Press

"Las Vegas isn't known for its jazz scene. That doesn't mean there aren't jazz players though. Origin dug up an excellent trumpeter at UNLV, and he brought a couple of musical comrades along. The trio plays through an entirely improvised session, covering a lot of musical ground. The album opens with a building trumpet line moving into a thumping piano/drum combination before the title track is over. The album develops in complexity as the trio moves on. "Song Without Words" is a bit exploratory, while "Suite for Lulu" almost sounds like something Miles' bands would have put together in their more free-form days. "Life Force" starts out frantic, then slows down into a bit of an Albert Ayler tone and a long trumpet solo. "Lester Rides Again" gyrates and thumps through a mass of sound, and the album ends on a relatively classic sound in "In and Out." Blanton's trumpet stays in the forefront for long periods, but drummer John Nasshan goes for extended solos lasting minutes from time to time, as does pianist Tony Branco. There's a lot going on in this album, with a lot of complexity and improvised collaborations throughout. The trio never drops the ball, however, and keeps the sound moving until the moment they've finished. Absolutely worth a listen."

The notion of forming a group with the intention of playing completely improvised music is something that Las Vegas trumpeter Walt Blanton says has always fascinated him. While the concept of performing free-form jazz is nothing new, it is a bold move for an artist, like Blanton, not usually associated with the genre. After experimenting with sounds and concepts for about a year, Blanton, along with pianist Tony Branco and drummer John Nasshan felt the time was right to roll tape on their daring musical experiment. The resulting seven tracks, recorded in one day during the summer of 2006, comprises "Monuments"; an adventurous musical joy-ride full of unexpected twists and turns.

Blanton is a powerhouse of a trumpeter who can play with lyrical restraint, culling notes from the middle register, and having fun with short melodic spurts, as he does on "Lester Rides Again" and "In And Out". There are moments, however, when brilliant tone and commanding technique take over, as on "Life Force". For the majority of the disc, it is Blanton who plants the initial musical seed for each piece, creating themes with noticeable traces of post-bop and contemporary mainstream jazz, singed with an abundance of melancholy and satire.

The interplay between piano and trumpet is astonishing. Branco seems to anticipate Blanton's every move, accentuating the nuances of the trumpeter's rhythmic momentum. The pianist enjoys dancing along the outer realm of tonality—with Don Pullen-like fervor—on the title track and serves up elongated, patiently developed rumblings on the lengthy and multi-faceted Life Force".

Always colorful and rhythmically adventurous, Nasshan maintains an incessant drive, keeping things grounded and swinging. His subtle cymbal work on the serene "Song Without Words" melds easily with Branco's light-as-air clusters.

A conceptual winner, void of unnecessary posturing, "Monuments" is a fun time had by three exceptional musical minds.

Track listing: Monuments; Song Without Words; Suite For Lulu; Life Force; Alone; Lester Rides Again; In And Out.
Personnel: Walt Blanton: trumpet; Tony Branco: piano; John Nasshan: drums.

Style: Modern Jazz/Free Improvisation

Published: February 24, 2008

"...an impressive display of musical virtuosity."

This is the Origin Records marketing statement about "Monuments":
"From wide open free-jazz explorations to moments approaching classical chamber music, trumpeter Walt Blanton, pianist Tony Branco and drummer John Nasshan improvise their way through all manner of moods and soundscapes on their first recording as a trio. Long a dominant member of the Las Vegas jazz scene, Blanton has performed and recorded with Charlie Haden, Henry Mancini, Woody Herman, James Brown and the New World Brass Quintet among many others."

John ,
Thank you! I had the good fortune of seeing Coalition perform at the Winchester Center on Sunday Feb. 3, 2008. What a pleasure. A brilliant reaffirmation of what delights me as a jazz listener. Compelling arrangements, inspired improvisation brightened with flourishes of whimsey, anchored by consummate musicianship. There is a dynamic at work between the three of you that is communicated directly to your audience. It became evident to me that you lead each other to places musically that you didn't necessarily expect to go, with remarkably fresh and entertaining results.The quote "the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts" came to mind. The only people enjoying themselves more than I were you three. Thanks for the ride.

Sincerely,Daniel Bushaw

"Quintessence" is John Nasshan - leader and drummer, Walter Blanton - trumpet, Dave Stambaugh - saxophones, Tony Branco - piano, and Geoff Neuman - bass.

"Worthy Of Your Time"
"Quintessence" is local drummer and KUNV DJ John Nasshan's own straight-ahead jazz quintet. Comprised of his favorite Las Vegas jazz musicians, the quintet plays some standards, but mainly original compositions by band members. On this particular Sunday afternoon, an appreciative audience was rewarded with music not available from any other source.

The concert opened with Dexter Gordon's "Fried Bananas", an uptempo bop tune with a 32 bar ABAC form. The horns scuffled a bit in the active head on the way in, but made up for it with excellent solos, and really laid into the head on the way out. Walt Blanton's solo was notable for his phrasing, in that he often placed long lines asymmetrically across the seams, yielding a welcome sence of freedom beyond what most trumpeters in Las Vegas achieve.

The second tune of the day was the pleasant Nasshan original "No Hassles In Henderson", in a medium tempo swing groove. After the horns took their respective rides, pianist Tony Branco played what is possibly the single most musical and engaging solo of the day. Combining generous use of space, development of simple ideas, large intervals, extensive use of the piano's under-utilized low register, and the effacious juxtaposing of contrasting low and high register ideas. At the very least, this solo made for the most compelling moments of the first set.
After a couple of more Nasshan originals (a fast modal 6/8, followed by a beautiful ballad) and a burning Branco original, the group broke for imtermission.

They came back with Geoff Neuman's original composition "How About That". Here, Neuman has constructed a melody of fast, stabbing shapes contrasting with long, relatively serene notes. In the solos, the rhythm section seemed the most involved behind the long lines of Dave Stambaugh's tenor, and once qagain Branco shone as a soloist after Stambaugh completed his statemenrt.

The three tunes presented in this concert that weren't originals, although chestnuts, were fairly obscure, except for the last: Thelonious Monk's "Well You Needn't" which is known to every jazz musician on the planet. The band closed on a high note with this notorious mastwerwork. Far and away, from beginning to end, this tune was the most engaging, compelling, and exciting performance of the day.

The arrangement opened with an extended, very active a capella drum solo by Nasshan, and his energy carried through to the ensemble statement of the head, which led into Blanton playing the kind of cleverly crafted solo that other jazz trumpet players envy. Stambaugh's alto sax continued the burn until Blanton's horn returned for an absorbing round of trading, and after the band played the head out, the crowd rose to give John Nasshan's "Quintessence" a well deserved standing ovation.

John Nasshan's "Quintessence" is one of the high points of our local Las Vegas jazz scene. Be sure to watch for their next appearance - they are worthy of your time and attention.

On sunday December 11th The Las Vegas Jazz Society presented "Tenor Madness", at the Winchester Cultural Center. First organized thirteen years ago by the Las Vegas trumpeter and "Jazz Institution", Walt Blanton, this annual event has showcased the talents of outstanding Tenor Sax players working in Las Vegas.

Each of the Tenor players was given the opportunity to perform in the context of the full ensemble, a duet, and a solo backed by the incredible rhythm section of John Nasshan on drums, Geoff Neuman on bass, and Dave Loeb on piano. This trio was worth the price of admission all by themselves. Nasshan and Neuman are both members of the bebop quintet, John Nasshan's "Quintessence", and play together with an effotless familiarity. With the addition of Dave Loeb, an exceptional pianist and Director of Jazz Studies at UNLV, this trio went well beyond the role of accompanists and served to bring out the best in all of the soloists. In fact, some of their own solos were high points of the program.......