Margaret Slovak - A Star's Light Does Fall (2024)

Starlight. Solitude. Stillness. A wide-open winter sky. This imagery defines "A Star’s Light Does Fall" – a jazz album that both embraces the magical essence of the Christmas season and re-imagines the entire genre of holiday music. Guitarist Margaret Slovak and bassist Chris Maresh, both from Austin, go deep on this recording. Their musical mission is anchored in space, intimacy, reflection. Margaret and Chris interpret classic carols such as “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and “Away In a Manger.” But there’s room for Wayne Shorter and Leonard Cohen on the album, too. Think of a holiday album in the spirit of Pat Metheny and Charlie Haden’s "Beyond the Missouri Sky," a sublime mix of deep feeling and musical integrity.

Margaret Slovak's Liner Notes:
Our intent with this album was to record traditional, non-traditional and lesser-known Christmas music that might bring comfort and peace to people during the holiday season, especially those facing life and health challenges or grieving the loss of a loved one.

Chris and I began playing together as a duo in November 2023. We had an immediate musical connection, which was augmented by the fact that we both had Czech fathers who were musicians. Thus, we each grew up with music being played in the house, live and on records: everything from Czech polkas to Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana and everything in between. Those Eastern European minor melodies were ever-present, seeping into our souls and becoming a part of our musical language.

Chris’s great-grandfather, who immigrated to Texas in 1853, was from a small Czech village near the town of Lanškroun, on the border of Moravia and Bohemia. My grandfather immigrated to Texas in 1900; he and my great-grandfather were from Provodov, in the Zlín District of Moravia. These two little Czech villages are only about 90 miles apart. Perhaps our great-grandfathers once shared a pivo (beer) and a polka in their homeland!

There is a saying: “Every Czech a musician!” We dedicate this album to our late fathers, Henry Slovak and Lee Maresh, who instilled in us the beauty and joy of playing music.

Veselé Vánoce! Merry Christmas and peace to you all. ---Margaret Slovak (September 2, 2024)