TIM HAGANS
A CONVERSATION
(Waiting Moon Records 2021)
June 2021 Editor's Pick in Downbeat Magazine.
FACES UNDER THE INFLUENCE, A JAZZ TRIBUTE TO JOHN CASSAVETES
(Waiting Moon Records 2017)
Hagans’ suite underscores the sadness and confusion, empathy and hope in
Cassavetes’ gritty works with accuracy and honesty.
- Fred Boucahrd, Downbeat
“Lelia” the grand opening number, captures the proto-hipster, post-noir vibe of Shadows...”Harry, Archie & Gus,” the main men of Husbands (the director himself among them), are given to an alternatively swinging and swaggering theme, and the man of the hour, in the finale, is defined by moments of sheer chaos and unsullied delicacy, a fitting tribute indeed.
- Jeff Tamarkin, JazzTimes
Hagans doesn’t just offer face-value motifs, but allows each work to represent the emotional changes of the characters evident in the corresponding films. The arrangements reflect cinematic music of the 70’s, but the classic progressive swing sound remains at the forefront. These pieces are multi-pronged wit sub-sections and improv under and already complex topic. After listening, one needs to run back and view the movies again.
- John Pietro, New York City Jazz Record
THE MOON IS WAITING (Palmetto Records 2011)
Tim Hagans is already engaged in a freewheeling solo when, just past the midway point, Juris enters with a quick disquieting boing! that sets Hagans off. The unearthly trumpet fury that follows only lasts a half-minute but it is startling, volleying left to right, accelerating frantically and frenziedly before subsiding. Lest all of this sound like an exercise in randomness and anarchy, its nothing of the sort. Hagans has put in many years with big band and values discipline. There’s method to his madness but it’s a scrumptious madness nonetheless.
- Jeff Tamarkin, JazzTimes
As a leader and sideman on a handful of stellar CD’s from the mid to late ‘90’s, trumpeter Tim Hagans put a fresh breeze in the sails of a waning jazz record industry with his “outside” track to improvisation. Hagans has assembled a crack quartet who interpret his music with depth and aplomb. This band can play it all. Their expansive skills, coupled with Hagans’ unusual approach to composition, offer successful options for maintaining and nurturing the art form.
- James Rozzi, Jazziz
The Moon is Waiting is an artistic success, not settling for anything other than a personal statement from its leader. The title track, where the rubato outside feel takes over as if the band were in a fever dream, Reid’s playing surprisingly unconventional, Juris not far behind with his effects. And Hagans sounds outlandish, blaring, exposed.”
- John Ephland, Downbeat
For the last several years, the trumpeter Tim Hagans has been a ubiquitous force on the modern jazz scene, both as a powerful voice on trumpet and as a talented composer and arranger. Hagans is a force to be reckoned with. A no compromise musician who likes to push the envelope, work dangerously, and expand the possibilities of his music leaving any hint of a comfort zone in his wake.
- Ralph Miriello, Notes on Jazz
Challenging lines tease and entrance while rockish and searing moments come and go. It’s free jazz with constant drive and passion.
- Karl Stark, Philadelphia Inquirer
Hagans has proven to be a master compositional architect in more formal settings, but his ability to let loose with this small group is the key to its success. The Moon is Waiting is a marvel of elastic expressions from one of the most shrewd and intelligent minds in jazz today.
- Dan Bilawsky, All-About-Jazz
Trumpeter-composer Tim Hagans can bring his horn to just about any style of creative music and make it his own. The Moon is Waiting is an excursion into a “fusion landscape” powered by the hard drive of drummer Jukkis Uotila, electrified by the adventurous guitar of Vic Juris, and underpinned by the forceful bass work of Rufus Reid. Hagans plays with great gusto throughout, whether its floating over the stop-start rhythms of “Ornette’s Waking Dream of A Woman” or roaring through a duet with Uotila near the close of “First Jazz.”
- Richard B. Kamins, Step Tempest
Hagans’ new CD: The Moon is Waiting seems to fit squarely into the mold of musical hurricane, with a spontaneous combustion category 5 rating.
- Cameron Jackman, Jazmusic.com
Tim Hagans is one of the wildest trumpeters out there, and he deserves your attention.
- Phil Freeman, Burning Ambulance
Tim Hagans duet with drummer Jukkis Uotila on “First Jazz” draws more from John Coltrane than from Miles Davis, as Uotila has a response for every note Hagans throws at him. Hagans doesn’t shy from displaying his technical prowess. He has a flexible command of the trumpet’s entire range, and he often makes use of it in a single phrase. The music has an athletic element, impressive in the same way as watching a great feat
of strength. It’s the result of pushing boundaries both musically and physically with his instrument.
- Douglas Detrick, About.com
Passive listening is not an option with The Moon is Waiting.
Both Hagans’ music and his performance demands you pay attention, because nobody got anywhere by not getting involved.
- J. Hunter, Nippertown
It’s the kind of album you’d get if the Miles Davis of the 70’s had joined forces with
Ornette Coleman. The Moon is Waiting is a free jazz album I could listen to daily - Charles L. Latimer, I Dig Jazz
THE AVATAR SESSIONS (Fuzzy Music 2010)
Hagans is at the helm on The Avatar Sessions, leading the Norrbotten Big Band through seven original compositions that demonstrate his impressive compositional range. The album was named for the 53rd Street studio where the album was recorded and not for James Cameron’s recent ultra-blockbuster, but while there are no 10-foot tall blue creatures sitting in with the band there is nonetheless an impression of alien cultures finding harmony, with a European eclecticism brought to bear on an urban Manhattan sensibility.
- Shaun Brady, Downbeat
The key track is “Palt Seanuts,” which, as its title suggests, reveals Hagans’ goal for the Norrbotten Big Band, the same as Dizzy Gillespie’s, to create a bebop big band. He goes a long way toward succeeding here, abetted by some talented friends who have been given room to play.
- William Rulhman, JazzTimes
This release’s seven tracks, all written and arranged by Hagans, are sensational: They are intricate and complex, they swing like crazy, and the ensemble and solo work will take your breath away. This is a “must have” for jazz lovers; it’s the best thing I’ve heard in more than a decade.
- Ric Bang, The Davis Enterprise
Randy Brecker says fellow trumpeter Tim Hagans’ ability to write music specifically sculpted for personnel in the Norrbotten Big Band is akin to the way Duke Ellington tailored compositions for the fabled players who peopled his band. Comparing anyone to Ellington is not to be done lightly. Then again, evidence of Hagans’ skill set is all over The Avatar Sessions: The Music of Tim Hagans.
- J. Hunter, All About Jazz
TIM HAGANS QUINTET AT BIRDLAND, July 8-11, 2009
Tim Hagans is a firecracker of a trumpeter, drawn to quick and surprising actions. - Nate Chinen, The New York Times
The trumpeter Tim Hagans makes an art and science out of assertiveness. Repeatedly during his first set at Birdland on Wednesday night he unfurled long arcs of eight notes, clipping each one neatly at the end.
- Nate Chinen, The New York Times
Fetchingly situated between Brownian blasts and Milesian murmurs, the trumpeter’s lines cover lots of emotional breadth. It makes for a straight-ahead quintet approach that is quite willing to bend the rules to suit a tune’s forgotten corners. Chop-wise, his poetry with standard ballads might hush this room. Evidently he does know what love is.
- Jim Macnie, The Village Voice
ALONE TOGETHER (Pirouet 2008)
Veteran trumpeter Tim Hagans always displays an expressive tone, whether on burning postbop numbers or decelerated ballads, and he wastes no time in showing both extremes on the new Alone Together. Blazing...dreamy...Hagans appears to sing through his instrument...(his) previous work includes a couple of drum-and-bass inspired tributes to Miles Davis providing further proof that even the best straight ahead jazz is made by those willing to occasionally step away from it.
- Bill Meredith, JazzTimes Tim Hagans’ trumpet sounds terrific.
- James Hale, Downbeat
Brazil’s 30th Annual Jazz Station poll Best Jazz of 2008: Tim Hagans named number one trumpeter and Alone Together named in top ten recordings.
- Arnaldo DeSouteiro, Tribuna da Imprensa
Trumpeter Tim Hagans has absorbed much of Miles Davis' mid-'60s playing. Throughout Alone Together you hear the kind of melodic abstraction, fluid (yet capable of tautness) articulation and spacious rests reminiscent of Davis' last acoustic period before he turned electric. Hagans has a lifetime of jazz experience, so this style is something he has refined to a personal and worthy degree.
-
- Owen Cordle, News & Observer
It is a cool and sophisticated sound that trumpeter Tim Hagans projects on this quartet recording...his solo is obliquely handsome.
- Karl Stark, Philadelphia Inquirer
Tim Hagans proves, once again, that he is one of the most exciting and versatile musicians in jazz. The lack of Hagans originals here does nothing to diminish the spontaneity, the verve, and the lyrical lungpower of Hagans' trumpet, which connects beautifully and brings out the best in Copland's piano, Drew Gress' bass, and Jochen Ruckert's percussion...ALONE TOGETHER has the feel of an instant classic...as for "Not Even the Rain," such an achievement defeats superlatives: it has to be heard, and if anybody needs to know what jazz can do that nothing else can, play them "Not Even the Rain.”
- Peter Josyph, Jazz Houston.com
Recalling a pre-electronic Miles, but with meatier timbre, Hagans' bright and melodic horn is a nice contrast to Copland's impressionistic atmospherics and the trumpeter strikes a nice balance between technique and emotion.
- Brad Walseth, Jazz Chicago.com
Tim Hagans certainly succeeds in making one fine musical statement with Alone Together, a session of engaging contemporary jazz boasting a stellar cast of musicians and rhythm-based music that’s both entertaining and compelling. Hagans blows the house down with a terrific performance.
- Edward Blanco, Ejazz News
Alone Together generates some heat...emboldened by Hagans' assertive attack, the quartet expounds on Copland's oblique harmonies and enigmatic themes with understated fervor and plangent expressionism.
- All About Jazz, Troy Collins
He brings a full, rich trumpet tone to the bandstand along with creative gestures that engulf his quartet in a montage of excitement. Along with pianist Marc Copland, bassist Drew Gress and drummer Jochen Ruckert, the trumpeter pours intense drama from every corner and still finds the time to settle in for pockets of mellow serenade. His interpretation of the title track includes a hearty mix of both...the quartet swirls its conversation on “Not Even the Rain” and “Sweet Peach Tree,” combining intense elements with lyrical beauty in each selection. Hagans knows what he wants to say and does so eloquently.
- All About Jazz, Jim Santella
The excitement of the recording comes from the juxtaposition of sheer technical skill with risk taking, in the way a tightrope walker looks calm and collected despite having no net beneath him...Alone Together is, simply put, very good music from whatever angle it is heard, proving that jazz is alive and well.
- All About Jazz, Budd Kopman
BEAUTIFUL LILY (Pirouet 2005)
Hagans is an absolutely scalding uptempo improviser...he plays slow pieces with an unexpectedly pure, ringing, classical tone.
- The Guardian, John Fordham
While he’s been by no means inactive, it’s been six years since trumpeter Tim Hagans released his last album, Re:Animation: Live in Montreal, which found him exploring his own version of electronica/fusion. Beautiful Lily returns him to a mainstream acoustic setting, but with his stellar quartet featuring pianist Marc Copland...proof positive that the mainstream can retain a sense of adventure and contemporary edge, Beautiful Lily is also a welcome return for Hagans as a leader.
- All About Jazz, John Kelman
ANIMATION IMAGINATION (Blue Note 1999)
If Miles were still alive, this is what he would sound like. - The Music Den
His fusion of jazz concepts, rhythms and instruments with electronic elements is so seamless and intuitive that it shows us how linked these genres really are...it's a wild, mixed ride — some tracks have Hagans and others blowing over preprogrammed rhythm tracks, some incorporate live bass and drums over the programming for a thrilling effect, but all the way through the inspiration is boundless — it's like watching someone make fresh tracks on newly fallen snow.
- Salon.com
It's tempting to think of Animation * Imagination as Hagans’ Bitches Brew, or even his Dancing In Your Head or Tone Dialing. It's a turning point, a starting point, or quite simply a good point. Hagans' record also recalls Miles' and Ornette's landmarks in the genuinely new soundscapes it brings to jazz.
- All About Jazz, Douglas Payne
Trumpeter Hagans is doing more than hiding behind a wall of effects, or playing down to or shying away from the electronic beats that litter this album. With a standard jazz trio line-up that features trumpet, bass, and drums, augmented with various DJ's and electro-noisemakers, Hagans and company create a true fusion between high-energy melodic improv and all forms of current electronic music... It's almost unbearable to hear the CD player come to a stop when it's finished, but you don't feel too bad, because music this great makes it easy to get up and press play again. Buy this album now, before you feel like you're jumping on the bandwagon when The Wire lists it in their top albums for '99!
- Brainwash.com, Jason Olariu
AUDIBLE ARCHITECTURE (Blue Note 1995)
A swarming, spirited tour de force...(Hagans) draws on the melody, embellishing it with his own lyricism but never consigning it to the limbo of bebop disdain...dolorous Miles meets unrelenting Freddie.
- Gary Giddins, The Village Voice
He’s one of a group of guys who shares the same attitude about the music: hit it hard, play it like you mean it, take chances, go to the edge. If you listen to Tim’s record, there’s an intensity there. He’s playing every minute, every second....guys like Tim are the quintessential cats.
Career Quotes General:
Powerfully expressive tone.
- Bob Belden, Saxophonist & Producer, Blue Note
- The Village Voice
With a liquid-fire tone that belies his unassuming appearance, Tim Hagans has emerged as a trumpeter’s trumpeter—a fixture on the big band scene in both the U.S. and Europe, and a top-drawer accompanist to the likes of Joe Lovano, Gary Peacock and Bob Belden. His first two albums as a leader, No Words and Audible Architecture (both on Blue Note), took a left-of-center post-bop approach, establishing Hagans as a cutting edge ‘90’s improviser.
- Larry Birnbaum, Downbeat
Trumpeter Tim Hagans is not only a master improviser (sitting in with Quest and Sax Summit at Birdland this year) but a killing arranger and leader.
- Dave Liebman Newsletter
Show less
