Review Text
Pianist/composer/educator and Brazilian native Carmen Sandim draws from a deep well of personal experience, harmonic insight and melodic inspiration on Play Doh, the follow-up to her debut album Brand New (featuring master cornetist Ron Miles). Once again Sandim enlists her mentor, the revered pianist Art Lande, as producer, for a book of expressive and intricate compositions ranging from septet plus guests to quartet with just piano, guitar, bass and drums. The album takes inspiration from Brazilian music, modern jazz and even rock, featuring Sandim on piano alongside top-tier players Shane Endsley (trumpet), Bruce Williamson (reeds), Alex Heitlinger (trombone), Khabu Doug Young (guitar), Bill McCrossen (bass) and Dru Heller (drums). Supported by a grant from Pathways to Jazz, Play Doh reflects Sandim's fruitful yet complex life as an artist, educator and mother (now based in Denver, she teaches at Metropolitan State University of Denver and University of Colorado Denver). The album takes it's title from the pliable children's product; the initial melody of the funky, richly textured title track "Play Doh" was derived from a short theme that Sandim's young children, Juju and Amelie, created and often sang during playtime. The opening septet piece "Aruru, Juju" ("go to sleep, Juju"), written for her son, evokes the challenging reality of Sandim's creative process. "Starting in June of 2017," she recalls, "I scheduled two nights a week where I didn't sleep at all. Every Tuesday and Friday I would stay up all night composing. I wasn't sleeping that much anyway, but I was amazed that by choosing to stay awake, I'd actually feel fine the next day. Happy and inspired, in fact."
