Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune
Violinists always have been marginalized in jazz, notwithstanding the silken
beauty of Stephane
Grappelli's work and the historic contributions of Joe Venuti, Eddie South, Ray
Nance and others. For
this reason, and others, we should give thanks for the deepening contributions of
Brock, whose every
phrase argues for the instrument's value in 21st century jazz. Though Brock
commands plenty of
technique and a vibrantly attractive sound, it's the substance of his musical ideas
that commands the
most attention. You can hear as much on every track of Almost Never Was, from
the sprightly
pizzicato passages of his Common Ground to the atmospheric effects of Joe
Henderson's Black
Narcissus, from the soulful utterances of You've Changed (you'd swear he was
playing a viola) to
the gorgeous melody line of the title track, a Brock original. The violinist partners
effectively with
pianist Aaron Goldberg, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Eric Harland, but it's
Brock's soaring
lyricism that defines this recording.
Neil
Tesser, Chicago Jazz
Music Examiner
There are good reasons the violin plays so large a role in so many of the world’s
musical traditions,
starting with the vocality of its timbre and the humanness of its inflection, and
ranging from its
transcendent held notes to the prick of its pizzicato. Many jazz violinists have
mastered some of
these capabilities, but only a handful have shown a command of them all – let
alone the ability to
swing convincingly on the instrument. Brock has all that, and more: his solos
have direction and
spirit, and they open a window to an ordered but creative musical intelligence.
A few other violinists can match Brock’s technique, and in recent years, some of
them have attained
significant accolades for their improvising – including a couple who can’t solo
their way out of a
paper bag. Accept no substitutions: Zach Brock is the pre-eminent improvising
violinist of his
generation.
Bill Milkowski, Jazz Times
Violinist-composer Zach Brock reveals traces of his main influence, Jean-Luc
Ponty, on this daring
acoustic trio project featuring Matt Wigton on upright bass and Frederick
Kennedy on drums... Brock
acquits himself with audacious ingenuity and masterful command of his
instrument.
Michael Jackson, Chicago
Sun-Times
During “Amadeus Had A Dream,” stage lights were dimmed leaving the
orchestra members in
silhouette and the audience slack-jawed at the marvel of Brock’s Paganini-level
mastery.
Stanley Clarke, The Blue Note, NYC
I called the great French violinist Jean-Luc Ponty and I said 'So, who's the new
cat? Who's got the
stuff? And he said Zach Brock.
Patricia Barber, MacArthur Grant Recipient and Blue
Note recording
artist
Zach proves himself as composer, improviser and producer. With a fiercely
charismatic presence
onstage, Zach is the one on whom to place your bets in jazz.
Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times
Add Brock to the small list of players finding ways to bridge the potentially
hazardous chasm
between the violin and jazz. Recently awarded a Carnegie Hall residency, Brock is
an intriguing
young artist with a bright future.
Dave Liebman, NEA Jazz
Master/Saxophonist
This is very exciting music that highlights a very special timbre with Zach Brock's
exciting violin
playing front and center. The group definitely projects a lot of energy and power
that demands the
listener's attention.
Tad Hendrickson, College Music Journal
...it all eventually comes back to Brock's violin - pulling lilting emotions, making
the strings pop,
and generally giving it his all, the young violinist won't strictly be a Chicago
treasure for long.
Budd Kopman, All About Jazz
'Live At The Jazz Factory' will make a believer of those holding even the slightest
prejudice against
the violin that Brock is, indeed, a musician first and a violinist second, and that
the Coffee Achievers
can take down the house.
Mary Ellen Hutton , Music in Cincinnati
Violinist Zach Brock is a musician of prodigious ability and keen artistic
insight...You might call him
the Joshua Bell of the jazz violin.
Jeffrey Lee Puckett, The Louisville Courier-
Journal
Violinist Zach Brock is starting to turn heads in the world of jazz, building a
reputation as a
consummate technician willing to take chances without abandoning
musicality...classic American jazz
with one eye on the fringes.
Dick Crockett, Still Another Jazz Show, 88.7FM
Brock's electric violin work is soaring-intense-remarkable...Jean-Luc Ponty
meets Chuck Palahniuk in
Fight Club. Chemistry is good enough for the long haul, one of many inclusions
in a brightening
career.
bruceandgerri, Create Tucker (Nov 23, 2010)
Several weeks ago at the Purple Fiddle we heard a fantastic group, Zach Brock
and the Magic
Number. For the first half of the show we were amazed at the virtuosity,
originality, and energy of
their jazz. For the second half of the show we watched and listened differently to
all of the musicians
—Zach on violin, Fred on drums, and Matt on bass. It wasn’t their virtuosity but
their musical
conversation that engaged us. Not only did they play their instruments as if they
were talking to each
other, they listened and took ideas from each other. It was obvious that all three
of the musicians not
only loved their instrument, in a sense they lived it. Player and instrument were
one, and each one of
them needed the other. And even though we weren’t playing, we were engaged
in their conversation;
we were living what they were living.
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