<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div class="">Here are some excerpts from September issue of THE CLARINET, a review <span style="font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT;" class="">of my late brother Don's 2-CD set,"</span><font face="TimesNewRomanPSMT" class="">Clarinet Connections: From Dixieland to Bopsieland/ Also Alto: New Orleans Spot Gig+2" (GHB </font><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: Lato, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;" class="">561/562).</span><font face="TimesNewRomanPSMT" class=""> The set received high praise from Dan Morgenstern, Scott Yanow, Tommy Sancton, Bill Huntington, and others </font><span style="font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT;" class="">since its release in 2018. Don would have esp. dug the current comments in the go-to journal for serious clarinetists.</span><font face="TimesNewRomanPSMT" class="">—Charlie </font></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0px;" class=""><b style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class=""> </b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">New Orleans clarinetist Don Suhor (1932-2003) has gained new attention with this recent two-disc release of small ensemble sessions he recorded with friends over a 25-year period. It is the perfect showcase for his prodigious improvisational talent and commanding presence.The recordings are remarkable in that they showcase the influential players in Don’s past and document the breadth of his stylistic horizon, which effortlessly encompasses tunes and styles from early traditional New Orleans jazz through the swing era to bebop and beyond</span><font color="#444444" face="Helvetica Neue" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class="">….</span></font></div><div style="margin: 0px;" class=""><font color="#444444" face="Helvetica Neue" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">Don learned the Dixieland repertoire in his teen years and mastered the intricacies of dense, improvised ensemble playing that is the hallmark of early traditional jazz performance</span>…<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">.</span></font><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue';" class="">Don is a consummate master of this style. He makes it easy for us to get lost in the music with his sinuous melodic lines and flawless ensemble counterpoint</span><font color="#444444" face="Helvetica Neue" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class="">….</span></font></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; min-height: 17px;" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">Perhaps the best track is Joe “King” Oliver’s iconic “Dippermouth Blues</span><i style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">,</i><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">” played by the Wendell Brunious Jazz Band....The 1923 solos of Johnny Dodds and Oliver are referenced but not duplicated. Personalized statements here border on bebop in nature while maintaining the energy and substance of the original. It is a tribute to these fine musicians that they can breathe new life into the foundational repertoire of jazz.</span><b class=""></b></div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">The second CD of the set ["</span><font color="#444444" face="Helvetica Neue" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68);" class="">Also Alto: New Orleans Spot Gig+2] </span></font><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">continues the exploration into the flexibility and durability of early jazz. Much of this disc is from a wild impromptu wedding-party session that captures the energy of the event as much as the music of the Don Vappie Quartet....</span></div><div style="margin: 0px; min-height: 16px;" class=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(68, 68, 68); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class="">Throughout all the diverse music included in this fine CD set, one thing is constant: Don Suhor was an outstanding and singular musician who mastered his instrument and should be included among the great jazz clarinetists....This CD set is a comprehensive tribute to a marvelously talented musician who successfully combined a respectful appreciation for heritage with a highly original brand of swing/bebop. It deserves to be in the collection of every jazz clarinetist and anyone interested in the mastery of our instrument. </span>-– Jerry E. Rife</div></div></body></html>