Reviews
about Ghetto Strings Minneapolis Guitar Quartet Innova Recordings #858
Written as a musical description of cities the composer has lived or known, Daniel Bernard Roumain’s Ghetto Strings is sharp and unsentimental, with groovy jazz/rock accents in the opening Harlem, some gorgeously nuanced quasi-minimalist dreaming in a movement called Motor City, and some hints at folk music in a final movement called Haiti. Programmatic descriptive works are sometimes a little hard to digest, but this is a highly enjoyable masterpiece. — Dominy Clements, MusicWeb International
Daniel Bernard Roumain is a fascinating artist…His family is Haitian, and his music includes Caribbean influences along with classical violin, rock and hip-hop…His performances use extensive improvisation, and I hear a similar approach [in Ghetto Strings]…Each of the four movements of Ghetto Strings recalls a place Roumain has lived — Harlem, Detroit, Liberty City (a section of Miami), and Haiti. Each sounds rather like an improvisation, with lots of ostinatos and repeating passages that gradually develop. The effect is spontaneous but expressive…. — Ken Keaston, American Record Guide