Mario Pavone "Legacy Stories"

Photo: Steve Sussman

As these words appear on the page, it's five weeks since Mario Pavone passed (May 15, 2021) after a multi-year, multi-episode, fight with cancer.  Bassist, composer, and educator (he was closely involved with the Litchfield Jazz Camp), he had a long career working alongside creative artists, most notably Bill Dixon, Anthony Braxton, Paul Bley, and Thomas Chapin. After Chapin's death in 1998, Mr. Pavone became a leader – he had already begun recording his own music back in 1979 on labels such as Alacra, New World/Crosscurrents, and Knitting Factory. From 2002-2017, the bassist recorded 13 albums (as a leader or co-leader for his good friend Michael Musillami's Playscape Recordings; he also did the artwork for many of the label's releases. When queried about his writing, he told me his pieces were "composed from the bass upwards" and, when you listen closely, you hear how the rhythm section always participates in the melody.  His music is propulsive, even fierce at times but always with a melodic center.

Last time we spoke in person (three years ago at Firehouse 12 in New Haven, CT –– he was a concert attendee not a player), he was thrilled about his latest Trio.  He loved writing for and playing alongside pianist Matt Mitchell and drummer Tyshawn Sorey.  He felt that they brought the ferocity and emotional balance that his new compositions called for.  They first recorded as a unit on 2015's "Blue Dialect" (Clean Feed Records) and followed that with 2019's "Philosophy" (Clean Feed).

2020 was a very tough year for the bassist. His cancer had returned plus his 23-year old granddaughter Isabella died. Mr. Pavone poured himself into his music writing enough material for two albums, two groups.  In late February, he went into the studio with his son Michael (guitar), Mike DiRubbo (alto saxophone), and Michael Sarin (drummer who was the third member of the Thomas Chapin Trio) and recorded an album for Clean Feed ("Isabella", to be released later this month). Four weeks after that session (3/25-26/21), he went into the studio with Mitchell, Sorey, and trumpeter/ arranger Dave Ballou (who served as arranger for "Isabella" as well) and recorded "Blue Vertical" (Out of Your Heads Records).  Credited to the Dialect Trio + 1, the nine-song program sounds full of life, jammed with melodies, rhythmic twists-and-turns, powerful solos, and Mr. Pavone's trademark propulsive. forward motion. He never looked back, making the music for the time and the future.

Photo: Maurice D. Robertson

The addition of Ballou's excellent trumpet work to the Trio fired the composer's imagination. Pieces such as the opener "Twardzik" and "Good Treble" show his versatility and wit; the former features a delightful solo, with notes tumbling out of the horn and onto the rumbling rhythm section while the latter dances ahead on a Latin-tinged rhythm, the muted trumpet locking in with the piano for the melody. Ballou's solo over the jagged rhythm exudes swagger and a New Orleans-like frisson opening the door for Mitchell's rippling lines over Sorey's mighty drums.  "Isabella" shows the bassist at his best, his counterpoint to the melody setting the tenor for the solos.  The pianist's impressionistic lines connect with the bass lines, creating a duet that is ethereal.  Ballou's muted trumpet joins that conversation, his long tones supported by the whispering cymbals. Sorey's whip-snapping drums at the onset of "Legacy Stories" set the pace for an exciting performance (note how the bass and drums fall into a "swing" rhythm right before the piano solo).

Photo: Victoria Lindsey

The album closes with "Face Music", the composer's percussive plucked notes and the tolling piano chords wrapping around the somber trumpet melody.  The music moves slowly, tentatively but with purpose until Sorey's rapid-fire high-hat dance pushes the trumpet solo higher and, eventually, the piano and bass join the mix.  The piece closes on Mitchell's abrupt note with the expectation that there was more to be said.  

Mario Pavone lives on in his music and the fact that people will continue to explore his oeuvre, perhaps even recording pieces from his repertoire, gives this writer great hope.  If you are not familiar with his music, know that from his earliest recordings as a leader to "Blue Vertical", Mario Pavone led from the heart.  

For more information, go to www.mariopavone.com.  To hear more and purchase the new album, go to https://outofyourheadrecords.bandcamp.com/album/blue-vertical. 

Hear "Philosophy Series":

Summertime Hues (Part 1)

Life has been busy around this reviewer's household and different communities but that does not stop (thankfully) the new releases coming through the mail or the ether.  This column starts a series of shorter reviews of recordings that arrived over the past few months.

Saxophonist, composer, and arranger Quinsin Nachoff is no stranger to utilizing strings in his compositions and performances––in fact, his 2006 debut "Magic Numbers" (Songlines) featured his quartet paired with a string quartet. Violinist Nathalie Bonin played on that project as well as on 2008's "Horizons Ensemble" so she asked her fellow Canadian (she's from Montreal while Nachoff is from Toronto) to write her a concerto.  It took the composer a number of years but the piece was first workshopped in 2014 and then recorded in 2018.  Nachoff decided to collect his classical or classically-inspired works on one album. The results, three different pieces, can be heard on "Pivotal Arc", released this month (August 2020) on Whirlwind Recordings.

The "Violin Concerto" is in three parts, nearly 46 minutes long and features all the musicians listed below save for the composer. Very much in the traditional form but quite non-traditional orchestration, the music features Ms. Bonin's striking and powerful playing throughout but one cannot ignore the work of the Molinari String Quartet as well as the rhythm section of Michael Davidson (vibraphone), Mark Helias (bass), and Satoshi Takeishi (drums, percussion) plus the colorful reeds and brass (kudos to bass trombonist Bob Ellis for his strong low tones).  In his research, the composer paid close attention to a number of 20th Century composers, among them Alban Berg, Igor Stravinsky, Kurt Weill, and others but one also hears folk, jazz, and African elements in the rhythms.

Photo: Evan Shay

The 16+ minute "String Quartet" was commissioned by and is performed by the Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based Molinari Quartet. This music is brash like the Concerto but with even more allusions to the experimentation of 20th Century classical composers.  Through-composed, there are moments in each of the movements that feel "free', as if the musicians were "cueing" each other to make quick shifts in intensity.

The 15-minute title track closes the album opening with a powerful bowed bass solo from Helias.  Ms. Bonin plays the first theme, joined first by the string and then the composer on tenor saxophone.  Various voices move in and out but pay close attention to impressive and, at times, playful percussion of Takeishi.  The brashness of the earlier pieces is replaced by an airiness, a sense of swing instead of flow: listen to the sections float around above the tenor solo and how, as the intensity picks up, for just an instance, so does the tempo.  Ms. Bonin returns closer to the end, the storminess of the middle section is not replaced by a lengthy melody shared by several instruments until the bowed bass returns to take the piece to its gentle conclusion.

As an album, "Pivotal Arc" serves to show the world the versatility and maturity of the composer Quinsin Nachoff.  Listeners might prefer to listen to the "Violin Concerto" in its entirety then come back at a later time to listen to the "String Quartet" and the title track.  There's a lot happening in this music and you really want to pay close attention to hear the richness of the melodies, the excellent musicianship, and the powerful work of violinist Nathalie Bonin. One of this year's more fascinating releases, "Pivotal Arc" is worth your time.

For more information, go to www.quinsin.com.  To hear more and to purchase the album, go to https://quinsinnachoff.bandcamp.com.

Here's the "Second Movement" of composer Nachoff's "Violin Concerto", Natalie Bonin, violin soloist:



Personnel:

Nathalie Bonin - violin soloist 

Molinari String Quartet: 
Olga Ranzenhofer - violin I 
Antoine Bareil - violin II 
Frédéric Lambert - viola 
Pierre - Alain Bouvrette - cello 

Quinsin Nachoff - tenor saxophone, composer 

JC Sanford - conductor  
Michael Davidson - vibraphone 
Mark Helias - bass 
Satoshi Takeishi - drums, percussion 
Jean-Pierre Zanella - piccolo, flute, clarinet, soprano sax 
Yvan Belleau - clarinet, tenor saxophone 
Brent Besner - bass clarinet 
Jocelyn Couture - trumpet I 
Bill Mahar - trumpet II 
David Grott - trombone 
Bob Ellis - bass trombone 

Photo: Brian Cohen

Bassist and composer Michael Formanek has been in ears of creative music listeners for nearly five decades. He first came to critical attention when he joined drummer Tony Williams's ensemble and has gone on to play with Freddie Hubbard, Stan Getz, Gerry Mulligan, Fred Hersch, Jane Ira Bloom, Marty Ehrlich, Harold Danko, Tim Berne, and a host of others. Currently, he is one/third of the cooperative trio Thumbscrew with guitarist Mary Halvorson and drummer Tomas Fujiwara. He's recorded for ENJA Records, Screwgun, Intakt Records, and ECM, the label that issued "The Distance" by his amazing Ensemble Kolossus. His latest release is the third in a trio of albums that bassist Adam Hopkins issued in July and August of this year on his Out of Your Head Records label. All of the albums (the others include bassist Nick Dunston in a quintet setting and saxophonist Anna Webber's Quartet) were recorded live under less-than-ideal conditions or "Untamed" as the label has written on each release).

Formanek's contribution is "Pre-Apocalyptic": recorded in 2014 (but the artist is not sure where), the music, all tracks composed by the bassist, features Tim Berne (alto saxophone), Craig Taborn (piano), and Gerald Cleaver (drums), the same group that recorded his first two albums for ECM in 2010 and 2012––in fact, five of the seven songs come those albums, one from Ensemble Kolossus, and one newer work.  This quartet lives and breathes the music with the ability to stop and start without a dropped note, play complicated melody lines, and all solo with creativity.  Because the four musicians had worked together so often by the time of this gig, their familiarity with the music gives them license to push it forward.  And they do!

The album opens with "Pong", a melody built of repeated three-note phrases which shift in to a circular five-note phrase.  Then Berne and Taborn take off soloing in and around each other, both building off the intensity of Formanek and Cleaver. The bassist leads off the expansive (14:07) "Rising Tensions and Awesome Lights" with a long solo, melodic and percussive, before dropping into a walking bass line while the saxophone and piano work through the melody.  Taborn's wide-ranging powerful, and exciting solo leads into Berne's exploratory jaunt supported by throbbing bass hand-held percussion.  The other 14-minute track, "Intro and Real Action", starts quietly before Cleaver takes over for a lengthy solo that builds in intensity but drops back into a quiet mode for Berne to begin his statement.  There's a bluesy feel in many of his short phrases but he soon begins to interact with the other musicians, making the music louder. Yet, the music never boils over.  This Quartet may have been the first of Formanek's groups to perform "The Distance"––it's such a lovely ballad with an excellent solo from Berne, strong counterpoint from the composer, and excellent colors created by the pianist and drummer.

"Pre-Apocalyptic" overcomes its supposed "lo-fi" beginnings, hence a tip of the hat to mixing and mastering engineer Nathaniel Morgan for making this music sound so alive.  Michael Formanek has always been an impressive musician plus he is also one of the better composers in Creative American Music.  At times noisy, at others subtle, this album documents a quartet at the height of its power. Let these sounds move you!

For more information about the bassist, go to www.amibotheringyou.com. To listen to more songs and purchase the recording ($1.00 of every sale goes to Black Lives Matter), go to https://outofyourheadrecords.bandcamp.com/album/pre-apocalyptic.

Here's a lengthy piece from the album:

Two by Fours (January '20)

Toronto, Canada-based guitarist Ted Quinlan has had a successful and busy career spanning almost four decades.  A graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, the guitarist, composer, and educator has played with Chet Baker, Freddie Hubbard. organist Jimmy Smith, Dave Holland, and a slew of Canadian musicians. He's the longtime head of the Guitar Department at Humber College in Toronto.  His debut album was issued in 1998 and followed that 11 years later with a trio recording.  In 2010, he co-led a recording date with pianist Brian Dickinson; for the most part, Quinlan takes his time to plan his recordings.  His discography shows a baker's dozen or more sideman dates over the past 20 years.

Late in Fall 2019, ADDO Records issued "Absolutely Dreaming", a nine-song program that features Quinlan's longtime friends and associates Kieran Overs (bass), Ted Warren (drums), and pianist Dickinson. On initial listen, it may remind some of the music John Abercrombie made on ECM with his quartets featuring pianists Richie Bierach and Marc Copland. Quinlan, like Abercrombie, has a warm electric sound and is very melodic.  But, listen harder. Listen to how the other musicians support and move the music forward, how they engage in conversation with the leader and each other.  Pieces like the opening "Cheticamp" (named for a town on Cape Breton) and the title track pull the listener along. This music is a soundtrack for colorful dreams, for long walks into the woods and back again, along the banks of rivers and lakes. It's far from soporific. Listen to the harder beat and thicker guitar tones of "X Marks The Spot", goosed higher by the raucous drumming.  Dig the bluesy feel of "Twilight Sky" – the opening guitar tones bring Larry Carlton's sound to mind plus do not ignore the fine bass work, the splendid cymbal work, and Dickinson's rippling piano phrases. Even on the handsome ballad "Babylon" (named for the town on Long Island), the musicianship keeps one alert throughout,

Photo: Bill Beard

Quinlan strums an acoustic guitar to lead in the final track "La Bionda", a really lovely way to close an excellent program. "Absolutely Dreaming" is 62 minutes+ of music that will excite you, calm you, warm you, and make your day better. Intelligent, charming, and very musical, the album shows Ted Quinlan not only to be a fine guitarist but also an excellent composer and bandleader.

For more information, go to tedquinlan.com.

Here's the title track:

Bassist and composer Massimo Biolcati may be best known for his work with guitarist Lionel Loueke and drummer Ferenc Nemeth in the trio Gilfema (which morphed into the Lionel Loueke Trio when the guitarist signed with Blue Note Records).  Biolcati met the other two musicians when all were in attendance at The Berklee College of Music; all three went to the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz in Los Angeles. By then, they are a working trio landing a contract in 2004 with ObliqSound Records where they recorded two albums (and Loueke issued his first solo album on which the other two appeared). Gilfema will issue a new album later this year. In the meantime, Biolcati has been busy as a sideman and producer.  He's worked with the Hornē Electric Band, drummer Matt Slocum, and Luciana Souza (among others).  

"Incontre" (Sounderscore) is Biolcati's first album as a leader since 2008's "Persona" (ObliqSound) and features Dayna Stephens (tenor and soprano saxophones), Sam Yahel (piano, organ), and Jongkuk Kim (drums).  The nine-song program features four originals by the leader, four standards, and Dave Holland's "How's Never" (which the composer first recorded in 1995 with the Gateway trio). The album opens with Biolcati's "Hello, I Lied" which the composer with a circular bass line – the snap of Kim's drums, the melody "sung" by the tenor sax, and the sharp funk of Yahel's piano solo moves forward with delight.  Stephens steps out into his solo with the bassist egging him on before the piano and drums kick back in.  The saxophonist breaks down the melody into short, rhythmical, phrases before heading back to the main melody. The bassist takes the song out the way it began.

The next four tracks are the "standards."  First up is Thelonious Monk's "Boo Boo's Birthday" which dances along on the bassist's active "walking" lines and Kim's delightful dancing snare drum.  Charlie Chaplin's oft-recorded "Smile" finds Stephens on soprano sax and Yahel on organ.  The piece has a funky feel with interactions between the front line and the rhythm section that keeps one alert.  The quartet then moves into "Everybody Wants to Rule The World" (from Tears For Fears) and really have a great time playing around with the changing tempos. Listen to the dancing drums and bass beneath Yahel's piano solo; Kim then engages in a dialogues with Stephens during the sax solo while the pianist and bassist keep the song moving. Yahel goes back to organ for Charles Mingus's "Duke Ellington's Sound of Love" – the inherent blueness of the piece shines right through the slow shuffle beat while the organist moves through the melody.  Stephens's muscular tenor solo brings Coleman Hawkins to mind.

Photo: Esther Cidoncha

The balance of the recording has three tunes from the bassist and the Holland piece.  The title song is  a handsome ballad with an emotionally rich melody and excellent solos from Stephens, Yahel, and Biolcati.  "How's Never" rides forward on the snappy drums and bass with Yahel's organ sounds meshing nicely with Stephens's singing soprano sax.  "Fellini" is another fine ballad piece with a nicely-sculpted melody line (first played by the tenor saxophonist).  Yahel's acoustic piano solo creates a short yet finely painted portrait before Stephens takes over and creates his own strong audio painting.  The album closes with "Birthday Song, Almost" – this melody is also well-formed, allowing the soloists to build intelligent solos and the rhythm section to take chances with the tempo, the accents, and the intensity.  After Stephens's fine tenor solo, Kim takes over for a solo that raises the heat without over-baking the song. In fact, the tune and the album end on a high note.

"Incontre" is a delight from start to finish. All the musicians ask is that you listen with open ears and open minds. The material Massimo Biolcati chose for this session covers a lot of territory without getting mired in one genre.  The intelligent musicianship and the bright sound quality both serve to remind the listener that creative music can be fun, exciting, contemplative, and rewarding for all involved.

For more information, go to www.massimobiolcati.com.

Here's the Charlie Chaplin classic: