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Avishai Cohen

Ashes to Gold

ECM
Release Date: October 11, 2024

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1 Ashes to Gold, Part I  
2 Ashes to Gold, Part II  
3 Ashes to Gold, Part III  
4 Ashes to Gold, Part IV  
5 Ashes to Gold, Part V  
6 Adagio assai (from Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major)  
7 The Seventh  
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The first moments of “Ashes to Gold” – the dramatic five-part suite which opens Avishai Cohen’s new album – feature the unfamiliar sound of the great Tel Aviv trumpeter playing flute, establishing a dreamlike, almost pastoral ambience soon to be torn apart. What follows is some of the most intense and concentrated music Cohen and his band of friends have recorded to date, mirroring the deep tensions of a troubled era.

Ashes to Gold: the title imagery is drawn from the old Japanese art of kintsugi, the ceramic repair work “where you take the old and the broken and try and put the pieces back together, to make something golden and beautiful from the fragments,” says Avishai Cohen.  “In a way I think that’s where we dwell. Our reality. And although this music can’t help but reflect the times, it also – in my wishful imagination - has some hope to it. At least, it is not only dark.”

Last autumn, Cohen had intended to take a month off in Israel to write the music for his new album, and to play the pieces at concerts en route to the recording session in the South of France.  The cataclysmic events of October 7, however, brought composing plans to an abrupt halt:

“I could not write anything. I couldn’t touch the trumpet. In the beginning of November, I told Yonathan [pianist Yonathan Avishai] that I was going to have to cancel the tour and the recording, but he said ‘No. We need to go and play music’. The way he said it was powerful. I knew he was right.”  

  • 'Naked Truth' would only have been possible with musicians Avishai Cohen knows and trusts deeply / 88.3WBGO
    Posted At: March 7, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen's 'Naked Truth.' Spacious, lyrical and slightly melancholic / Financial Times
    Posted At: March 4, 2022
    The Israeli trumpeter’s latest album presents existential musings with a sweeping splendour and a minimum of fussThere is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extempora...

  • On 'Naked Truth' Avishai Cohen climbs an unexpected plateau with a relaxed sound / Off Topic
    Posted At: March 3, 2022
    Off Topic's Riccardo Talamazzi writes…The path of the trumpeter Avishai Cohen - not to be confused with the double bass player of the same name - fully reflects the ancient concept of “Pathei Mathos”, whereby knowledge is reached through struggle and suffering. So says Cohen himself, focusing attention on the starting point of all this work, that is, on the restless theme that is felt at the beginning of th...

  • Avishai Cohen leads the way on a music-of-the-moment quartet session / JAZZIZ: New Release Cheat Sheet
    Posted At: February 25, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen - Naked Truth makes NPR: New Music Friday
    Posted At: February 25, 2022
    NPR writes…. WBEZ and Vocalo Radio's Ayana Contreras joins NPR Music's Jerusalem Truth, WBGO and Jazz Night In America's Nate Chinen, NPR Music's Stephen Thompson and host Robin Hilton as they share their picks for the best new albums out on Feb. 25. Featured Albums include Avishai Cohen - Naked Truth.There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’...

  • Avishai Cohen makes some of the most enigmatic, beautiful and downright interesting music in modern jazz / THE BIG TAKE OVER
    Posted At: February 24, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen, Naked Truth is a beautifully executed meditation on the last things / the arts fuse
    Posted At: February 18, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Bold adventure from Avishai Cohen on 'Naked Truth' / TheGuardian
    Posted At: February 18, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen - Naked Truth is indeed naked. Stripped down. Bare. Like a 35-minute meditation / Gina Loves Jazz
    Posted At: February 17, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • The nine chapters of 'Naked Truth' put on display the sleek style of the Avishai Cohen quartet / jazztrail
    Posted At: February 3, 2022
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen, Naked Truth makes JAZZIZ: 10 Albums You Need to Know for February 2022
    Posted At: February 3, 2022
    JAZZIZ - MATT MICUCCI writes….The anticipated third installment of an acclaimed and GRAMMY-winning series; a celebration of the legacy of a funk pioneer; a fusion of the sound and expression of Portuguese fado with the vocabulary of jazz. All this and more in our list of ten albums released this month (February 2022) that you need to know about.Israeli trumpeter/composer Avishai Cohen leads the way on a mus...

  • Balladic contemptation on Avishai Cohen's quartet configuration for 9-part 'Naked Truth' / marlbank
    Posted At: December 22, 2021
    There is a searching, yearning quality to Naked Truth, and a raw beauty and vulnerability in Avishai Cohen’s trumpet sound throughout. Very much music-of-the moment, found and shaped in the course of a remarkable recording session in the South of France, Naked Truth takes the form of an extemporaneous suite. For most of its length the Israeli trumpeter painstakingly leads the way, closely shadowed by his lo...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious makes 'Jazz Police: 20 from 2020 - the New Music that Helped'
    Posted At: December 23, 2020

    2020 was the Year of the Rat which seems fitting for this year of plague. Concerts have been canceled, jazz clubs closed and it was a time when we needed music more than ever. If this dark cloud has a silver lining there must be serious wood-shedding going on right now and in 2021 after some normality returns we will witness a creative explosion of new music. But for now live streaming events help and bo...

  • Avishai Cohen's 'Big Vicious' brings a powerful and potent combination with slamming grooves on self titled ECM debut / Jazz Views
    Posted At: June 11, 2020

    Israeli born trumpeter Avishai Cohen is just one of many musicians, who have been influenced by this so called "young lion" period, but has distinctly, like fellow Israeli ECM labelmates Oded Tzur, Anat Fort and Shai Maestro brought forth influences from that country's music but also music across genres that were inspiring. This is the name of the game in jazz now, musicians bringing forth what inspired ...

  • Avishai Cohen's 'Teardrop' from Big Vicious makes NPR: All Songs Considered 'best new songs you've missed during quarantine
    Posted At: April 16, 2020

    We seek comfort in the familiar, and I get that. But we all tend to love what we know and not know what we might love. And so on this edition of All Songs Considered, we play a mix of new music mostly from artists you've likely never heard, on 'The Best New Songs You've Missed During Quarantine.' The segment includes;  Jerry Paper is, in the words of NPR's Andrew Flanagan, "a...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious makes NPR: 'The Best New Songs You've Missed During Quarantine'
    Posted At: April 8, 2020

    Music still moves. While some musicians have decided, reasonably, to delay albums during the coronavirus pandemic, many more are choosing to create, inspire and uplift by moving up release dates or surprising us with unannounced songs. We're all overwhelmed with the news and retreating to creature comforts, and you might not have made time to find or listen to new songs and albums in a while. Press P...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious makes CD Hotlist - April 'New Releases' pick
    Posted At: April 1, 2020

    Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious - ECM Trumpeter/composer Avishai Cohen's musical vision is getting more and expansive as time goes on, and now borders on the cinematic. It's been ages since he felt bound in any meaningful degree by the stylistic strictures of straight-ahead jazz, even as he's continued to work largely within that music's instrumental conventions. Here he leads a quintet that also include...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious is a surprisingly refreshing affair / UKVIBE.org
    Posted At: March 29, 2020

    Every now and then ECM drops an album that appears to be distinctly out of character. Big Vicious certainly fits into that category. It's a surprisingly refreshing affair, although anyone seeking the subtle, sensitive Avishai Cohen of recent ECM outings will need to be very open-minded about this one. The character and clarity of the trumpeter's playing hasn't changed though, it's just in a very differen...

  • Avishai Cohen's 'Hidden Chamber' makes The New York Times 'most notable new songs and videos'
    Posted At: March 27, 2020

    Every Friday, pop critics for The New York Times weigh in on the week's most notable new songs and videos. Avishai Cohen's ‘Hidden Chamber' makes this week's list. The trumpeter Avishai Cohen and his band Big Vicious wrote much of the material for their debut album together, blurring the processes of composition and rehearsing and recording into a single flow. "Hidden Chamber" is a...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious makes JAZZIZ 'Week in Jazz'
    Posted At: March 27, 2020

    The Week in Jazz is your roundup of new and noteworthy stories from the jazz world. It's a one-stop destination for the music news you need to know. Let's take it from the top. Big Vicious marks the debut album of charismatic trumpeter Avishai Cohen's new quintet of the same name. The band was launched after he relocated from the United States to his native Israel. "We're all coming from jazz, but so...

  • On 'Big Vicious' Avishai Cohen proves he has never cared much about genre boundaries / kulturnews
    Posted At: March 23, 2020

    Avishai Cohen never cared much about genre boundaries. On "Big Vicious" he proves this with an impressive range from Beethoven to Massive Attack. This is an unusual ECM album. A "ping" reverberating for a second, like from the sonar of a submarine, marks the beginning of "Big vicious". Avishai Cohen, who returned to Israeli homeland after many years in New York, founded the band of the same name six ...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious is a kind of drifting cloud of electronic trip-hop jazz / STEREOGUM
    Posted At: March 20, 2020

    And now, here are the best new jazz albums of the month! Trumpeter Avishai Cohen left the US for Israel a few years ago, and upon doing so, formed a band of Israeli musicians (Uzi Ramirez on guitar, Yonatan Albalak on guitar and bass, Aviv Cohen on drums, and Ziv Ravitz on drums and live sampling) called Big Vicious. He says of their music and concept, "We're all coming from jazz, but some of us ...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious is the kind of crossover sound that still resonates / The Province
    Posted At: March 18, 2020

    Trumpeter Avishai Cohen formed this experimental electronic fusion ensemble in 2013 after immigrating to the U.S. from Israel. Featuring Uzi Ramirez (guitar), Yonatan Albalak (guitar, bass), Aviv Cohen and Ziv Ravitz (drums, live sampling), the 11 tracks range from the atmospheric ambient jams (Honey Fountain, Moonlight Sonata, The Things You Tell Me) to surprisingly rocking (King Kutner). It's the kind ...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious is for the long haul / marlbank
    Posted At: March 15, 2020

    As discussed last month when the first lead-off track was released now's the time for Avishai Cohen. However, like so many other artists the spectre of Coronavirus means having to cancel some upcoming tour dates. Drat. However this album coming out at the end of March is for both a short term replacement and for the long haul. The Israeli trumpeter's Big Vicious could not be more different to his...

  • Avishai Cohen's 'Big Vicious' is an adventure in contemporary sounds / Staccatofy
    Posted At: March 14, 2020

    Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious features two guitarists and two drummers and continues to win audiences at international festivals. The album is the catalyst for the band's extensive international tour and was recorded in Studios La Buissonne in the South of France in August 2019 and produced by Manfred Eicher. The players are Cohen: trumpet, effects, synthesizer; Uzi Ramirez: guitar; Yonatan Albalak: g...

  • Avishai Cohen - Big Vicious makes JAZZIZ '10 Albums You Need to Know for March 2020'
    Posted At: March 5, 2020

    A deep study of the bebop and classical guitar masters; explosive liberation-oriented music; a previously unreleased collaboration between two legends of African music. All this and more in our March 2020 list of ten albums that you need to know about. Big Vicious (ECM) marks the debut album of charismatic trumpeter Avishai Cohen's new quintet of the same name. The band was launched after he relocate...
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