Dmitry Baevsky is a Russian-born altoist now based in France. His new album was made “with the intention of doing something as spontaneous and light as possible, with the playful spirit of a child. . . There is nothing pretentious about the music on this album, simply four musicians having fun, playing as children would in a playground.”
All but three of the pieces are by him, and all have a light bounce about them is infectious, and as stated, fun. Baevsky’s tone is light and airy, his delivery fluid and confident, notably on the slower numbers. That said, he powers through the upbeat title track and Rollin’ with effortless ease.
Behind him, Clovis Nicolas is a consistently interesting player, notably in his solo on Minor Delay, Jason Brown a powerhouse on drums. Trumpeter and flugelhorn player Stéphane Belmondo plays on only three tracks, his solo on the title track oblique and ingenious, his conclusion to Jimmy Van Heusen’s Deep In A Dream suitably wistful.
All in all, a strong set from a playful group of musicians.
Discography
Mr H; Imintagante; Kid’s Time; Minor Delay; Times Flues; Deep In A Dream; Morningside Waltz; Rollin’; MTA; Soy Califa; The End; Don’t Blame Me (68.26)
Baevsky (as); Clovis Nicolas (b); Jason Brown (d); plus Stéphane Belmondo (t, flh). Malakoff, France, July 2022.
Fresh Sound New Talent FSMT-646
