Reviews for Andrew Downing

Believe it or not, silent films were never really silent. In their heyday, they were usually accompanied by musicians who either had a specific score to read from, or as was more often the case, who simply improvised whatever seemed appropriate to the picture.

By his count, Toronto cellist and double bass player Andrew Downing has played on over 200 recordings, working across many genres and scenes. All musicians like to think of themselves as beyond classification, but how many of them can say that on a typical day they might bounce between Turkish music, country and avant-garde jazz?

Toronto-based musician/teacher Andrew Downing has for some time been part of a new wave (no, not that ‘new wave’) of adventurous Canadian composers and instrumentalists moving forward into the 21st Century without ignoring the virtues and lessons of the 20th.

Andrew Downing’s new album Silents is actually two soundtracks he composed for silent films: 1904’s Impossible Voyage and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari from 1920. Jazz, bluegrass, klezmer and Arabic music, Downing has done it all as musician, and it comes together in this album for a riotous trip across the silver screen.

This is music composed by cellist/double bass player Andrew Downing for two silent films, Impossible Voyage and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. For some, silent film scores may only ever be done live, but taking that position may mean missing out on some inventive, narrative chamber ensemble music.

Double bassist Downing gets his cello chops out for this star-studded improvised score accompaniment to the silent-film classics Impossible Voyage and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. For jazz and chamber freaks to indie rock heads with a genuine sense of adventure. B