Record Reviews

MELECH / MAJEWSKI / KROLIKOWSKI / BUHL ~ KWARTET PLEXUS OF INFINITY ~ POLAND ~ Avant-Garde Jazz Recorded: 2018 Released: 2019 This is the debut album by the Avant-Garde Polish Jazz quartet led by clarinetist Piotr MelechFind albums by this artist, which also includes pianist Jakub KrolikowskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Jaroslaw MajewskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Jacek BuhlFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten tracks, all co-composed by the members of the quartet. The music is typical Avant-Garde / Improvised Music project, which offers spontaneously created music not based on any clear melodic threads and which relays the spur of the moment mutual exchanges between the musicians. For people from outside of the Improvised Music circle this music is completely non-communicative and bizarre, and only a tiny group of connoisseurs is able to listen to it and enjoy it for what it is. Such is the sad fate of any Avant-Garde Art. However, for people familiar with the Polish Avant-Garde Jazz, which enjoys an extraordinary renaissance in the last decade, the name of Melech is pretty familiar as a result of about half a dozen of his earlier recordings, all of which made a mark on the local scene. His wonderful clarinet work, which often sounds very Klezmerish, is very unique and often resembles the work of the Israeli clarinet Master Harold RubinFind albums by this artist. Melech firmly controls the flow of the music, setting the structural and rhythmic ambience, with the rest of the quartet following his lead. Buhl, who is perhaps the leading Polish Avant-Garde drummer and a true musical persona, adds a wonderful layer to the music. He is obviously the most experienced musician on this album and his superb technique and sensitivity are a natural counterbalance to Melech´s clarinet work. Krolikowski and Majewski, who are lesser known, keep up with the two veterans and contribute their parts without a hitch. Overall this album offer depth and remarkable teamwork between the musicians, which of course is not surprising considering the excellent musicianship present on the Polish Avant-Garde Jazz scene. Although obviously not for everybody, this music is exactly what connoisseurs of Improvised Music look for in an album. Well done!

Updated: 09/06/2019Posted: 08/06/2019

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RDZA ~ PANOPTIKUM MZM 14 ~ POLAND ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2020 Released: 2020 This is the second album by Polish Improvised Music duo RdzaFind albums by this artist, comprising of bassist Jaroslaw MajewskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Jacek BuhlFind albums by this artist. For this album they added pianist Anna JedrzejewskaFind albums by this artist and violinist Martyna Liliana KabulskaFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten original spontaneous compositions co-credited to all four participants. The music was recorded in a Palace, which hosts a collection of old pianos, three of which were used on this recording. The music is much more intimate and concise this time than the almost Big Band sound of the debut, and as such much less surprising or outstanding. It is a typical Improvising Music meeting, based on the exchange of ideas developing on the fly, which might be exciting while it happens but don’t necessarily manages to transform all that excitement on record. This said, there are plenty of interesting moments herein and hardcore Improvising Music enthusiasts will surely love this music to bits, but it probably does not penetrate far beyond that specific audience. Buhl is an extraordinary drummer with highly developed imagination and technique and it is always a pleasure to listen to him playing. Majewski also plays some great bass passages, and his pulsations drive the music forward, during the moments when the music offers a specific direction. The pianos sound interesting but I wonder how many listeners are able to distinguish this early 19th piano sound from any other. The music is mostly very hesitant, delicate and contemplative and offers almost as much silent moments as sounds, which has a soothing effect contrasting the actual notes played by the performers. It does fluctuate periodically between quiet passages and more intense interactions, but avoids fierce climaxes. Overall this is somewhat typical Improvised Music recording, which offers a challenge even to experienced Anat-Garde connoisseurs, and demands patience and open-mindedness, which sadly not many listeners these days are ready to invest. I had a blast listening to this music, but I might be pretty lonely in that position…

Updated: 27/03/2021Posted: 27/03/2021

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RDZA ~ YASS IMPROVISATION MZM 9 ~ POLAND ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the debut album by Polish Improvised Music duo RdzaFind albums by this artist, which comprises of bassist Jaroslaw MajewskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Jacek BuhlFind albums by this artist. For the recording session, which produced this album, they invited a group of musicians with whom they cooperated previously on various occasions: vocalists Antonina NowackaFind albums by this artist and Mamadou BaFind albums by this artist (alias Goo), clarinetist Piotr MelechFind albums by this artist, saxophonists Ray DickatyFind albums by this artist, Jan MalkowskiFind albums by this artist and Jedrzej LagodzinskiFind albums by this artist, flautist Maksymilian GwincinskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Jakub KrolikowskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Slawek JanickiFind albums by this artist and drummer Dominik MokrzewskiFind albums by this artist – altogether a fourteen musicians strong Improvising Music orchestra. The album presents seven pieces, all credited to the entire crew of participating musicians. The music, although representing the Avant-Garde spontaneously Improvised Music genre, is quite unique, mostly due to the fact that it was created by a large ensemble in contrast to the usual rather intimate Improvised Music settings. The incredible power of such a large ensemble, the diversity of musical ideas and the wide range of instruments (including vocalese) is extremely effective and happens so rarely, that this album is an immediate focus of interest. Of course one has to remember that such experiments have already been tried successfully both across the pond and in European Jazz in the late 1960s, but are sadly very rare these days. This album is a wonderful example of Avant-Garde / Improvised Music recording that manages to retain the magic of the live performance and change into a musical capsule, which can be listened to repeatedly, discovering new layers with each new listening session. There are many superb individual performances here, although usually very brief, and above all wonderful ensemble cooperation, which absolutely rules here. Overall this is definitely one of the best if not the best Improvised Music album on the Polish scene in 2019. I´d like to point out to my Polish colleagues who write about music, what music with BIG balls is all about, regardless of the horn power involved – if an example is necessary. An absolute must to Free / Improvised Music orchestral music connoisseurs!

Updated: 14/08/2020Posted: 20/01/2020

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