Tao-Njia
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| Tao-Njia | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1996 | |||
| Recorded | November 17 & December 14, 1995 | |||
| Studio | Capital Recording, Los Angeles, CalArts, Valencia, California | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 43:00 | |||
| Label | Tzadik | |||
| Producer | Wadada Leo Smith | |||
| Wadada Leo Smith chronology | ||||
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Tao-Njia is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith which was recorded in 1995 and released on the Tzadik Records' Composer Series.[1]
"Another Wave More Waves" is performed by Smith's ensemble N'Da Kulture. "Double Thunderbolt" is a composition in six movements created as a memorial for Don Cherry with poetry by Smith's wife, Harumi Makino Smith. On the title track, the trumpeter is backed by the California E.A.R. Unit, a chamber ensemble conducted by Stephen "Lucky" Mosko.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz |  [3] |
| Down Beat | [4] |
| Tom Hull | B[5] |
In her review for AllMusic, Joslyn Layne states "Incorporating personal philosophy and beliefs into his compositions through mood and accompanying texts, Smith creates a warm album of spiritual instrumental music."[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz notes "Recent years have seen Smith personally and musically involved with Oriental culture, and this is strongly reflected in Tao-Njia. Acoustically, it is one of his most remarkable records, a rich montage of sounds that are at once new and immediately familiar."[3]
The Down Beat review by John Corbett says "Tao Njia's three pieces are gentle, deceptively spacious compositions loaded with the gestural oomph of a master calligrapher. One might call them 'chamberish,' but that would be to miss their stylistic breadth, their Asian classical overtones and the force of Smith's soloing."[4]
