Record Reviews

MALERAI / UCHIHASHI / MAYA R ~ UTSUROI FOR TUNE 0055 (Barcode: 5902768701586) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2014 Released: 2015 This album presents a wonderful project created by Polish trio MaleraiFind albums by this artist, formed and led by clarinetists / composer Michal GorczynskiFind albums by this artist with violinist Dagna SadkowskaFind albums by this artist and cellist Mikolaj PaloszFind albums by this artist, and two Japanese musicians: vocalist Maya RFind albums by this artist and guitarist Kazuhisa UchihashiFind albums by this artist. The album presents thirteen songs, which are sung in Japanese. Eleven of these songs were composed by Gorczynski and two by Uchihashi. The lyrics of these songs were written by Japanese poets: Hekigoto KawahigashiFind albums by this artist (the pioneer of modern haiku) and Yoshihiro HaradaFind albums by this artist and by Friedrich NietzscheFind albums by this artist (translated into Japanese). The music is all about the sound and ambience of the Japanese language and reflects its many subtleties. Completely cross-genre, it moves freely between Pop, Rock, Jazz and contemporary Classical, with ease and elegance, always keeping the listener in suspense. Gorczynski emerges here, similarly to his work on earlier Malerai projects, as one of the most interesting Polish contemporary composers and his ability to diversify his palette to suit different environments is quite remarkable. Since this album is about the sound and feel of the Japanese language, it is not necessary for the listener to understand the language as such in order to enjoy this album. The vocals can be easily considered as one of the instruments of the entire ensemble and be accepted as such. The Polish and English translations of the lyrics are present in the album´s booklet, for those who are interested in the actual meaning of the lyrics. Overall this is a beautiful piece of contemporary music, which by its aesthetic potency easily bridges genres and cultures, creating a completely new universe. Superb music, great performances and a true gift for innovation and farsightedness turn this into a first class musical experience, which of course is wholeheartedly recommended!

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