Lynne Arriale’s ‘Being Human’ is personal!
By CP Christopher Peppas
Milwaukee native and jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and educator extraordinaire, Lynne Arriale, has delivered to her legion of fans around the world an opus of complete and total introspection.
Being Human is the seventeenth missive in her long and storied career and it is far and away her most personal. The gist of the ten songs in this effort is a blueprint and peers into the various and sundry characteristics that make us, well, human.
“I wrote this suite in response to the division and turmoil in our world,” Arriale said. “The music focuses on qualities we all share, that define our humanity.”
With the attention to detail of the most skilled architect, Lynne uses every note and every chord progression to tell a story.
They describe the traits that dwell inside these containers of flesh and bone that trod the earth is search of a truth and an answer to why we are here, what separates us from other creatures and simply what makes us tick.
Each song is a primer of the trait’s namesake and is given a specific dedication to people who have moved the needle in terms of making a difference.
For example Passion give its nod to Greta Thunberg who spoke truth to power at the ripe old age of fifteen.
Courage is up next and there can be no better example of courage in our everyday lives than what resides inside the hearts of the Ukrainian people.
Lynne casts the widest net when she dedicates Love to humankind, that’s all of us, and Faith goes out to those people who really and truly live lives of faith. “The dedications reflect my admiration for those who I feel personify the traits that inspired the music,” Lynne said.
“I hope this album will be uplifting and convey a sense of unity and optimism.”
This old school jazz album, executed by a simple trio, has a global feel and with good reason. All songs were composed by American Arriale who plays piano and, on a couple of the tracks, the clavinova.
The bass and acoustic are handled so very deftly by Israel’s Alon Near and drummer, Lukasz Zyta, fits comfortably in the pocket and is from Poland.
Oh, and the album was recorded in Austria. It’s Lynne’s fourth album for Challenge Records International.
It should come as no surprise that the song Love appears twice. Once in the very heart of the effort, natch, and then again as the reprise of all reprises. It’s the same song yet they are so vastly different in texture and feel.
So, in order, Lynne gives the specs on Passion, Courage, Love, Faith, Curiosity, Soul, Persistence, Heart, Gratitude, Joy and then Love again.
The cascading rhythm of Curiosity, for example, is as upbeat as it is bouncy. Soul, as one might expect, has a more bluesy feel to it and a driving beat embodies the cut dubbed Persistence.
Joy will make you feel, um, joyous with its tempo and Gratitude is contemplative in nature and makes you think of things you are wildly happy that came into your life.
Being Human, as stated, is personal for Lynne. But give it a listen and you will glean some things that are personal for you as well.
Because you are you
, you will see (or more to the point) hear about yourself and feel like you’re a part of it all. You are a human being, after all.
The nature of Lynne’s journey is truly one of a kind and speaks to all languages and cultures equally.
Now, if we could only master that inside the eight billion of us walking around in search of…
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
CP Christopher Peppas is a Journalist, Jazz Vocalist and Conga Player in the Greater Milwaukee Area and Correspondent at Large for the Jazz Unlimited Newsletter and Content Manager/Chief Contributor to CreativProse, Ltd. (sic), Social Media, Brand Management.
