Album: Peace On Earth / Artist: Monika Herzig / Jazz
Reviewed by Mark Pedigo
Monika
Herzig’s history reads like a fairy tale. In August, 1988, with nary a
pfennig
or a dime, she and her now-husband, Peter Kiene, traveled from their native
Germany to America (the “land of jazz,” as she phrased it) for a one-year
exchange program at the University of Alabama’s graduate school. After
receiving an M.A. from the
University of Alabama, Herzig continued her education and received a
Doctorate in Music Education and Jazz studies from
Indiana
University in 1997. In the years since, she has won the DownBeat Magazine
Award for her composition “Let’s Fool One,” and has led groups that opened
for the likes of Tower of Power, Sting, and Yes. Today, she is still in the
“land of jazz,” serving as a lecturer at
Indiana
University, playing clubs and, lucky for us, recording enjoyable,
intelligent music.
Herzig’s most recent release, Peace on Earth, is comprised of a baker’s dozen of tasty Christmas songs. Most of the tunes have a piano trio at the core, featuring Herzig on piano, Frank Smith on bass, and Kenny Phelps on drums. Many of the tracks employ additional instruments; guitar (Peter Kienle), violin (Carolyn Dutton), saxophones (Tom Clark), percussion (Joe Galvin), trumpets (Marlin McKay, Adam Loudin), trombone(Nate Sutton), tuba (Jack Helsley), vocals (Wendy Reed), additional vocals (Melody Herzig, Jasmin Herzig, Julia Herzig, Melanie Goldstone, Isla Weber, and Eleanor Goldstone), and in one instance, the narration of a poem (Indiana poet laureate Norbert Krapf). Herzig’s playing is beautifully harmonized, unforced, playful and clever. The musicianship of the supporting players is likewise impeccable throughout the release.
The spectrum of songs include; some which are traditional tunes, and others which are original compositions. The mood ranges from the cleverly playful to more poignant missives. The album opens with the traditional “Go Tell It On The Mountain,” which is introduced by a Boogie Woogie bass line, and then the guitarist sizzles a solo (hey, is that John Scofield? No, it’s Peter Kienle)
Other traditional tunes on the CD include “O Christmas Tree,” and “Silent Night,” both of which originated in Herzig’s native country Germany. Another more traditional song “The Coventry Carol.,” begins with a brass chorale, which is overtaken by a swiftly running and smoking hot jazz quartet.
No piano-centric Christmas album is complete without a Vince Guaraldi tune and Monika Herzig obliges us with her rendition of “Christmas Time is Here.”
The most interesting arrangement from this collection of songs is a reharmonization of John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas (War is Over).” One almost expects that the Pat Metheny Group will soon be joining in, but instead, the song closes with a poignant moment, with Herzig’s children singing.
Wendy Reed sings on two of Herzig’s original compositions: “Children Sleep Softly Tonight,” and the amusing “Ballad for a Snowman.” After listening to the hysterical “The Schneebrunzer / Santa Clause is Coming to Town,” I was filled with the urge to share it with everyone, although perhaps not in the same way as the song’s protagonist.
Now for a confession: as a general rule of thumb, I do not like Christmas CDs, because all too often, they are filled with the kind of cutesy, vacuous, sugary junk that makes my dentist complain that I grind my teeth too much. There are however, notable exceptions (Harry Conick’s Harry for the Holidays springs to mind). In this spirit, Monika Herzig’s delightful Peace on Earth definitely belongs on everyone’s Christmas CD short list.
Please visit the Monika Herzig website. You can also listen to previews of Peace On Earth at this link.
Reviewed November 2009
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