Our Review
I'm sure Steve Barta rolls his eyes every time he hears his music described as mellow. Sorry, Steve. In this instance, his soft touch serves up a jazzy new Christmas record. From the opening Caroling, Caroling through the first half of the CD, he plays improvisational counterpoint to Kim Stone's effective jazz bass line. Later on, he relaxes into his more measured and classical groove, creating a foundation for the other instrumentalists he has chosen to enrich this latest winter offering--a string orchestra and flutes, primarily. But whether jazzing it up (It Looks Like December, for example) or playing bona fide classics (Ave Maria), his music is accessible and soothing. Accessible in its ability to be jazzy without all those bitter scales of interest only to hard core jazzers, and gently soothing, without ever becoming translucently ambient or cloyingly ethereal.
What Barta does best is present music with a steady hand, in a manner palatable to garden variety listeners. It is comfortably straightforward evening music which has the heart and complexity to work well in the foreground but whose content and style still has some affinity for the quiet background.
--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 2002)
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From the liner notes:
Instrumentalists on this record include Steve Barta, piano, Kim Stone, bass, Russell Burnett, drums, Paul Nagem, flute and alto flute, Bob Rebholtz, flute, Guy Dutra-Silveira, oboe, with several tracks also accompanied by string orchestra.
Steve Barta
Three Ships
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Label: Steve Barta Music
Length: 48 minutes
Genre: Jazz
Release: 2002
Track List
| Song Title |
|---|
| Caroling, Caroling |
| I Love The Winter Weather|I've Got Love To Keep Me Warm |
| White Christmas |
| O Little Town Of Bethlehem |
| It Look Like December |
| Sleigh Ride |
| I Saw 3 Ships |
| Ave Maria |
| Sleep Well Little Children |
| Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer |
| Auld Lange Syne |
| Joy To The WOrld |
| Ave Maria |
| The First Nöel |