Chick Corea
's music, like that of
Pat Metheny
, is surprisingly adaptable to a
big-band
format. For this 2003 project,
Mats Holmquist
arranged seven of
Corea
's compositions (mostly from the 1970s) for an 18-piece Swedish big band, generally avoiding the most famous pieces (like
"Spain"
) in favor of obscurities (
"The One Step"
and
"Duende"
). The soloists, which include trumpeter
Peter Apslund
, tenors
Robert Nordmark
(well featured on
"Times Lie"
) and
Henrik Westerberg
, pianist
Daniel Karlsson
,
Par Grebacken
on soprano and clarinet, and guest
Henrik Frendin
on viola during two tracks, are uniformly impressive. However it is
Holmquist
's inventive arrangements, which are a logical extension of
's original performances, that are the real stars. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow