First Principles Chris White and the Cayuga Jazz Ensemble Encountering this album was for me, a bit like discovering a nautilus shell. First contact: I grasp the shell and examine it, turning it over in the light. Initially, it appears to be smooth, with a slight sheen, covered in intricate, decorative designs and patterns. Pleased, I put it on my shelf and get immersed in other things. Later, the shell draws me back. This time, I notice that there are several chambers, spiraling back down inside the shell. They are incredibly beautiful, and each time I examine them, I seem to see more details within each of them; more colors, more textures… The chambers of the nautilus continue round and round, until eventually, in a teeny, tiny, final cavity, the spiral ends. Long before that end is reached, however, a wonderful illusion has been firmly entrenched in mind; which is that the spiral continues on forever… Hearing First Principles for the first time, you will notice that it is at essence, a straight ahead jazz album. The elements are all there: swing rhythms, the soloists trading 4s with the drums, head/solo/head forms, etc etc. It is upon subsequent hearings that the uniqueness – and beauty - of this record begin to shine through. One of the most striking examples of this disc’s tendency to grow on me was the way the first track, Chris White’s Foggy Morning, kept getting stuck in my head. I found myself walking around for a few days going “what is this??,” unable to identify what this tune was that kept haunting me. Then it dawned on me – man, it’s the melody from that jazz album - whoa! There are many “magic moments” on this recording. Some are in solos, others compositional. The “traditional” label has to be torn away some of the time as well, starting with the fact that the bandleader is a cello player, as well as some wonderfully original compositional forays, which I shan’t spoil by trying to categorize or compare. If you like jazz, jazz that dares to be adventurous while still honoring tradition; and, if you like the cello (of COURSE you like the cello!) then First Principles will not disappoint. Time to do some beach combing… - Corbin Keep

I liked this cd because it is pretty enough to sit and listen to. Some jazz is best for background music-you could use this cd for that, but it is melodic enough to be the focus of your entertainment.

Chris White & Cayuga Jazz Ensemble First Principles This is an absolutely wonderful album. If you're in the vicinity of a music store and have some spare simoleons in these recessionary times, I recommend that you buy it. I've been playing it incessantly over the last few days and it makes me feel happier just to be alive. You can't ask more of art than that. The players are all Jazz Saints. Chris White's cello-playing is a hauntingly beautiful undertaking - clear and wild and sweet. Eric Hangen's piano work is like sparkling water flowing down a forest stream. Peter Chwazik's bass is a lover's caress, Tom Killian's drum work a rolling, guiding, gentle rain. Paul Merrill's trumpet and flugelhorn are electrical flashes of bright gold, and Dara Anissi's understated guitar a blue tropical bird taking flight. And the Nobel committee should give Mamadou Diabate the Nobel Prize for Kora. The only odd thing about the album is that it sounds so urban. I feel like I'm on the Harlem River Drive with Grover Washington Jr. in the car, or perhaps at a club down by the Pacific in Santa Monica with Tom Scott and the L.A. Express and a smell of salt spray in the air. In fact, this compact little masterpiece was recorded in the summer of 2002 in Freeville, New York. And you soon start rolling with this Upstate Jazz. In the liner notes, Bert Patterson characterizes the Cayuga Jazz Ensemble's sound as "...impressionistic, fluid, the sound of clear directed action with a touch of the Mediterranean." Which is as good a description as any. Chris White dedicates First Principles to the memory of Susan Shalek White: "...my partner and soulmate...best friend, lover and mother of our three wonderful children... Words fall short, but the music speaks for itself." Indeed. I include that poignant passage because it brings us full circle to the difficulty of describing music in words. This CD sounds like the most wondrous things in life...like love and friendship and good times...transmuted into music. - Warren Greenwood