Catching Up In The New Year (Pt 2)

Composer, arranger, conductor, guitarist, and leader of the Jazz Composers Alliance, Darrell Katz has been living in Boston, MA, since the mid-1970s. He created the JCA in 1985, an organization that commissioned new works from national, international, and local composers, put on concerts, sponsored composition competitions, and supported ensembles.  Since 1992, the JCA has recorded 12 albums for companies such as CADENCE Jazz Records, CIMP, Innova Music, Leo Music, Accurate Records, and the defunct Northeastern and Brownstone labels.  To my ears, Katz has carried on the compositional tradition of Julius Hemphill (1938-1995) in that his music is always a fusion of blues, avant-garde, poetry, improvisation, disparate elements thrown together that reveal their connections after multiple listenings (if ever). The first two JCA recordings featured Hemphill as well as Sam Rivers as guest soloists.


 Album #12, Jailhouse Doc With Holes In her Socks, is the first for the JCA's own label (JCA Recordings) and is dedicated to Paula Tatarunis (1962-2015), Katz's wife, who was a physician (among other jobs, spent 10 years working in a medium security prison) as well as an accomplished and published poet. Six of the 12 tracks feature her poems while one, "Like a Wind", sets the words of Sherwood Anderson to music (the piece has appeared on two previous releases).  10 tracks feature the septet Oddsong. Composed of vocalist Rebecca Shrimpton (her 7th recording with Katz), Helen Sherrah-Davies (violin), Vessela Stoyanova (marimba, vibraphone), and the saxophone quartet of Jim Hobbs (alto), Rick Stone (alto), Phil Scarf (tenor, soprano, and sopranino), and Melanie Howell Brooks (baritone), the ensemble plays a fascinating combination of Katz's pieces as well as one,"LLAP Libertango", which is based on Astor Piazzolla's "Libertango 1974" and arranged by Ms. Sherrah-Davies plus the opening "Prayer", which is a group improvisation.

The title track has is a bluesy, rhythmic, jaunt with the Hemphill signature in the "walking" lines of the baritone but note how the violin and marimba are equal members of the ensemble (check out the interactions of Ms. Stoyanova with Ms. Howell-Brooks).  Hobbs takes a blistering solo followed by a dialogues between Stone and Scarff (tenor). Ms. Shrimpton takes the lead on "Tell Time" sharing the melody with the violins and reeds while the marimba holds the rhythm. The afore-mentioned Piazzolla piece blends a South Indian rhythm with the modern tango the composer created and it's a fascinating mix (and an impressive arrangement). "Gone Now" is a remake of the opening track from the Katz-Tatarunis 2002 "The Death of Simone Weil" and is a wonderful episodic piece that combines elements of blues, tango, and more underpinned by the saxophone quartet. Late in the piece, Hobbs and Howell-Brooks have a short, fun, dialogue before the ensemble returns.  The final track Oddsong appears on is a remake of "Red Blue", Katz's tribute to Julius Hemphill which has been recorded with several different ensemble on previous recordings (and appears again as part of thefts track on this disk). It's a rollicking piece in which each voice is important to the music (all this without a solo).

Accurate Records

The final two tracks, both recorded in concert, feature two different ensembles.  "Ye Watchers And" feature Ms. Shrimpton, Ms. Sherrah-Davies, Ns. Howell-Brooks (bass clarinet), Scarf (sopranino), plus Bill Lowe (tuba), and Hiro Honshuku (flute); the music has a "free" feel as the text conflates Advent/Christmas with a basketball game in a venue with a Jumbotron. The JCA Orchestra shows up 20 strong on the "The Red Blues/Red Blue" which pairs Ms. Tatarunis's poem about Hemphill with Katz's tribute composition. Special guest Oliver Lake creates an alto sax solo that will tear your speakers to shreds.  Later in the piece, he joins the reed section for a quick-building improvisation that leads into Honshuku's EWI (electric wind instrument/controller which makes his flute sound like a synthesizer) solo pushed by the impressive drive of drummer Pablo Bencid.   The entire ensemble returns as Ms. Shrimpton sings the final two verses of the poem.  The richness of her vocal tones matches the timbre of the saxophones adding a rich emotional quality to the words.  Mr. Lake takes a quick coda before the vocalist rides out on the word "blues."

"Jailhouse Doc With Holes In her Socks" is quite a project.  Though it can be viewed as a memorial to Paula Tatarunis, the vitality of her words and how Darrell Katz frames them, creates melodies out of them, uses the voices of Rebecca Shrimpton and the musicians to enhance the poetry. The poet lives in her words while the composer gives the listener a gift of her "presence" and the ensembles makes us hear with fresh ears.  Don't search for style (is it jazz or classical?), just listen and soak in the sounds.

For more information, go to www.darrellkatz.com.  The composer and loving husband has also kept Ms. Tatarunis's blog alive.  Go to paulashouseoftoast.blogspot.com and look at her images of nature (that's her images on the album jacket), read her words, get a feeling for her passions.

Here's the title track:

Mark Dresser Seven - Sedimental You (Clean Feed Records) - Bassist, composer, and conceptualist Dresser first came to critical notice in the 1970s while playing on the West Coast in both free jazz and symphonic ensembles.  He moved to the East Coast in the mid-1980s to play with Anthony Braxton and has since worked as an educator, bandleader, and sideman in numerous institutions and groups.  Recently, he has been part of Trio M (with Myra Melford and Matt Wilson) as well as the trio known as Jones Jones (with  saxophonist Larry Ochs and percussionist Vladimir Tarasov) while teaching at his alma mater, the University of California/San Diego.  Plus, he is a pioneer in "telematics", described as  the interface of computers, communication, and performance" - he has worked, performed,and recorded   with musicians around the world in "real time." Dresser is a most expressive bassist with a rich tone, splendid technique, and an ear for melody and counterpoint that stands out among his contemporaries (on any instrument.

"Sedimental You" is a collection of seven compositions for seven musicians, an impressive ensemble that includes Nicole Mitchell (flutes), Marty Ehrlich (clarinets), David Morales Boroff (violin), Michael Dessen (trombone), Joshua White (piano), and Jim Black (drums, percussion).  The album, issued in the fall of 2016, includes several pointedly "political" musical screes including the opening "Hobby Lobby Horse" and "TrumpinPutinStoopin"; the former is a rambling, loose-limbed, romp with impressive solos all around while the latter may remind some of the musical commentary Charles Mingus created in the 1950s and 60s, the instrumental voices - in this instance, the trombone - making the ridiculous sounds like the people in the song's title.

San Diego Reader

Even when the music is not overtly political, Dresser and company have a lot to say.  The title track is a deconstruction of the standard "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" (music composed, fittingly, by George Bassman) which, over the course of 12:44, runs the gamut from cocktail lounge music to disheveled blues (Dessen's expressive trombone solo) to noisy interactions (Black's solo over an extended reading of the theme). Three tracks are dedications to colleagues of the bassist. "Will Well" is for trombonist Roswell Rudd and is a lovely ballad with fine playing all around (the interweaved solos of Ms. Mitchell and Ehrlich is particularly striking).  "I Can Smell You Listening" was composed in memory of vocalist Alexandra Montano (1961-2007) - she, Dresser, and vibraphonist Matt Moran had played a gig on the West Coast the day after 9/11/01. This song moves from quiet contemplation to fiery solos by Ehrlich and White to a lovely impressionistic melody for flute, violin, and trombone that culminates in a striking bass solo.  The final track on the album, "Two Handfuls of Peace", was composed for Dresser's friend and mentor Daniel Jackson (1937-2014) and is a short, through-composed ballad that is lovely without being treacly.

The longest track on the disk (14:15) is "Newtown Char", a musical response to the mass shootings in Newtown CT and Charleston, SC. Opening with a powerful bass clarinet solo, the piece moves into a jumpy rhythmic feel (Black sets quite a pace) over which each member of the ensemble solos (save for Dresser, who is unaccompanied).  There is great power in the angry reactions and equally frustrating resignation in this music but also a commitment to continue to fight for justice and equality.  Yes, I am projecting my own feelings into this music but there is plenty of room for interpretation. Music can uplift as well as educate even as it entertains.  "Sedimental You" does all that and more.

For more information, go to www.mark-dresser.com.

Here's the opening track:

Masters at Play

Trumpeter and composer Wadada Leo Smith and pianist Vijay Iyer have worked together in the past with Iyer a member of Smith's Golden Quartet and Quintet. The duo's new ECM release, "a cosmic rhythm with each stroke", is a powerful work with the focus in the 7-part, 52-minute, title track. Co-composed by the duo, the strikingly handsome piece is inspired by and dedicated to the visual artist Nasreen Mohamedi (1937-1990). Currently, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City is celebrating her life and work (check it out here) and Mr. Iyer is currently Artist-In-Residence in the new Met Breuer (as I write this, the Gallery is in the midst of the third week of the performance series curated by the pianist.  The Iyer-Smith Duo is scheduled for 3/30-31 and it's already sold out).

As for the recording, the music is emotionally rich, at times incredibly quiet with faint low rumblings from Fender Rhodes and other electronics (all played by Iyer) yet there is the clarion call of Smith's trumpet rising up an around the crystal-clear piano lines. There are so many mood shifts in the suite yet none of the music is rushed. Free-wheeling clusters of piano notes jostle with rapid-fire jabs at piano and, in the final section (subtitled "Notes on Water"), the different timbres of the Fender Rhodes help the suite float to a close.

Nasreen Mohamedi

The program opens with the pianist's "Passage", a perfect lead-in to the suite in that this music sets the tone. The music moves forward on the powerful chordal melody and the trumpet's long tones.  The final track, "Marian Anderson", is Mr. Smith's tribute to the great singer and human rights activist. The music does not attempt to imitate the great sounds of Ms. Anderson but creates an abstract portrait of melody lines that rise and fall like breathing, the solid, somber, piano chords giving the trumpet freedom of movement.

Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith, in creating "a cosmic rhythm with each stroke", not only celebrate the life and work of very impressive many of us have not heard of before but also have produced music that allows the listener to get lost in the sounds and the silences, the quiet volume and harder attack. This is timeless music that works its way into your heart and mind, bringing a sense of wholeness and peace.

For more information, go to www.ecmrecords.com/catalogue/1455090156.

On the heels of 2015's "In for a Penny, In for a Pound", arguably one of the year's 3 best recordings, Henry Threadgill puts down his instrument but not his pen and creates "Old Locks and Irregular Verbs" (Pi Recordings).  The 4-part, 47-minute, multi-sectioned composition is his tribute to his dear friend Lawrence "Butch" Morris (1947-2013) played by an septet known as Henry Threadgill Ensemble Double Up including Zooid regulars Jose Davila (tuba) and Christopher Hoffman (cello) plus drummer Craig Weinrib, alto saxophonists Roman Filiu and Curtis MacDonald (also the composer's copyist) and - surprisingly, for a group led by Threadgill - pianists Jason Moran and David Virelles.

Dragan Trasic

What's not surprising about this music is the importance of the rhythm section. , ,Hoffman, Davila, and Weinrib really drive the 19+ minute "Part One", giving the music depth and a sense of forward propulsion.  The tuba often pairs with the pianists to hold down the bottom.  Due to the compositional style of the leader, both alto saxophonists sound like Threadgill which, at times, is off-putting. But the power of the music, the swirl of saxophones, pianos, and the cello as the opening section slows down, the deep lines from the tuba, draws one in.  "Part Two" starts with just cello and tuba in an off-kilter call-and-response that soon stops.

There is a short full band section then Weinrib plays a melodic then forceful solo that leads directly into "Part Three."  Hoffman's powerful bowed solo over the active rhythms of the drums and piano has an intense feel but, when MacDonald enters for his solo, the bottom shifts a bit, both pianists "stroll" through the background while Davila and Hoffman (now pizzicato) parry-and-joust from down below. Virelles plays a long, exciting solo (with Moran commenting now and then) before Filiu takes off on a powerful flight. About 12:30 into the 16:39 section, the band stops altogether, there's a moment of silence, then there's a series of short duets and solos which soon opens to a more rhythmical give-and-take leading into "Part Four."  There's a magnificent 2 piano conversation that begins quite melodically before building in intensity.  When the rest of the group enters, they play the elegiac melody from a few minutes before.  Slowly, the sound surges, builds up again, higher and higher pushing upward then long tines from the saxophones followed by the tuba, fade out to....silence.

ascap.com

Henry Threadgill has been a vital member of the contemporary music scene for over 5 decades. On occasion, his music disappeared under the onslaught of "smooth jazz" or the Young Lions embrace of hard bop but the composer persevered.  Since the beginning of the 21st Century, he's been releasing impressive albums and working with the likes of Wadada Leo Smith and Jack DeJohnette.  His 7 albums with Pi Recordings, 5 with Zooid, show his vitality and willingness to continue to grow and explore.
"Old Locks and Irregular Verbs" is challenging, satisfying, and original music - we live in such strange times yet recordings such as this gives one hope and joy.

For more information, go to pirecordings.com/album/pi64.