Would you move to another continent for your art? That's what Sinan Bakir did. The Hartford-based jazz guitarist transplanted from Turkey to advance his playing. It's been a busy year for him he's gigging harder than ever, and he just celebrated the release of his debut CD, On My Way. He played last Tuesday at Public in Middletown, a venue that's getting on board the jazz bandwagon with their Tuesday jazz night.
Bakir, along with Matt Dwonszyk on bass and Jay Williams on drums, played a long dinnertime set that included many of his originals from On My Way. His soloing on “Blues for Istanbul" was particularly inspired; the languorous tempo of the song gave him tons of room in which to improvise. But the band truly lit up when they were joined by vocalist Nicole Zuraitis and Craig Hartley on keys. Zuraitis must be training like a marathon athlete, because her voice was doing acrobatic leaps and flips across a sprawling vocal range. She was even comfortable scatting, which is a rarity on the local scene.
No sooner did Zuraitis begin singing than the band seemed enlivened with fresh energy: Williams began synchronizing his drumming with her scatting as if by telepathy. Bakir reached for a wider range of scales. She electrified the entire band! By the final song of the evening, another blues, everyone was in killing mode. Each member of the band was taking excellent solos. The tunes from the trio were solid, but Zuraitis pushed all the musicians to the next level.
--Dan Barry, Hartford Advocate
Bakir, along with Matt Dwonszyk on bass and Jay Williams on drums, played a long dinnertime set that included many of his originals from On My Way. His soloing on “Blues for Istanbul" was particularly inspired; the languorous tempo of the song gave him tons of room in which to improvise. But the band truly lit up when they were joined by vocalist Nicole Zuraitis and Craig Hartley on keys. Zuraitis must be training like a marathon athlete, because her voice was doing acrobatic leaps and flips across a sprawling vocal range. She was even comfortable scatting, which is a rarity on the local scene.
No sooner did Zuraitis begin singing than the band seemed enlivened with fresh energy: Williams began synchronizing his drumming with her scatting as if by telepathy. Bakir reached for a wider range of scales. She electrified the entire band! By the final song of the evening, another blues, everyone was in killing mode. Each member of the band was taking excellent solos. The tunes from the trio were solid, but Zuraitis pushed all the musicians to the next level.
--Dan Barry, Hartford Advocate
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