Satya - Songs of The Fathers (2024) [Hi-Res]

Satya (truthfulness) is the culmination of four decades of musical collaboration from Frank Doblekar and Phil Raskin.

This album celebrates the music of a true musical icon, the great South African pianist and composer and 2019 NEA Jazz Master Abdullah Ibrahim. He is considered the leading figure in the subgenre of Cape jazz. His music reflects the influence of Thelonious Monk and Duke Ellington. He is known especially for "Mannenberg", a piece that became a notable anti-apartheid anthem.

During the apartheid era in the 1960s, Ibrahim moved to New York City. He was called upon in 1966 to substitute as leader of the Ellington Orchestra in five concerts, then followed a six-month tour with the Elvin Jones Quartet. In 1967 he received a Rockefeller Foundation grant to attend the Juilliard School of Music. Being in the USA also allowed him to interact with many progressive musicians, including Don Cherry, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Pharaoh Sanders, Cecil Taylor, and Archie Shepp

In 1987, he played a memorial concert for Marcus Garvey in London’s Westminster Cathedral, and the following year he played at the concert in Central Park, New York, commemorating the seventieth birthday of Nelson Mandela. In 1990 Mandela, freed from prison, invited him to come home to South Africa. He memorably performed at Mandela’s inauguration in 1994.

Over the decades he has toured the world extensively, appearing at major venues either as a solo artist or playing with other renowned musicians, including Max Roach, Carlos Ward, and Randy Weston, and collaborating with classical orchestras in Europe.

This album was recorded at Clubhouse Recording in Rhinebeck, NY on April 7, 2023. It was produced with no overdubs or punch-ins. Each piece is presented as they were performed live with minimal editing, enhancement, and processing.

Frank Doblekar - Tenor and Soprano Saxophone
Phil Raskin - Drums, Cymbals, Gongs, Djembe, Misc. Percussion

Tracklist:
1.01 - Satya - Mannenberg (7:38)
1.02 - Satya - Song for Sathima (5:18)
1.03 - Satya - The Wild Rose (13:24)
1.04 - Satya - Hamba Khale (6:15)
1.05 - Satya - Tone Poem 2 (7:01)
1.06 - Satya - Blue Bolero (8:52)