REVIEWS
Lemonwire
Cathy Segal-Garcia takes emotional risks on “Dreamsville”
by Dodie Miller-Gould
Cathy Segal-Garcia has been a fixture on the LA jazz scene for many years, as both a singer/songwriter and as an educator. Dreamsville is her twelfth album as a leader--she's enlisted the help of guitarist Larry Koonse and pianist Josh Nelson to create this intimate mix of standards and original compositions that veer a bit from the norm. Perhaps that is due to Segal-Garcia's voice, which is complex and rich and carries a touch of sadness to every song--or, perhaps, to every note. She's adding something specific to all eleven of these tracks, a feeling that these songs are meant for those who have just crawled out from under life and have dusted themselves off and are ready for more of the same because it wasn't really that bad. It's a weariness, it's true, but Segal-Garcia uses her deep and expressive voice to suggest more--not hope, not optimism, but perhaps that faith in our ability to rebound.
Indeed, this album is not your garden-variety female jazz vocal album, nor is it meant to be. The musical interplay between Koonse and Nelson is lush and melodic and can lull you into blankness, but it's the singer's words, so direct and infused with meaning, that compel you to attention, to wondering what really happened in her past. That's how convincing she is at this chosen role.
The mood is the star here, the dark and shadowy world this trio creates consistently from song to song. Even when these three really stretch by performing an absolutely gorgeous take on Scarlatti's Sonata in B minor L.33, it's so connected to the rest of the album that its inclusion avoids novelty and feels downright necessary. These moods are easy to sustain, I believe, because the trio never really uses one musical genre as a springboard over another. There are certainly jazz elements, and obviously classical ones, but Dreamsville reaches into those dark corners and runs on that hard-to-categorize energy from beginning to end.
How does this translate into the average audiophile and his love for well-recorded female voice? Well, Dreamsville is clearly that, a great recording with plenty of space for deep thinking. But this isn't the kind of music you want to absorb passively, as an antidote to a long and difficult day. This album is sad, and it might demand more attention from you. It might trouble you. But the best music always does.
Blinded by Sound
Jazz Review: Cathy Segal-Garcia & Yoonseung Cho - Bohemian
By Jordan Richardson | May 31, 2012
Bohemian is the result of the musical relationship between pianist Yoonseung Chon and singer Cathy Segal-Garcia. The two came together as many musical relationships do, with a series of meetings and encounters through the Los Angeles scene. With Cho heading back to Korea, the decision was made to get the pair into the studio to document the bond in the form of an album.
As jazz vocal records go, Bohemian is an interesting one. It is minimalistic without feeling small, with Cho’s keys and Segal-Garcia’s adventurous vocals trading exchanges throughout the dozen songs. It also boasts a sense of exploration, one that results in a lot of moves that test boundaries and raise valid musical questions. This isn’t a record about nailing down perfection; it’s a record about conversing, about feeling, about loving the art form.
In that regard, Bohemian is refreshing right from the opening bars of the title track. It is invigorating to come across a jazz vocal album that isn’t jammed to the brim with immeasurable retreads from the noble but overdone Great American Songbook, after all.
Segal-Garcia, the co-founder of the Jazz Vocal Coalition and the president of The California Pop & Jazz Council, has a voice primed to explore the outer limits. She is exciting and bold, sometimes stuffing too many words into a phrase and other times climbing to heroic heights in her registry. Because of her sparkling tone and graceful phrasing, almost everything she throws into listeners’ ears sticks.
Cho is the perfect match, a bold Seoul-born pianist who moved to Argentina at age 14 and studied classical music there. From 2001-2003, Cho was selected by Herbie Hancock to attend the Thelonious Monk Institute at USC. His playing is both fluid and impactful. He plays steadily, sometimes extraordinarily so, and is the ultimate lyrical counterpoint to Segal-Garcia’s vocals.
“Her Family” is a highlight of Bohemian. It sprang into existence after Segal-Garcia wrote words to the Pat Metheny song “In Her Family” and had her words praised by the legend. From that point on, it was only a matter of time before her version was recorded. Cho plays exquisitely on the ballad.
Another stimulating moment is “Fragile,” a familiar piece by Sting. Rather than singing it with space and composure, Segal-Garcia pounds away with robust emotions. Her forceful performance calls to mind some of Sinead O’Connor’s bolder moments. Cho builds the tension smartly and never strains in his role, playing as the perfect companion to Segal-Garcia’s passionate cloudburst. It is a remarkable piece of work and my favourite track.
Bohemian is a quality jazz vocal record. Cho’s playing is prominent and smooth, while Segal-Garcia’s thrill-seeking free spirit is well worth spending some time with. Thanks to a trust in freedom rather than faultlessness, this album is one of the most encouraging of its kind to come out in some time.
Critical Jazz
Carving out your own niche in the world of jazz is becoming increasingly difficult. As more sub-genres are added to the jazz family tree the lines or boundaries between these genres becomes smaller. An interesting sub-genre of jazz is what is being referred to as alternative jazz which begs the question, alternative to what? The question most bandied about would have to be, "What is jazz?"
Cathy Segal-Garcia and Yoonseung Cho are releasing Bohemian on March 20, 2012. This aptly titled release falls under the category of what I like to refer to as N.P.R jazz. An incredibly earthy and organic mix of the natural vocals of Segal-Garcia combined with the virtuoso like performance of Korean jazz pianist Yoonseung Cho.
Organic is a word that has lost a great deal of meaning when used in a critical examination of artistic work. Bohemian exemplifies the proper use of the word organic as this release contains no overdubs. Segal-Garcia began her musical relationship with Cho thanks in part to a vocal workshop she was hosting with Gretchen Parlato who had brought Cho to play piano as one of her accompanists. Bohemian is a two day celebration of improvisation with the idea of simply documenting their musical chemistry more so than a planned project.
The title track Bohemian is a somewhat autobiographical piece on how Segal-Garcia met her husband Gary. There is a remarkable abstract feel to a more free form vocal approach backed magnificently with the shifting harmonics that serve to accentuate the stripped down vocals of Segal-Garcia. "Her Family" is a tune from Pat Metheny with original lyrics from Segal-Garcia. An emotional ballad where both artists play to each others strengths with relative ease. Cho's ability to harmonically develop a tune are reminiscent of Chick Corea while Segal-Garcia's touching lyrics provide a touching counter-point. The Shelby Flint tune "Like A River" is a tune originally inspired by Cathy Segal-Garcia and the reinvention of this tune is again a perfect vehicle for this most intriguing of duos. The Sting classic "Fragile" takes on a deeper emotive quality under Segal-Garcia's interpretation.
Unplugged, organic or bohemian would all be fitting descriptions of the very intimate setting of this vocal/piano duet. A subtle yet captivating retro-hippy chick feel that transcends the normal expectations of jazz vocals by blending popular tunes with tremendous jazz sensibilities and creating a very specific and dynamic artistic voice.
Alternative jazz? No. Instead we find real musical integrity. Songs that are stripped bare of the more commercialized pretentiousness of the music industry for tunes that have a unique story and artist to make sure the story is told. N.P.R jazz. The vibe of artistic integrity coupled with honest emotion for a captivating experience.
By One l Mulet, Hot Indie News
Cathy and Yoon Seung succeed in delivering a performance filled with light and beauty. So few deliver a melody whose meaning is so relative to it’s accompaniment. The pairing of these 2 brilliant artists is akin to watching a butterfly dance with the wind. The L.A. based duo play together in fluid interpretations of songs so free of the clutter of licks and the dogma of genre specific vocal styling’s.
Bohemia makes you feel almost as if you were the first to ride the subway uptown with its charming clickety clack impetus preparing you for the joy of a good long cry on Her Family a wondrous voyage that lifts you in circles like the warm air currents under a California condors wings.
Yoon Seung Cho swings throughout Everyday’s Own Song without Cathy instructing it as in the quirky lyric that leads to a poignantly personal and smoking scat solo. She phrases with complete abandon all throughout her range with impeccable time and such feeling. The human vocal cords seem such a natural instrument when listening to Cathy.
Yoon Seung Cho delivers flawlessly soulful playing all through this set delivering a sound more akin to Chicago or New York musicians than what your accustomed to hearing out of L.A. a brilliant pairing to Cathy’s seemingly elastic voice seemingly to the opposite ends of her range if she has them. Cathy’s tessitura is seemingly endless. The scat melody on Embraceable Jew will ultimately make you spin this disc for weeks on end and sign up for Cathy’s Jazz Vocal workshops. The recording of this CD sounds as if two close friends got together for a set of grooving quirky tunes that they have honed from countless musical love ins. This CD will restore the faith of even the most jaded “Jazz is Dead” be-bop loving jazz fan.
ALL ABOUT JAZZ
Cathy Segal-Garcia: A Weaver Of Dreams
By DAN BILAWSKY | November 18, 2019
Cathy Segal-Garcia's talents are vast, and her heart is warm and open. A significant presence on the Los Angeles scene, she can proudly wear many labels —"vocalist," "songwriter," "educator," and "scene maker and sustainer" among them. But when you boil Segal-Garcia down to her essence, she's simply a weaver of dreams, a starry- eyed wanderer and free spirit who, nevertheless, possesses strong artistic instincts and the organizational savvy to pull off one unique project after another. A look at a sampling of her previous work—a debut date fronting a top-shelf trio, duo encounters of various designs, a genre-melding affair bridging jazz with pop and other realms, a beautiful brush with a chamber orchestra and some high-profile guests—reveals a restless explorer, as do these two 2019 releases under her name.
REVIEWS FOR THE JAZZ CHAMBER
MIDWEST RECORD BY CHRIS SPECTOR
“If you are old enough to remember pop music before Beatles, this set is going to sound like a throwback to the jazz thrush albums your parents had laying around the rec room, back when the arranger was the kind of cat that ruled the roost. Hanging with a bunch of singers and players that rank among our faves, Segal-Garcia works a groove that feels like it’s coming from her heart and is sure to touch yours. Solid stuff that’s easily going to take you someplace else."
http://midwestrecord.com/MWR1358.html
JW VIBE BY JONATHAN WIDRAN
"On her free-wheeling, joyfully schizophrenic 11th album The Jazz Chamber, Cathy Segal-Garcia surrounds her emotionally resonant, compellingly theatrical jazz vocals with what seems like the entire L.A. Jazz Scene… A prodigious work, The Jazz Chamber continues Segal-Garcia’s ongoing evolution as a jazz visionary."
https://www.jwvibe.com/single-post/2018/05/03/CATHY-SEGAL-GARCIA-The-Jazz-Chamber
CONTEMPORARY FUSION REVIEWS BY DICK METCALF
“Cathy’s astounding arrangement and performance of “Compared To What” …packs even more punch than the original… I was simply blown away!”
SOUNDS OF TIMELESS JAZZ BY PAULA EDELSTEIN
“Cathy’s voice is a splendid, resonant and captivating sonic experience. Her multi-octave range adds a new dimension to many of your favorite songs … So check out The Jazz Chamber and the brilliant delivery of these songs by Cathy Segal-Garcia, her guest vocalists and the 30-piece orchestra.”
http://www.soundsoftimelessjazz.com/reviews.html
MUSICAL MEMOIRS BY DEE DEE MCNEIL
“I appreciate Cathy Segal-Garcia’s ability to always explore outside the box… she looks for unusual ways to present the usual. I always applaud her creativity… This entire CD production an artistic exploration.”
https://musicalmemoirs.wordpress.com/
THE JAZZ PAGE BY D. GLENN DANIELS
“Lush, lovely and inspirational… a collection of outstanding performances by the singer over lovely orchestration. A wonderful musical achievement.”
https://thejazzpage.com/album/cathy-segal-garcia-the-jazz-chamber/
JAZZ WEEKLY BY GEORGE HARRIS
“Cathy Segal-Garcia brings her flexible and warm voice to meld with the sepia tones of a chamber ensemble. This is a chamber worth hanging around in.”