Topics... pull quotes:
“This is not a jazz guitar album; it’s an outstanding piece of jazz-classical fusion that achieves the elusive goal of offering the best of both worlds. Strongly recommended to all libraries.”
- Rick’s Pick | New Releases for Libraries [scroll down]
“First of all, I have to give guitarist and composer Chris Jentsch some credit for an ingenious album cover design. …and it's deceptive since the music inside is so smart, so unusual and so distinctly American. Everything about this album possesses that same sly humor, that cerebral playfulness where everything is more rewarding when you take a much closer look the second time.”
- TheVinylAnachronist
“Topics in American History is filled with good melodies and excellent musicianship. Every solo stands out as do the arrangements around the melody and the verses. Jentsch Group No Net, the brainchild of Chris Jentsch, tells us stories worth paying attention to. The various voices of the ensemble, the strong rhythm section, and the intelligent arrangements help the listener to understand how the events referred to in the song titles helped to the shape the present day.”
- StepTempest - Richard Kamins (scroll down)
“…a purposeful, deceptively unpredictable interweaving of arrangement and improvisation.”
- Doug Collette | AllAbout Jazz
“…a wonderfully eclectic and rare history lesson of our country through a jazz lens…if you listen long enough to this brilliant Brooklynite, it all starts to make sense.”
- The Aquarian | Rant ’n’ Roll [scroll down]
“Part of a burgeoning but under-publicized coterie of composer/players exploring the promises of orchestral perceptions for limited ensembles, is New York guitarist Chris Jentsch.”
- Ken Waxman | JazzWord
“(Topics… uses) pivotal aspects of the nation's past as springboards for creative, immersive music. Its pieces bear the complexity and patiently unfolding logic of the most expressionistic big band projects, especially in the vein of Maria Schneider's recent compositions. Jentsch continues to build his compositional resume with this excellent hour-long suite of music. It's American music—and music about America—that reveals what is possible with an expertly utilized medium-sized ensemble.”
- Troy Dostert - AllAboutJazz
“This entire project is exploratory and imaginative…sparkling with lush arrangements and dramatic interludes…”
- Dee Dee McNeil |MusicalMemoir’s
