural traditions. The album’s closer, Otse Jive, transports listeners to an outdoor festival on a sunny Botswana Sunday afternoon, depicted through soulful improvisations and intricate saxophone lines performed by Matt Dacso and Andrew Chinganga.
Composer Conversations: Matt Dacso and the Trans-Kalahari Quintet
ESPONTÁNEO
Son Pa’ Gozar
ESPONTÁNEO demonstrates a different side of the music production world — one where the craft of performance itself and the shared musical moment is not lost in the effort for a perfect take. Tres player Maykel Elizarde, guitarist Dayron Ortega Guzmán, and percussionist Eduardo Silveira synthesize their improvisational chops throughout this album, bringing a free flowing synthesis of groove and passion to the table on Son Pa’ Gozar.
