Rainer Brüninghaus: Freigeweht (ECM 589 2370)
Reissued in ECM’s audiophile Luminessence series of high-quality vinyl, this superbly recorded music from 1980, all from the German pianist, keyboards and synthesizer tone-master Brüninghaus, features measured, melodically resonant work from Kenny Wheeler (flh) and Brynjar Hoff – the latter then the Oslo Symphony Orchestra’s principal oboist and also a fine exponent of the English horn heard on the concluding title track. The somewhat minimalist vein of things is enlivened by both sensitive textures and some strong rock-fired figures from drummer Jon Christensen, the last especially evident on the lengthy and most atmospheric title track.
The unusual instrumentation complements beautifully Brüninghaus’s characteristic blend of quietly shifting, insistent or repeated figures (all played rather than looped) and European-inflected dynamic and harmonic subtlety: in his often illuminating sleeve-essay Friedrich Kunzmann assesses Brüninghaus’s particular take on the relation(s) of sound, composition and improvisation and considers the possible influence here of the minimalism of Steve Reich, whose Music For 18 Musicians had been recorded for ECM in 1977.
So far, so good. But, unfortunately, Kunzmann’s text is at times marred by the sort of typo and miscast English that I certainly never expected to see in an ECM production. In the opening paragraph, the title of Weber’s 1973 European masterpiece The Colours Of Chloë – one of the most consequential releases in the ECM catalogue and on which Brüninghaus appears – is given as The Cholors of Chloë[sic]. I don’t know which is worse: the random intrusive “h” or the Americanisation of Weber’s English. In paragraph four we learn of Brüninghaus’s early “obsession for [rather than the customary with] jazz”. And in the eleventh paragraph we are told that on the penultimate piece that is Tauschung Der Luft, Brynjar Hoff “is handed the reigns […]”. No matter how apt the intended metaphor may be, reigns remain a matters for royalty, reins for horses.
Kunzmann asserts in paragraph nine that Wheeler’s “uniquely warm tone pervades each of the six tracks on the record”. Firstly, if Wheeler’s tone did indeed pervade every track here – in the way that, say, the smell of stale cabbage can pervade a room – that wouldn’t say much for the aesthetic sensibilities of Wheeler or Brüninghaus, would it? (Not to speak of producer Manfred Eicher.) Secondly – to my ears, at least – there is no trace of Wheeler on the aforementioned Tauschung Der Luft, an eerie slow-moving duet between Hoff and Brüninghaus.
Finally: in paragraph three Kunzmann offers a 10-line overview of Brüninghaus’s early introduction to and investigation of classical music. I enjoyed this, no doubt because all of it came, more or less word for word, from the essay I supplied for the 2009 ECM boxed set devoted to the Colours quartet led by Eberhard Weber (and where Brüninghaus features). What I didn’t enjoy, however, was the lack of any acknowledgement or attribution from Kunzmann. Following a telephone conversation, Friedrich was gracious enough to offer the following apology, which we agreed needed to be published:
“Although my liner text for Rainer Brüninghaus’s Freigeweht vinyl reissue was based primarily on a new interview with the artist, it also included information taken from an earlier ECM liner note – for Eberhard Weber’s Colours box set of 2009 – authored by Michael Tucker. I regret that this source was not acknowledged.”
Did any person or production team at ECM sign off the sleeve essay for Freigeweht for publication? That’s for ECM to know, just as it is for ECM to ensure that future releases in its excellent Luminessence series are not blemished by the sort of factors detailed above.
Kjetil Mulelid Trio: And Now (Grappa GRCD 4816)
As I noted in my review of this questing pianist’s excellent trio recording What You Thought Was Home the Norwegian Mulelid (born 1991) is a graduate of the jazz programme at Trondheim University of Science and Technology. While you could not, of course, say that such a background necessarily guarantees a future of adventurous musicianship, the track record at Trondheim is mighty impressive. And whether collaborating with the likes of Arve Henriksen, Siril Malmedal Hauge and Trygve Seim, or working in the shape-shifting Wako ensemble and his own trio, Mulelid is one of its most striking exemplars.
Assessing What You Thought Was Home I remarked music as rhythmically engaging as it was lyrically compelling, admiring both the leader’s touch and adroit sense of when to mix and modulate chordal weight and linear grace. I also applauded fine-tuned and imaginative interactive support from Bjørn Marius Hegge (b) and Andreas Winther (d).
While it’s sad to see that Hegge has left the trio, new man Rune Nergaard brings something deep and fresh to the bass parts: hear his compelling sound and melodic inclinations throughout the edgy and urgent yet also yet rolling opener that is The Age of Enlightenment/Parasite – or enjoy the deep-driven pizzicato energy in his fluidly developed interplay with first Winther and then Mulelid on Any Day Now. And relish, overall, the spare and tender, yet building group lyricism of the concluding Sailor’s Song.
The group has a four-stop UK tour 19-22 February, taking in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Bristol and London. If you get the chance, check out one of the finest post-Bley/Jarrett piano trios at work today.
Amir ElSaffar, Lorenzo Bianchi Hoesch: Inner Spaces (Ornithology ORNI002CD)
ElSaffar was born in Chicago in 1977 and his CV includes work with Cecil Taylor and Vijay Iyer. As a trumpeter he has worked hard on microtones and has taken on board key aspects of Arabic music, studying maquam poetics. With at least eight CDs to his name, ElSaffar (who also vocalises and plays the santur, or hammered dulcimer) has composed music for theatre and film projects.
He is heard here with the Paris-based Hoesch, a kindred spirit with a background in architecture and composition. A university lecturer and professor, Hoesch is a specialist in electro-acoustic sounds and installations and here supplies a distilled range of atmospheric, spaced-out trance textures and ostinato bass figures.
The result (which can be seen on YouTube) is a potent four-part “deep pulse” modal meditation on the post free-jazz (but spiritually ancient) idea of inner spaces. Now slowly unfolding, as in the vocal-led opener that is The River, and the closing Tahlila, the superbly intoned trumpet melodies of Spirits and the entrancing delicacy of the santur meditations of Pas De Deux; now charged with a crackling, uplifting and affirmative spiritual energy, here is music that should appeal strongly to enthusiasts of Kahlil Gibran and Rumi, Dhafer Youssef, Don Cherry and Wadada Leo Smith alike. An excellent release.