The eerie stillness of New York City during the Covid-19 pandemic led many residents to a state of contemplation and inner exploration. Saxophonist/composer Marc Mommaas found himself drawn to sounds that he grew up with but had eschewed for his own musical path in jazz, namely classical music. The self-described expressionist was surprised to find himself immersed in the sounds of the Impressionists. // Mommaas dove into the music of the Impressionists but found himself particularly drawn to one of the instigators of the movement, Gabriel FaurÃ©, who eventually taught Maurice Ravel and Nadia Boulanger. It was with FaurÃ©'s esthetic in mind that Mommaas began to write music for his new recording, The Impressionist. // Coming from four generations of classical musicians, Mommaas still hears the sound of his mother's piano playing Chopin when he was a child. As a saxophonist, Mommaas was entirely jazz oriented, inspired by the deep passion his father had for Jazz (a prolific Dutch painter and artist with a capital A). However, as the City slowed down during the pandemic Mommaas found himself drawn to the impressionistic sounds of FaurÃ©, instigated by his famous Requiem in D minor, Op. 48 // The study of Gabriel FaurÃ©'s idiosyncratic composing style led Marc Mommaas down a path of discovery and rediscovery. The music hit him in a time and place where it made the most sense to channel into brilliantly fashioned original music, presented here as The Impressionist.

Tracklist:

Nostalgia
The Impressionist
C'est la vie
No more
Float away
FaurÃ©
Free above all
Moving on

UPC: 016728166928
Label: Sunnyside
Release Date: 8.19.22
Format: CD

Marc Mommaas - The Impressionist (CD)