Masada: Alef

Masada: Alef, also known as Masada 1, is a 1994 album by American jazz composer and saxophonist John Zorn featuring the Masada Quartet performing compositions inspired by Zorn's examination of Jewish culture.[1] It was the first album in a project that has included ten studio albums, concerts, and live recordings.

Masada: Alef
Studio album by
John Zorn
Released1994
RecordedFebruary 20, 1994, RPM, NYC
GenrePost-bop
Klezmer
Length60:55
LabelDIW DIW 888
ProducerJohn Zorn and Kazunori Sugiyama
Masada chronology
Masada: Alef
(1994)		 Masada: Beit
(1994)
John Zorn chronology
Execution Ground
(1994)		 Masada: Alef
(1994)		 Masada: Beit
(1994)

The album takes its inspiration from the mass suicide of Zealots at Masada in 73 CE, and is dedicated to Asher Ginzberg (1856–1927), the founding father of Cultural Zionism.

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Guy's Music Review[3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz[4]

The Allmusic review by Don Snowden awarded the album four stars stating "Alef is full of thrilling, varied music and just may remind some people who are put off by John Zorn's constant stream of conceptual projects how good a musician he is in a straight-ahead jazz context".[2] Guy Peters stated "The quartet churns out an immense variety of tunes, ranging from intensely sad ballads, to enjoyable mid-tempo faux-swing, to hectic freak-outs. One thing’s sure: if these guys step on the gas pedal, you’re in for a busy affair. As is to be expected, this is a very solo-oriented style of jazz, but whereas lots of jazz outfits regard these moments as the opportunity for the soloist to shine and for the rest of band to take it slowly, the tension in this outfit often remains very high, with two or more musicians giving their all simultaneously".[3]

Track listing
  1. "Jair" – 4:53
  2. "Bith Aneth" – 6:24
  3. "Tzofeh" – 5:13
  4. "Ashnah" – 6:20
  5. "Tahah" – 5:40
  6. "Kanah" – 7:26
  7. "Delin" – 1:54
  8. "Janohah" – 9:40
  9. "Zebdi" – 2:45
  10. "Idalah-Abal" – 6:15
  11. "Zelah" – 3:48
All compositions by John Zorn
  • Recorded at RPM in New York City on February 20, 1994

Personnel

References
  1. Masada World: Alef, accessed Janur 6, 2020
  2. Snowden, D. Allmusic Review accessed July 25, 2011
  3. Peters, G. Guy's Music Review Archived 2012-07-19 at the Wayback Machine, accessed October 24, 2013
  4. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1543. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
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