Search - Dena Derose :: Another World

Dena's World - Come on in!

Sundance30 | Sundance, USA | 06/19/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I entered Dena's World and experienced such joy and emotion and discovered a fine jazz intellect and a deep emotional commitment to her music. Dena favors the great standards, applying her arranging talents, though adventurous, they are never pretentious. Dena is unique in that not only is she a fine jazz pianist, a vocalist par excellence, she arranges and composes, who accompanies herself beautifullly on all her songs, backed by an extraordinary combo of talented musicians. Dena is unique in that she has a clear, pleasant voice. She phrases without sacrificing lyric understanding for either vocal or stylistic manipulation and you feel her emotions.There is no "best" track on this CD. I think all of the 10 songs are just wonderful.My favorites are:A blues drenched YOU DON"T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS finishes with a dramatic a capella crescendo and welcomes you to Dena's world.IN THE WEE SMALL HOURS OF THE MORNING begins with a hush as dena puts her delicate stamp on the melody and the ensamble rises to a strong four-in the-morning discord.A syncopated tom-tom pattern introduces MORE THAN YOU KNOW supporting her cool reading of the melody.HI_FLY and WHISPER NOT are the two non-vocal tracks and Dena shows her style, backed by her combo.YOU"VE CHANGED is just Dena, piano and voice, on which Dena demonstrates her use of the piano as a second voice. Dena is a consummate interpreter, and inhabiter of lyrics.SPRING IS HERE and is Dena Sad? No. In her interpretation she suggests annoyance, rather than sadness, her ability to engage the mind as well as the emotions. Begins with sound effects and a cluster of delicately shaded discords. If Spring did not come in like a lamb, it went out like a lion.Dena's songrwiter talent is revealed on DON"T GO The sense of longing in both music and words that never strays into bathos. ANOTHER WORLD I think is Dena's world. Wait tell you hear it!Dena ends with A BEAUTIFUL FRIENDSHIP confirming that Dena's confidence in her own ability is apparent in the manner in which she shares the spotlight with the artists backing her, content to be a part, albeit, a large one, of the overall group concept. In this song she indicates that confidence by recasting the lyric from the first to the third person.Great is a word that is mistrusted in the understated world of jazz where less is more.Heck I think Dena is Great!I highly recomend this album."

A Second Effort Pays Off

Steve Emerine | Tucson, AZ United States | 02/23/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD is Dena DeRose's second effort for Sharp Nine Records, and it's even better than her debut release. The singer-pianist handles nine tunes (including "You Don't Know What Love Is," "In the Wee Small Hours," "Spring Is Here," "More Than You Know," "Whisper Not" and "Beautiful Friendship") flawlessly, then does a fine job on one of her own, the haunting "Don't Go." Dena DeRose will be one of the top two or three jazz singers of the next few decades. This CD is your chance to get in at the beginning."

NOT Diana Krall imitator

orangutan24 | Jakarta, Indonesia | 06/19/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is not a good marketing , the label obviously want toposition DeRose as Diana Krall look-a-like. But folks, DeRose is agreat pianist/vocalist even if Krall never existed in this universe.Her approach to several classic is just remarkable. My favorite is "In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning". So don't buy it just because you want to hear another Krall, but because the great artistry that DeRose truly shown in this CD."