Jason Anick, Jason Yeager: Sanctuary (Sunnyland Records SSC 1738)
The two Jasons, violinist Anick and pianist Yeager have a history going back to their teenage years when they jammed together in and around Boston. They are now both members of the faculty at the Berklee College of Music where all the tracks on this CD were recorded, with the title track being laid down in 2018 – some five years before the rest.
This is their second collaboration on disc and they are joined by Billy Buss on trumpet plus bass and drums, augmented on various tunes by the likes of trumpeter Jason Palmer. If the music carries an air of elegance about it, then it is the guests such as Palmer and tenor saxophonist Edmar Colon who add a touch of fire when needed, the latter being added to Wayne Shorter’s Lost. There is a classical element present in the shape of Raindrop, a take on a Chopin piece and the leader’s duet on Colorado carries all the hallmarks of a performance from a formal recital.
Having referred to the aforementioned elegance, I’d say this is still very much a jazz outing, the ensembles full of interesting harmonies, the solos well rounded, the melodic content an important factor in the group’s presentation.
Misha Tsiganov: Painter Of Dreams (Criss Cross Jazz 1421)
Since its foundation in 1981, the Criss Cross label, based in the Netherlands, has become synonymous with music of the highest order, as well as being an outlet for a whole raft of excellent musicians who may have not had as many recording opportunities elsewhere.
Two artists who have benefited from this European exemplar are pianist Misha Tsiganov and trumpeter Alex Sipiagin, both Russians who moved to the USA in the early 90s, forging considerable reputations in the succeeding years. The former leads on this, his fifth album for the label, whilst the latter adds considerable weight to the eight tracks, consisting of six originals from the pianist, completed by two standards – Long Ago And Far Away and I Loves You Porgy.
Tsiganov drifts between an acoustic piano, the Fender Rhodes and a Minimoog, his work often less than intrusive, with the synthesizer being employed on the deconstruction of Porgy, an interesting take on the Gershwin classic.
There is plenty of variation on offer, the music taking the odd funky turn, taking a lyrical approach the next moment, and frequently going the uncompromising, hard-hitting route. On the first three tracks, Chris Potter is a dominant voice on tenor and soprano, matched on the subsequent tunes by the aforementioned Sipiagin, complemented by the tenor saxophone of Miguel Zenon. The tempos constantly shift throughout, with Johnathan Blake being the man on the drum stool who takes care of the transitions expertly and rarely allows a groove to become tedious.
Misha Tsiganov presents us with another first-rate album combining old and new in a tasty concoction, served up by a top-order roster of participants.
Franco Ambrosetti: Sweet Caress (Enja Records ENJ9852)
This is another collaboration between Franco Ambrosetti and Alan Broadbent, following up the well-received Nora album which similarly had the trumpeter and flugelhorn player performing against a backdrop of strings arranged by the Grammy-winning pianist.
Once again, Ambrosetti has the superior company of John Scofield, Scott Colley and Peter Erskine, with Broadbent on piano, replacing Uri Caine from the previous release. He adds violinist Sara Caswell, whose violin takes over totally on the title track.
Taken as a whole, this is a beautifully crafted set of eight ballads, the leader’s flugelhorn riding high over a luxurious cushion, never over-elaborate but telling despite the simplicity. The Lugano-born horn man, now in his early 80s, clearly accepts that a minimal approach is probably the way ahead.
The titles are well chosen, among them Soul Eyes (Mal Waldron), Portrait Of Jennie and Old Friends, the latter a Broadbent original. Scofield only audibly contributes to the Waldron tune and Habanera, sounding most un-Sco-like on both. But really this is the leader’s album. He mainly plays open but adds a mute for Nightfall, which also has a welcome solo from Colley’s bass, particularly effective against those ever-present strings.
Card-carrying members of the “no strings” society will hate Sweet Caress; others are likely to appreciate it for the quality stamp it carries.
Devin Gray: Melt All The Guns II (Rataplan Records)
Drummer Devin Gray is associated with the free improv end of the music, whether operating in the USA or Berlin, and for the bass-less trio that is Melt All The Guns he has chosen partners well versed in the genre. In Ralph Alessi he has a classically trained trumpeter, strong in technique, who has associations with the ECM label and filling the pianist’s role is Angelica Sanchez, a musician well known in the New York area for some 25 years.
Yes, this is definitely from the sharp end of the music, carrying all the traits associated with this laissez faire area but never reverting to the total heads-down bash which haunts the less articulate forays into such things. The restless atmosphere here has a coherence that becomes immediately apparent.
Alessi is a highly mobile practitioner who brings a front-line authority to the reportedly politically inspired themes, offset against the splashes, runs and reference points supplied by the pianist. The leader is constantly probing, as he uses his kit to flesh out the rhythmic thrust which is invariably supplied by a bass player.
By the time this column is published, Melt All The Guns should have fulfilled a November gig at London’s Vortex club, no doubt attracting an audience looking for a challenging evening.
