“Mr. Klampanis thoughtful new album, “Minor Dispute,” incorporates chamber string arrangements and a worldly, streamlined rhythmic pulse” New York Times
Petros Klampanis was naturally influenced from his earliest childhood by the traditional music of the Balkans and the Mediterranean ; his new album takes those influences plus those of the New York jazz scene. Klampanis links, with talent Balkan music , classical and jazz. The result is a truly multi-cultural fusion of influences that speak together with a surprisingly singular voice. “Minor Dispute” is in the top 3 of the best jazz album of 2015 (jazzonline critic poll 2015).
He equivocally writes, this “is essentially a study on honesty.” He prefaces his statement with how the seven tracks were designed to “embrace and express the bright and dark aspects of our characters, during the process of becoming better human beings.”
Petros Klampanis uses two catchy, Greek-flavoured tunes–the ‘Thalassaki’ and the ‘Hariklaki’–to communicate directly with both a Greek audience, which is always flattered when a Western jazzman references the popular and traditional music of their homeland, and with an international public, which has a liking for attractive and exhilarating exotic, eastern sounds!
“Thalassaki” is a rendition of a well-known Greek folk tune. Klampanis previously arranged “Thalassaki” for an Athens symphony, and part of that larger symphonic arrangement can be heard in the inclusion of the string quartet, which augments the melody and also assists rhythmically. The tender and welcoming number, which has memorable input from the entire group, is a nicely personal way to finish the album. About those adaptation Klampanis said:“An adaptation of a traditional theme is like a convergence of past and present. With such an arrangement, the musician declares his love for his cultural heritage while expressing who he is now. Don’t forget that jazz in America, was based on this process. Most pieces of anthology Jazz (jazz standards) are adaptations of songs and plays of Broadway of the ’20s &’ 30s.”
The album consists of 7 tunes: 4 originals and 3 covers. Piano, guitar and bass mix with the sounds of drums and world percussion, together with the distinctive sound of the string quartet. The music was composed and arranged during 2012-2014.
Minor Dispute is essentially a musical study on Honesty. The music of the album is about embracing the bright and dark aspects of ones self and the people around him or her.
THE TEAM: Petros Klampanis’ group (aka “Contextual”) is a formation that combines the jazz sound, with the world and classical music traditions. The members of the band are all exceptional musicians: Jean Michel Pilc, Gilad Hekselman, John Hadfield, Bodek Janke, Maria Manousaki, Megan Gould, Lev “Ljova” Zhurbin, Yoed Nir, Max ZT.
The recording took place at Bunker Studios and the recording engineer was Aaron Nevezie.
Grammy awarded mixing engineer Fab Dupont, is going to mix and master Minor Dispute.
Photographer Shervin Lainez is part of Minor Dispute’s creative team, as well as designer Marinos Kolokotsas, who will design the album cover.
The videos will be realized by awarded cinematographer, Daniel Hilsinger.
Producing an album from scratch, is a challenging task which demands hard work, persistence, team spirit and of course creativity on many levels. The people that have come together to produce “Minor Dispute” are extraordinarily talented individuals.
Having the funds to complete a project is a common challenge in the music industry. In the case of “Minor Dispute” we guarantee that the album and music videos will be made when the project funds reach $14,000.
The scheduled release of the album is February 2015. Funds received over and above $14,000 will allow the production to have extra features, cover promotion costs as well as traveling costs for the group’s touring around the world.
Learn about accountability on Kickstarter
http://www.petrosklampanis.com/