A Sinister Endeavor
The Gay Pearson Quintet
Gay Pearson composer, piano
Lea Pearson flute & vocals
Shannon Allen cello
Jim Lyden bass
Phil McGowan drums
Ray Wilson narrator
On her debut Big Round Records release, A SINISTER ENDEAVOR, composer and pianist Gay Pearson presents a collection of works that highlight her eclectic quintet - consisting of piano, bass, drums, flute, and cello - and their colorful, introspective, and energetic performances. Recorded live in Newburyport MA, this album presents original works by Pearson, including Zonal and Meridional Flow, with its classical counterpoint and 4-part polyphony; the energetic solo piano piece Cirrus High; and An Ionian Emitter, which uses complex rhythms and syncopation.
Pearson and her quintet display their melancholy and poignant side with ballads such as Joseph's Kosma's Autumn Leaves, Blue Moment, and Barry Manilow's When October Goes. Sally Lutyens' Evening Song is a mysterious and romantic promenade-like piece that is given an emotive and yearning interpretation by Pearson, flutist Lea Pearson, and cellist Shannon Allen. These live performances capture the technical and passionate presence of Pearson and her quintet, showing their abilities in settings of improvisation, classical structures, and jazz gestures.
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Artist Information
Gay Pearson
Gay Pearson received a B.M. in applied piano from Lawrence University in '65 and a B.S. in Meteorology from Purdue University in '83. During her twelve years of employment in air quality evaluation with New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection in Trenton, she also studied jazz harmony, theory and improvisation. Since relocating to Maine, she is finishing her eighth year of studying advanced improvisation and composition with Vardan Ovsepian, first in her home town of Newburyport MA, then via skype.