Frank Carlberg Trio

In 1952, Thelonious Monk, joined by Bassist Gary Mapp, Drummer Art Blakey and Drummer Max Roach, drove to an early iteration of pioneering Sound Engineer Rudy Van Gelder's studio in New Jersey, and entered a small and tightly-managed room that Van Gelder had strict technical rules for. In those recording sessions, and again in 1954, despite Van Gelder's tight management and an out-of-tune piano with tinny fidelity, Monk produced some of the most glorious music of his entire recording career and in all of American improvised music. These sessions, recorded with his trio, would become Monk Trio on Prestige. 70 years after the original recordings, this album, Reflections 1952, bassist John Hébert, pianist Frank Carlberg and drummer Francisco Mela revisited those iconic recordings and improvised in conversation with them. "Reflecting Reflections" features various quotes by Monk collected by fellow musicians. On "Nicknames" you hear the various monikers journalists gave to Monk, accompanied by abstractions of a Monk piece originally written for his son, "little Rootie Tootie."  As a celebration of this beautiful work, today's musicians offer their own interpretations of the same pieces while tipping the cap to the master; Reflections 1952 is a note of thanks. It will be available on CD in December 2022.