Tomeka Reid ? Cello - Mary Halvorson ? Guitar - Jason Roebke ? Bass - Tomas Fujiwara ? Drums. The jazz polls might still list cello under the miscellaneous instrument category, but in the hands of Tomeka Reid it's an essential vehicle for unfettered jazz exploration. Old New, the second album by the Tomeka Reid Quartet, exemplifies why she's quickly become a definitive figure on the 21st century jazz scene. While Reid has recorded prolifically over the last dozen years, Old New is only her second album leading her own band. As a composer, arranger, improviser, bandleader, and impresario, she embodies jazz's progressive ethos. Crafting memorable tunes brimming with arresting textures and melodies, Reid creates music palpably connected to the tradition while recasting those sounds to meet her own expressive needs. Old new, indeed!
