International Anthem
Angel Elmore feels like someone making up for lost time, with her musical career delayed by the financial repercussions of a medical crisis. A hugely talented multi-instrumentalist and composer, Elmore co-founded Chicago-based creative music collective The Participatory Music Coalition, tours solo and with her septet, Tha Brotherhood, leads the all-woman ensemble Sistazz of the Nitty Gritty, and hosts a monthly music show on NTS radio. Her tremendous work ethic mirrors the jazz legends of yesteryear, and with Requiem for Jazz, she creates something that stands the test of time, a stunning, theatrical piece of storytelling.
Late to the music scene, Elmore made a significant splash with her brilliant 2019 debut, The Oracle, a freewheeling spiritual jazz spectacular, largely recorded and produced on her cell phone as she trekked across the globe. The Oracle was an immersive musical exploration of black experiences, and Requiem for Jazz treads a similar path but in a compelling and theatrical manner. It’s a stunning jazz opera, wonderfully performed and executed, held together by Elmore’s vision.
Originally conceived as a live piece performed at the Hyde Park Jazz Festival in 2019, Requiem for Jazz is based on Edward O. Bland’s 1959 film, The Cry of Jazz. The film explores the structural identity of jazz music, connecting it to African American history, with the film’s narrator, Alex, describing jazz as reflecting the “characteristic atmosphere, colour, and sensuality of black life”. Alex asserts that jazz is dead, but its spirit lives on, and as Elmore picks up his story, she proves that jazz’s spirit is alive and thriving.
Framed in twelve moments, the album’s mournful sound makes it feel like a funeral for jazz, sombre but celebratory, an expression of cultural identity. ‘INTROIT’ is based on the character Bruce’s assertion that “jazz is merely the N****s cry of joy and suffering”, and embodies the latter, becoming a piece of symphonic darkness. ‘KYRIE ELEISON’ is built around the refrain “Lord Have Merci”, and aside from some far-off, pattering percussion, it forgoes instrumentation. The result is a stunningly captivating, powerful kaleidoscope of voices, which shift from operatic control to frenzied shrieks and howls.
‘DIAS-IRE (Chain Around the Spirit)’ is centred around oppression, built around these marching horns and sharply jabbed keys; it feels constrained and restricted. There are nods to Mozart in the horn-concoction ‘TUBA MIRUM’ and the guttural vibrations of ‘REX TREMENDAE’, both borrowing titles from his compositions. ‘RECORDARE-Recall the Joy’ ends with a thrilling, squalling musical breakdown, the piercing sound of the clarinet dancing through the noise. ‘CONFUTATIS’ provides an abundance of drama, with horns and keys bouncing in harmony like a sharp tango that ends with an enthralling operatic maelstrom.
‘LACRIMOSA’ is a weeping wall of harmonies, while ‘SANCTUS’ is an intricate strings composition, the album providing an ever-spinning wheel of jazz instrumentation. But this is music beyond mere playing; it is filled with emotion, each musician enraptured in the storytelling, creating the theatrical element. Largely sombre in tone, there are moments of brightness, particularly on ‘OFFERTURIUM HOSTIAS’, with its bouncing blues-style piano lines, vibrant horns, and squeaky, shining strings.
Aside from the music, Requiem for Jazz is filled with powerful statements from the Cry of Jazz as Elmore seeks to continue telling Bland’s story, but with a greater air of gravitas and defiance. ‘Through Spirituals’ is particularly rousing, connecting jazz through the years: “Our people made a memory of our past”, while ‘Because Jazz’ is a pertinent reminder that jazz music is part of black culture: “Where whites must be humble”. Bland’s message is summed up on ‘LUX AETERNA’: “This music is how we have been surviving”. The presence of Sun Ra Arkestra veterans Marshall Allen and Knoel Scott on the track enhances the sense of connection to Bland’s original story.
Several of the musical interludes and introductions provide snapshots of hip-hop beats, a genre indebted to jazz. Despite its largely sombre tone, Requiem for Jazz is a glorious celebration of jazz, connecting past and present. Elmore’s power as a composer is almighty, superbly capturing jazz’s spirit and community. Requiem for Jazz is far more than a homage; it’s a transcendent piece of storytelling in its own right.