Muniini K. Mulera

Thank you for the music Rudy Van Gelder (1924-2016)

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Jazz MusicAugust 26, 20160 comments

If, like me, you consider the great Jazz recordings from the 1950s and 60s on Blue Note, Prestige and Impulse labels to be some of the greatest treasures in the creative arts, you should spare a moment and thank the recording engineer who made it possible for us to enjoy the exceptional ...

Beethoven's Piano Concertos

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of MusicMarch 19, 20160 comments

Of all the works that Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) wrote, his five piano concertos are almost certainly the most popular with audiences. Here in Toronto, a Beethoven piano concerto featuring a great soloist partnered with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra is usually sold out weeks ...

Lalo Symphonie Espagnole: timeless beauty of the violin

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Classical MusicAugust 8, 20160 comments

Composer: Edouard Lalo 1823-1892), Frenchman Music: Symphonie Espagnole in D Minor, Op. 21 This is a violin concerto, composed in 1874. A timeless, beautiful work, with a lot of Spanish sounds. Exquisitely sweet when played by the masters. I first heard this work in 1994, on a ...

Sergei Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor Op.18

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Classical MusicSeptember 18, 20170 comments

When it comes to top tier piano concertos, we are spoiled for choices. I could spend the rest of my life listening to piano concertos only and would have no regrets whatsoever. The challenge is to choose which single one, among the hundreds that are available in very good recorded ...

Horace Parlan: the triumph of a genius of Jazz piano

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Jazz MusicMarch 11, 20170 comments

Horace Parlan: b. January 19, 1931 Pittsburgh, PA, USA d. February 23, 2017 Korsor, Denmark Horace Parlan, a giant of Jazz piano music, may not be as well known as some of his contemporaries, but his music is some of the best in the Jazz canon. The Blues and Soul were ...

Herbert "Kabwondera" Bakesigaki: master of Enanga (African zither)

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of MusicDecember 14, 20160 comments

We remember you Herbert "Kabwondera" Bakesigaki. We celebrate your talent, your sound, your poetry, your contribution to the preservation of musical tradition of the Bakiga. Though you died young, you left a great legacy. We thank you for making the ICOB conventions you attended ...

Dexter Gordon's Timeless Tenor Saxophone

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Jazz MusicNovember 6, 20160 comments

Dexter Keith Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was a giant in the literal and professional sense. At 198 cm (6 feet 6 inch) tall, Mr. Gordon towered over nearly all the people he played with. Dexter Keith Gordon (1923-1990) Photos and videos of him in the various ...

Lou Donaldson at 90, still playing on

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Jazz MusicNovember 4, 20160 comments

Lou Donaldson --Born November 1, 1926 Lou Donaldson, the alto saxophonist who turned 90 on November 1, 2016, is the last living and performing member of the cohort of great Jazz musicians who recorded timeless music over 60 years ago. Born in Badin, North Carolina on November 1, ...

Sublime music of Charles-Camille Saint Saens guaranteed to please

By Muniini K. MuleraMy Kind of Music Classical MusicAugust 7, 20160 comments

I have spent the afternoon with Charles-Camille Saint Saens (9 October 9, 1835 – December 16, 1921), the French composer whose Romantic period piano music never fails to please. The Symphony No. 3 in C minor, op. 78 “Organ Symphony” is sweet and riveting, ...