Jazz Guitar and String Quartet

[Paulie2]

I've become very obsessed with this grouping lately, checking out the Jim Hall record and Mary Halvorson's new record extensively. Any others that you guys can think of to check out featuring guitar with strings?

[Sam Sherry]

I've become very obsessed with this grouping lately, checking out the Jim Hall record and Mary Halvorson's new record extensively. Any others that you guys can think of to check out featuring guitar with strings?

I am obligated to respond, "If you find records of jazz guitars without strings let us know."

Badum-bum. I'm here 'til Thursday; try the tofu.

+ + +

It's bass-guitar, not guitar-guitar, but the writing and playing on this record are truly exceptional and the last three pieces are JP with string quartet.
His wife is a cellist and you can tell he has the inside scoop for this kind of composing.

[mr. beaumont]

Kind of the polar opposite of anything Mary Halvorson would do, but Russell Malone's "Heartstrings" comes to mind...the type of record they called "mood music" back in the day.

[David B]

Dave Stryker's latest album, 'As We Are' (2022), has Stryker, John Patitucci and Brian Blade alongside a string quartet arranged by pianist Julian Shore.

BandCamp: Dave Stryker

[TheGrandWazoo]

A better guitar album with strings would be harder to find than this...

Bucky Pizzarelli And Strings – So Hard To Forget (2008, CD) - Discogs

[grahambop]

Jimmy Raney made an album featuring his own compositions with strings:

[Cunamara]

Bill Frisell has a string quartet he plays with, replacing one of the violins with the guitar, I believe. He's also done some interesting trio work; for example, on his website there is a November 2005 performance of a trio with Bill, a pedal steel guitar and a violinist playing Beatles tunes.

oh, and Gene Bertoncini has an album along these lines that is really outstanding. I can't remember the name of it offhand, unfortunately, I will dig it up and then edit later. EDIT: " Concerti."

[RJVB]

There was once an old cat called Boccherini who wrote some before anyone thought of this-or-that guitars

(the swing starts at about 1:20)

[sgcim]

Johnny Smith made an album Johnny Smith and Strings, where he wrote the arrangements for a string orchestra and blended beautifully with them.
He was an excellent violinist himself, and knew how to write for strings better than any guitarist I've ever heard.

[RJVB]

knew how to write for strings better than any guitarist I've ever heard.

Not surpising (if you look at their dates of death)

[reventlov]

If you go to 11.30, you'll find a superb "guitar with strings" track; the entire album has beautiful guitar playing throughout, but this particular track is quite different from the rest of the album. The tune is Blue Capricorn, the title track of the album, and is the only track on the album written by Albers himself. The rest of the album consistts of mainly commercial tunes, rescued from banality by Albers' outstanding playing and worth a listen for that reason - he was, and still is, a greatly under-rated player.

[AndyV]

This one from Howard Roberts uses strings but IMHO, they don't really make the music better.

[Cunamara]

By the way, the ES-175 on the cover of that album was ultimately owned by Jim Hall for many years. Jim traded his Les Paul for it (the photo on the album cover is reversed. Howard was not left-handed).

[AllanAllen]

Johnny Smith made an album Johnny Smith and Strings, where he wrote the arrangements for a string orchestra and blended beautifully with them.
He was an excellent violinist himself, and knew how to write for strings better than any guitarist I've ever heard.

It’s called “Softly” on Spotify.

[jmgalich]

There's a Hal McKusick record with Barry Galbraith and a string quartet called "In a 20th Century Drawing Room":

Galbraith get decent space for soloing and I could listen to his comping all day long.

John Galich

[sgcim]

There's a Hal McKusick record with Barry Galbraith and a string quartet called "In a 20th Century Drawing Room":

Galbraith get decent space for soloing and I could listen to his comping all day long.

John Galich

Even though it's not BG's album, I totally forgot about that album. Great arrangements and compositions by Manny Albam, and excellent playing by HM and Barry. My fave cut is alto stratus, but they're all good on that record.
I caught HM live once, and had to go up and talk to him about all those records he made with Barry. He was surprised that I knew them all, and he got kind of choked up thinking about the 'old days'...Thanks for reminding me, John.

[wintermoon]

Even though it's not BG's album, I totally forgot about that album. Great arrangements and compositions by Manny Albam, and excellent playing by HM and Barry. My fave cut is alto stratus, but they're all good on that record.
I caught HM live once, and had to go up and talk to him about all those records he made with Barry. He was surprised that I knew them all, and he got kind of choked up thinking about the 'old days'...Thanks for reminding me, John.

Albam was on the faculty @ Glassboro State College (now Rowan U.) in S. Jersey in the 70s and 80s. A bunch of my friends from high school went there while I worked a day gig. They said he was super demanding and easily irritated, understandable I suppose considering his musical reputation and suddenly having to deal w a bunch of kids. But he would regularly bring in top talent for workshops and concerts, everyone from Thad and Mel's big band stacked w legends to smaller groups like Al and Zoot, etc. My friends said the guitarist on the faculty was 'some guy that played a blonde Gibson hollowbody, he's great you'd dig him' I asked who and they said some cat named Perry Lopez (!) Sadly I never got to hear him in person.

[supersoul]

The String Trio of New York, which is guitar, violin and double bass. Billy Bang was the violinist in the 70s.

[sgcim]

Albam was on the faculty @ Glassboro State College (now Rowan U.) in S. Jersey in the 70s and 80s. A bunch of my friends from high school went there while I worked a day gig. They said he was super demanding and easily irritated, understandable I suppose considering his musical reputation and suddenly having to deal w a bunch of kids. But he would regularly bring in top talent for workshops and concerts, everyone from Thad and Mel's big band stacked w legends to smaller groups like Al and Zoot, etc. My friends said the guitarist on the faculty was 'some guy that played a blonde Gibson hollowbody, he's great you'd dig him' I asked who and they said some cat named Perry Lopez (!) Sadly I never got to hear him in person.

Wow, I never knew he taught at a college!
Back in the 70s he wrote a piece for a piece for a big band I used to play in that was sponsored by the County, and run by the famous Joe Dixon, who used to be a star clarinetist in the Tommy Dorsey Band, when he was pnly 19 Joe Dixon (musician) - Wikipedia
He used to get charts from his friends like Manny Albam and Rod Leavitt.
The piece Albam wrote was called "Comes The Resolution", and was entirely based on the changes Fm7 and Bb7. It was incredibly creative, considering that he limited it to just two changes. I think he was one of the judges in the Quinnipiac Jazz Festival that we played, but we never met him.
Rod Leavitt, another great composer/arrangerwho wrote for us, came out and saw us play at another jazz festival, and he sat there on a picnic blanket with his stacked blonde wife, boozing it up and yelling out encouragement to us! He was a real character.
Rod Levitt - Wikipedia

[wintermoon]

Wow, I never knew he taught at a college!
Back in the 70s he wrote a piece for a piece for a big band I used to play in that was sponsored by the County, and run by the famous Joe Dixon, who used to be a star clarinetist in the Tommy Dorsey Band, when he was pnly 19 Joe Dixon (musician) - Wikipedia
He used to get charts from his friends like Manny Albam and Rod Leavitt.
The piece Albam wrote was called "Comes The Resolution", and was entirely based on the changes Fm7 and Bb7. It was incredibly creative, considering that he limited it to just two changes. I think he was one of the judges in the Quinnipiac Jazz Festival that we played, but we never met him.
Rod Leavitt, another great composer/arrangerwho wrote for us, came out and saw us play at another jazz festival, and he sat there on a picnic blanket with his stacked blonde wife, boozing it up and yelling out encouragement to us! He was a real character.
Rod Levitt - Wikipedia

I just checked his wiki page, he apparently taught at Eastman and Manhattan School too

[sgcim]

I just checked his wiki page, he apparently taught at Eastman and Manhattan School too

Oh yeah, I was going to go to that two week session they had where you write a chart every day, and they play it and criticize it for you, but I was still in HS, and I couldn't afford it.
I forgot that it's the time of the year where we're enemies for the next few months. The Eagles blew them out of the water Sunday, and the Giants just squeaked by on a missed FG.
It's gonna be a wild season between our two teams this year. The Cowgirls already lost Dak for a few games. It's just us and the Commanders this year.

[wintermoon]

Oh yeah, I was going to go to that two week session they had where you write a chart every day, and they play it and criticize it for you, but I was still in HS, and I couldn't afford it.
I forgot that it's the time of the year where we're enemies for the next few months. The Eagles blew them out of the water Sunday, and the Giants just squeaked by on a missed FG.
It's gonna be a wild season between our two teams this year. The Cowgirls already lost Dak for a few games. It's just us and the Commanders this year.

Indeed my friend, I almost forgot about that. But au contraire, our Birds were blowing the lowly Lions out but survived a late rally to win by only 3. Gmen's new coach had some cahones to call for 2 on the road w a win over a very good Tennessee squad.
Barkley looks right again but the Eagles AJ Brown is looking like the next T.O..

[jmgalich]

I knew a guy who studied guitar with Perfecto "Perry" Lopez when he taught at a college in New Jersey. He told me that Perry said using open strings (chords or soloing) was incorrect and adamant against using them. I have never heard that before or since. It's rather odd since his one time parter in crime Johnny Smith didn't hesitate to use open strings.

John Galich

[sgcim]

I knew a guy who studied guitar with Perfecto "Perry" Lopez when he taught at a college in New Jersey. He told me that Perry said using open strings (chords or soloing) was incorrect and adamant against using them. I have never heard that before or since. It's rather odd since his one time parter in crime Johnny Smith didn't hesitate to use open strings.

John Galich

Weird! He must have hated Gabor Szabo.

[Boss Man Zwiebelsohn]

Just found this by random — might not be everybody’s cup of tea (I like him more when he’s playing blues), Seems to be his own YT channel.