This, the seventh recording in the Jazz Meets Symphony series, Invocations, features original compositions and arrangements by Lalo Schifrin, who earned his fifth Grammy Award this last Autumn (2010) at the Latin Grammy Awards. Few composers have been able to successfully navigate the diverse worlds of classical music, jazz, and film music. It is Schifrin’s ability to switch musical gears which makes him so unique in the music world. His music is a synthesis of traditional and twentieth-century techniques, and his early love for jazz and rhythm are strong attributes of his style...

The name may not be familiar to the general public, but you can bet that Lalo Schifrin has scored at least a handful of movies that everyone has seen: Mission Impossible, Mannix, Cool Hand Luke, Bullitt, The Cincinnati Kid, Amityville Horror, four of the Dirty Harry films, and more recently Abominable and the Rush Hour trilogy. To me, Schifrin and the late John Barry are cast from the same mould. And while their musical approaches are very different, both of their roots stem from a love and appreciation of jazz.

Schifrin was originally a professional jazz pianist, composer and arranger, who formed his own big concert band back in the '50s. This was where Dizzy Gillespie heard Schifrin play and invited him to become his pianist and arranger. Schifrin has written over 100 film and television scores, but for the Jazz Meets Symphony series he has returned to his roots, and what some would argue he does best.

Jazz Meets the Symphony #7 is a compilation of different works that have been constructed to form a combination of original compositions and some arrangements, which include classics that he originally performed with Dizzy Gillespie.

Fans of jazz, classical music and soundtracks will all find much to champion here. This is a wonderful album with some incredible set pieces. Go on, treat yourself.

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Darren Rea