Mosaic

 

Mosaic is my latest album. This album is about creating a mosaic out of life’s ups and downs. Recorded on March 12, 2025 at Blue House Productions, the album features Imani-Grace Cooper (voice), Brian Settles (tenor saxophone), Allyn Johnson (piano), Herman Burney (bass), Lenny Robinson (drums), and Reginald Cyntje (trombone, compositions).
 

Artist notes…
Mosaic is based on the broken glass concept (spiritual, emotional, and political). The meaning behind each song is best captured in the lyrics/poem below.

Broken hearts and dreams

shattered hopes unseen

The quest for peace is like a mystery

Life‘s ups and downs

tapestry unwound

Fragile fractured feelings worn to the ground

Take my hand

Let’s walk this path

Mending souls at night

Leading to growth in sunlight

And now

A chance to craft

A work of art

The renewal of love blossoms in our hearts

I hope the music energizes and inspires you while you listen to this album.


Reginald Cyntje
March 2025

 

“I love the new album bredren!  I hear enlightenment, evolution, continuity, and earnestness.  Great writing and execution, sounds, timbres, and ensemble playing. Congratulations!!!!” - Victor Provost, musician

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“What a lovely assembly of artists. Mosaic of Life and Renewal of Love are standouts. The piano with Imani’s voice on Renewal of Love is gorgeous. (Allyn!) Shattered Structures, so good too. Perfect backdrop while burning the midnight oil. Enjoying the nuances and the groove. Jeff gets a mention for good engineering. Will keep Mosaic on my spring playlist. Congratulations Reginald!!” - Sunny Sumter, CEO DC Jazz Festival

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“This new album -- MOSAIC -- from Reginald Cyntje just keeps vibrating in my consciousness.  It's one of those albums where everyone will have a different favorite song.” - Craig Hall, WPFW

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“Finally sitting down and focusing as I listen. The band is really cohesive. Not that this isn’t something I was expecting. But this should be noted (and celebrated). It feels familiar too. The familiarity you have with each other makes it feel like something I have experienced before. 

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On the music I think this represents a lot of continuity with Gentle Touch and Mirror Soul. They are different projects but I think you’ve captured a compositional ethos that shines through in these projects. It’s a thorough line of soulful groove that you know when you hear it. Dare I say a signature sound?

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Imani-Grace’s addition though is really powerful. It never felt ornamental. Which is how vocalist contributions can sometimes feel. 

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Thanks for inviting me to listen and offer thoughts. After several more listens I know there are probably many other things I’ll notice. 

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Dope project!” - Josh Myers, Author

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“As usual, adroit musicianship. The compositions sit within your grand body of work as improvisations and interpretations of ideas that subliminally recreate the map of human emotions. That is good stuff.

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The title reminded me of the title of St Lucian Derek Walcott's Nobel Prize speech from 1992, "The Antilles: Fragments of Epic Memory". He writes a sentence, "Break a vase, and the love that reassembles the fragments is stronger than that love which took its symmetry for granted when it was whole." This is the thesis that guides this new work.

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Mosaics are built from fragments, purposely re-used fragments of a whole. Life's imperfections are real; pieces are worn out, lost, and broken beyond reuse. Your ability to remake "whole" and solid from the intangible pieces of human emotion is noteworthy.” - Nigel A. Campbell, founder IRadio.tt, podcaster, publisher

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“Congratulations to home slice trombonist Reginald Cyntje for his latest, “Mosaic,” a joyous, jamming, intriguing album, with Imani-Grace Cooper, vocals, Brian Settles tenor sax, Allyn Johnson, piano, Herman Burney, bass and Lenny Robinson, drums.

Flowered by the gracious, always serenely melodious vocals of Cooper, Cyntje’s soaring, searing and bluesy trombone riffs are also complemented expertly by Brian Settles’ always edgy tenor sax riffs, Johnson’s ever rippling piano runs, Burney’s down-home, melody-making, bluesy bass and Robinson’s crispy, crackling empathetic drums.

Highlights include “Broken Glass,” “Renewal of Love,” Mosaic of Life” … - Steve Monroe, Writer steve@jazzavenues.com.