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About Roni Ben-Hur's FORTUNA Band Line Up: Ronnie Mathews, Rufus Reid, Lewis Nash and Steve Kroon
Fortuna, is the much-anticipated new recording from guitarist, composer, arranger, educator and author, Roni Ben-Hur. The cd follows up Ben-Hur’s critically-acclaimed recordings, Smile (Motema, 2008), recorded with fellow guitar great Gene Bertoncini, and Keepin’ It Open, his 2007 Motéma debut which greatly expanded Ben-Hur’s presence and acclaim in the international jazz circuit.
“a guitarist with a veiled tone and hornlike attack like vintage Kenny Burrell.”
– Francis Davis, The Village Voice
On Fortuna, Ben-Hur’s seventh recording as a leader, the guitarist once again teams up with three of his four band members from Keepin’ It Open: piano great Ronnie Mathews, the ever-tasteful percussionist Steve Kroon, and the impeccable Lewis Nash on drums. This release also finds Ben-Hur in the esteemed company of the great bassist Rufus Reid, a frequent collaborator, who comments, “It is always a pleasure to make music with Roni Ben-Hur, anytime, anywhere!” The four come together to join Roni in bringing out another fine chapter in his swinging and emotionally gripping book of jazz.
"a guitarist with a low flame burning in every note.” – Gary Giddins, The Village Voice
The chemistry of the group is pure love. “Rufus [Reid] is a close friend, and one who’s been a great, positive force in my life,” says the guitarist. “Lewis Nash and Steve Kroon have been playing together with Ron Carter for many years and they’re each other’s favorite,” says Roni. “So, it was a great gel between the two of them. Both Lewis and Steve have such a special sound and feel, and their imagination and creativity are endless. Every piece gets transformed.” The late Ronnie Mathews, whose long-standing and vital presence on the New York scene earned him an honored role in jazz piano history, also makes a powerful contribution to Fortuna, which sadly wound up being one of his last recordings. “Though he was battling cancer during the date, Ronnie was right on the money,” Ben-Hur marvels. “From the get-go, he got the material and added so much to it. He was very generous, very creative, and great to work with.” Fortuna will remain a poignant and beautiful endnote to Ronnie Mathew’s rich musical legacy, but the loss of a great friend and mentor is the one sad point for Ben-Hur in this otherwise joyous project.
The album opens with the uplifting and romantic title track, “Fortuna.” “The CD is named after the goddess of good fortune, who has a strong resonance with my life and the attitude of my music,” explains Ben-Hur. “Fortuna also happens to be my mother’s name,” he says wistfully. “I was visiting her years ago back in Israel when the tune came to me. It’s a reflection on all of the struggles she and my father went through, and how they always came up on their feet.” Fortuna, along with the ballads heard on the recording, Irving Berlin’s “I Got Lost In His Arms” and Johnny Mandel’s “You Are There,” reflect Ben-Hur’s deep emotionality and natural gift for internalizing the story of a song. His tone and feeling are simply sublime.
“…a deep musician. A storyteller, [Ben-Hur] works with a warm, glowing sound and has an alluring way of combining engaging notes with supple rhythm." – Zan Stewart, the Newark Star Ledger
Fortuna further confirms why Ben-Hur is widely respected by his peers and the press as one of the jazz elite. Guitarist Russell Malone comments: "Everything Roni does is beautiful. He has the magic touch.” Nat Hentoff of The Wall Street Journal praises Ben-Hur & Bertoncini’s 2008 duet release, Smile, as “a lyrically meditative dialogue.” With Fortuna, Ben-Hur expands his meditations from a dialogue to a five-part conversation with finesse, groove and good humor.
His signature sound subtly infuses jazz with melodies and rhythms from romantic cultures. On Fortuna he finesses two lovely songs from Antonio Carlos Jobim, “So Tinha de ser Com Voce” and “Modinha,” both drawn from a Brazilian jazz repertoire that Ben-Hur has explored in depth with his frequent duo partners, bassists Santi Debriano and Nilson Matta. “I read somewhere that Jobim’s dream was to compose like Villa-Lobos,” Roni recalls. “I think for ‘Modinha’ he was thinking not bossa nova, but chamber music. So I took out the beat – there’s no bossa nova feel at all.” It’s also one of the tracks on the disc with no piano. “I wanted the freedom to take it wherever I wanted, and to leave more space so the percussion and bass textures could come out.”
Ben-Hur’s reputation as one of the “keepers of the be-bop flame” stems from his close collaborations with master pianist Barry Harris and shows up on Fortuna in his feisty bebop original, “Guess Who?” Meanwhile, with his arrangements of Billy Strayhorn’s “The Intimacy of The Blues” and Harold Arlen’s classic, “A Sleepin’ Bee,” he leads his ensemble right to the heart of straight ahead jazz, delivering deeply swinging, blues-drenched music with joy and effortless expertise.
ABOUT RONI BEN HUR The youngest of seven siblings and therefore a guitarist who knows how to thrive as a valued member of a group, Ben-Hur was one of the first Israeli jazz musicians to have a significant impact on American jazz. He single-handedly blazed the trail for the current new wave of talented Israelis now making their mark.
Ben-Hur has earned high praise from jazz critics around the world for his previous recordings, Backyard (TCB-1996), Sofia's Butterfly (TCB-1998), Anna's Dance (Reservoir Music- 2001), Signature (Reservoir-2005), Keepin’ It Open (Motema-2007) & Smile (with Gene Bertoncini, Motema-2008). Among his most ardent admirers is award-winning writer Gary Giddins, who selected Ben-Hur's Anna's Dance as "One of the Best Jazz CD’s of 2001" in The Village Voice.
In addition to leading his own bands, Ben-Hur has shared the stage and the studio with the likes of Barry Harris, Ronnie Mathews, Rufus Reid, Chris Anderson, Cecil Payne, Walter Booker, Etta Jones, Marcus Belgrave, Charles McPherson, Leroy Williams, Charles Davis, Rufus Reid, John Hicks, Jimmy Heath, Clark Terry, Slide Hampton, Earl May, Teri Thornton, Lewis Nash, Steve Kroon and Bill Doggett. “Rufus [Reid] is a close friend, and one who’s been a great, positive force in my life,” says the guitarist. Ben-Hur kept drummer Lewis Nash and percussionist Steve Kroon on board from the previous album. “They’ve been playing together with Ron Carter for many years and they’re each other’s favorite,” says Roni. “So, it was a great gel between the two of them. Both Lewis and Steve have such a special sound and feel, and their imagination and creativity are endless. Every piece gets transformed. I love them.”
Along with being a great player, composer and bandleader, Ben-Hur has truly dedicated himself to educating others about the joys and rewards of playing jazz and, in turn, has done as much to generate a new audience, and new players, for this music as anyone else. Since being the jazz program founder/director at The Lucy Moses School (Merkin Concert Hall), Roni has literally taught thousands of people through his jazz ensembles and workshops. He is also responsible, in collaboration with Santi Debriano, for creating a very successful week long jazz camp in the village of Saint Cezaire in Cote d'Azure, France, where adult jazz amateurs get to learn jazz and Latin music, while living and interacting with the community. The week ends with two days of jazz concerts presented by the students and faculty, and has become a major attraction in that region. Roni and Santi are continuing this project annually, and for the first time, duplicating it in El Valle in Panama this coming April, 2010. Ben-Hur has also designed and directed the Jazz and Brazilian Camp in Bar Harbor, Maine, collaborating with Nilson Matta, and is on the faculty of the jazz camps in Stanford, Litchfield and the National Guitar Workshops. His book, Talk Jazz, is much sought after by fellow musicians and students worldwide. Ben-Hur’s upcoming DVD on guitar harmony promises to be one of the most important educational works for aspiring guitarists.
Roni Ben-Hur and his wife, Amy London (Motéma recording artist, jazz vocalist and professor of vocal studies at The New School), and their two daughters reside in the "jazz town" of the tri-state area, Teaneck, New Jersey.
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 | Fortuna
Jazz infused with melodies and rhythms from romantic cultures. |  listen
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Roni's popular Jazz Guitar Instructional book is the only official guitar book featuring the 'Barry Harris Method' - Published by Mel Bay | listen
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