Full Article Reviews

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Full Article Reviews

Minor 7th Magazine, February 2010
Muriel Anderson and Tierra Negra (Raughi Ebery & Leo Henrichs) met in a castle in Germany at the Gitarrentage Festival in Nürnberg. Before long they were jamming together and realized something was happening.” Thus begins the liner notes to “New World Flamenco,” the new CD (the “thing” which happened) from Tierra Nerga and Muriel Anderson. I read those lines as the first notes of the opening track “White Horses” crested over me in a sonic wave of mystery, eloquence and passion not unlike the Spanish duende. Many of the rhythms recorded here have a power that attracts the listener with certain magnetism and emotion that is spontaneous yet structured, refined yet raw. They exude the sparkle of a performance, like a collection of first takes. The flamenco guitars of Ebert and Henrichs and the classical and harp guitars of Anderson weave a musical tapestry that nourishes the soul and exudes musical magic. For a trio formed in a castle, one would expect nothing less. Each listen reveals to me more than a collaboration of three fine musicians; There is a palpable espirit de corps that is indelibly imprinted on each track as well as an integrity of performance and execution that vibrates within the notes of “New World Flamenco.” Henrichs’ rousing “White Horses” is certainly a highlight as is Anderson’s “Fantasia De Fuego”, which has such depth and breadth that each guitar’s personality seems to be at once separate and interwoven with the Flamenco dancing of Sabina Amadia. The fifteen original compositions that inhabit this CD include an emotional landscape that is evocative (“See You In The Bar”), intense (“L’Air Du Camargue”), soothing (“Midnight Solo”) and often sublime (“En El Bosque De Cristal”). Bravissimo!
~James Filkins

Acoustic Guitar Magazine, April 2010
Eclectic fingerstylist Muriel Anderson and Tierra Negra, “new wave” flamenco guitarists Raughi Ebert and Leo Henrichs, use driving rhythms and an experimental spirit to pull together a sonic fiesta that draws from classical, jazz, and flamenco traditions. What makes this album especially enthralling are the varied sounds of the flamenco guitars playing off Anderson’s classical and harp guitars, as on the jazzy “Cloud Cover,” which is enhanced by Victor Wooten’s fretless bass. The all-original compositions are distinctly imagistic, with the percussive rhythms of “White Horses” (by Ebert) capturing the galloping of Camargue horses; tinkling single notes and a wash of ambient sound evoking the crystal forest in the gorgeous “En El Bosque de Cristal” (by Henrichs); and the moody interweaving lines of “Midnight Solo” (by Anderson) conveying the ambience of the solitary guitarist alone in a hotel room, her collaborators’ guitars still resonating in her head. (Tierra Negra Records/CGD Music)
~Celine Keating

All About Jazz, February 2010
Flamenco music came out of Andalucía in Southern Spain to spread its vibrant and majestic rhythm across the world. Time brought in changes, as the music absorbed different styles and approaches. Flamenco Nuevo, as the name suggests, is an approach that wraps in modern sounds into an ancient genre. Two of its protagonists, Raughi Ebert and Leo Henrichs, have carved a niche for themselves, blending pop and folk music into the earthy beat of flamenco.

Ebert and Henrichs met Muriel Anderson at Nürnburg’s Gitarrentage Festival. After an impromptu session, they found that they shared a common love for the music, a feeling underscored when Anderson met them again while touring Düsseldorf. It was then that they decided to record together.
The music of New World Flamenco is ravishing, captured in the heady swirl of flamenco and in the gentle distillations of Anderson’s classical and harp guitars. The melodies, beckoningly beautiful and achingly ethereal, add to the overall impact.

While Ebert and Henrichs found their muse in exotic European locales, Anderson was inspired, among other things, by the fun of the three being together and by a little sunshine in Seattle on an autumn day. The former emerges in “Nosotros,” the joy communicated through Anderson’s undulating melody before the trajectory becomes linear and open in its evocation. The autumnal muse appears in “Cloud Cover,” with a snap and bounce testifying to its sunny disposition, but it is “Fiesta De Fuego” that opens the field. The sound of three guitars is rich in its sonority, with the melody and chords in seamless lock, while Sabina Amadia tops it with the percussive dazzle of her palmas and flamenco dancing.

”White Horses” may have a pop feel to it, but the passion in Ebert’s playing is inherent in bringing in a commanding presence. He lets the melody soak in before ushering changes through pulse and tempo. On the other side of the spectrum, “See You in the Bar” not only has a more traditional rhythm coursing through, it also has a happy melody.
Technique and creativity join forces to make the music on this CD truly engaging.
~Jerry D’Souza

Jazz Chicago, February 2010
Another former Chicagoan – now transplanted to Nashville – Muriel Anderson holds the distinction of being the first female National Fingerpicking Guitar Champion – whom we had the pleasure of seeing perform live with John Moulder at his recent Bifrost CD release at the Green Mill (see our review here). Besides her proficiency on classical guitar, Anderson is one of the world’s best on the unusual harp guitar. Tierra Negra is a German flamenco guitar duo made up of Raughi Ebert and Leo Henrichs. The three met at a music festival in Germany and decided to collaborate. On New World Flamenco, they are joined by some top-flight guests, including drummer Danny Gottlieb, bassists Mark Egan, Helmuth Fass and Victor Wooten, percussionist Felipe Rengifo Hernandez, Jr. and Sabina Amadia on palmas (handclapping, etc…). The combination has produced an exceptional blend of flamenco and fingerstyle guitar music which will have you clapping your hands and stomping your feet.
Naturally, Tierra Negra provides most of the more true flamenco style pieces, like “White Horses,” “L’Air Du Camargue,” “On the Market Place” but Anderson can write in this genre as well, as on the luscious “Nosotros” and exciting “Fantasia de Fuego” (featuring Amadia’s dancing footsteps). She also brings the duo’s Spanish guitar sounds into less familiar, but no less rewarding realms, as on the atmospheric “Cloud Cover” (enhanced by Wooten’s chiming bass) or the quiet “Summer Morning Rain.” The former tune was inspired by Seattle, and many of the pieces are conceived by the artists based on places they visit – so much of the music has a Mediterranean flavor that will transport the listener to the South of France, while Anderson’s “View From Space” takes the listener even further. Too much beautiful guitar work here to even list, but suffice to say great tunes like “Entre Dos Riojas” and “See You in the Bar” will have you raising a glass of the red stuff in thanks for this trio’s life-affirming music.
~Brad Walseth

O’s Place Jazz Magazine, February 2010
New World Flamenco O’s Notes: Tierra Negra is a German flamenco band centered around Raughi Ebert and Leo Henrichs . Classical guitarist Muriel Anderson met Tierra Negra in Nürnberg and they began creating music together shortly afterwards. Their collaboration brings peaceful soothing melodies, all original compositions! For this recording they employ several guest artists including Danny Gottlieb (d), Mark Egan (b) and Victor Wooten (b). We enjoyed the warm harmonies on “Nosotros” and “Cloud Cover” both with Wooten and Gottlieb on board. But there is a lot to enjoy on this Spanish collage so sit back and relax.
~D. Oscar Groomes

Jazz Review, April 2010
New World Flamenco, the collaboration of Tierra Negra and Muriel Anderson is a bright, vivacious celebration of life through song. Tierra Negra is the German duo of Leo Henrichs and Raughi Ebert who have been on the forefront of the Flamenco Nuevo, the new wave in Flamenco music. Muriel Anderson is an award winning finger-style guitarist and harp guitar player who has achieved global notoriety. The collaboration of these two forces in contemporary guitar playing is worthy of a celebration in itself. This partnership has produced a collection of compositions that stand as a touchstone for the Flamenco Nuevo and are the foundation of “New World Flamenco”.
According to the liner notes, the duo met Muriel in a castle in Germany. Before long they were jamming together and realized there was real chemistry between them. They met again when Muriel’s tour schedule took her to Leo and Raughi’s home city of Düsseldorf, Germany. They met later and worked on the compositions that would become “New World Flamenco”.
The resulting compositions reflect the camaraderie that was formed and the beauty and peace that the Camargue region of France would afford them. The CD is also the beneficiary of some fine talent that was brought in to record the songs. This included the likes of Mark Egan on bass and Danny Gottlieb on drums, both of the original Pat Metheny Group. Other fine musicians tapped to create this CD included Victor Wooten on bass, Helmuth Fass on bass, Sabina Amadia on Palmas, and Felipe Rengifo Hernandex Jr. provided Latin percussion.

The CD is a mix of songs composed by Anderson and Tierra Negra. All these original compositions destined for this album were born of the partnership formed from almost the moment these three met. Highlights of the CD include “En El Bosque De Cristal”, conceived by Henrichs in a dream in which he dreamed he was walking in a forest of crystal. Anderson’s harp guitar performance brings the surreal nature of the composition to life. Gottleib’s cymbal work along with Egan’s signature bass stylings provide the canvas for the three guitarists to paint the scene of this forest of crystal. This is a very pretty and imaginative composition.
The skill and creativity of these three artists are present in each and every song. While not all songs are strictly in the Flamenco tradition, they all have that influence. The songs that are what I would call traditionally Flamenco styled, also have elements of folk and jazz interjected throughout. One of the most enjoyable songs on the CD is the track “Fantasia De Fuego”, penned years before by Anderson. She writes, her vision included a second and possibly a third guitar. The opportunity for her vision to be realized in this union of the three was further enhanced by the strength of Wooten’s bass and the dancing of Sabina Amadia. Of all the tracks this one was the epitome of the “New World Flamenco” theme of the CD.

The track “View From Space”, an Anderson composition is just plain beautiful and evokes a certain floating, peaceful feeling that is welcome in any situation. I did not fully understand where this fit in, but it seemed so natural to hear these three bringing this piece to life. Like “View From Space”, the closing piece, “Midnight Solo” is another one of Anderson’s wonderful compositions that was a natural for this collaboration. Anderson’s own work throughout CD is clearly detectable, but as in every other track, fully realizing the beauty of the composition is a function of the collaboration of the three brilliant and sensitive artists expressing a new relationship between themselves.

New World Flamenco is a guitar masterwork, the essence of what a collaboration should be, when two parts come to be greater than the whole. Tierra Negra and Muriel Anderson are natural together, filling in the missing pieces for each other, making what was credible alone, remarkable together. A truly wonderful listen from start to finish!