by George Fendel

Introductions; Resonance.

An unusual group in the jazz pantheon, Resonance is an octet, the brainchild of Stephen McQuarry, pianist and arranger, comprised of five women and three men, playing pin-point arrangements on saxophones, flutes, violin, viola, cello with standard rhythm section.  Such instrumentation would necessitate an ensemble “sound,” and Resonance achieves it with ease.

Most everyone gets a chance to solo, and they all do so with precision and skill. Their diverse menu of songs runs  the gamut  from “Eleanor Rigby” to Miles Davis’s “So What”; from Duke’s beautiful “In a Sentimental Mood,” to Alec Wilder’s “Moon and  Sand”;  and several less familiar compositions complement the standards. Resonance has been a valuable and unique musical experience for some eight years for San Francisco Bay area residents. Mandala Records; 2013; appx. 55 minutes.