Record Reviews

MACIEJ GOLYZNIAK ~ THE ORCHID (POLISH JAZZ VOL.85) WARNER MUSIC POLAND 190295184599 (Barcode: 190295184599) ~ POLAND ~ Smooth Jazz Recorded: 2019 Released: 2020 This is the debut album as a leader by Polish drummer Maciej GolyzniakFind albums by this artist recorded in a trio setting with keyboardist Lukasz DamrychFind albums by this artist and bassist Robert SzydloFind albums by this artist. Trumpeter Lukasz KorybalskiFind albums by this artist guests on four tracks. The album presents seven original compositions, co-credited to all three trio members. Golyzniak is a highly acclaimed drummer on the Polish Pop / Rock scene, with many recordings with his participation to his credit, but he is definitely not a Jazz musician, which of course is immediately apparent from the very onset off this album. The music is all pretty simplistic and has a strong Pop feel and ambience and altogether can be perhaps considered as Smooth Jazz at best. Korybalski, who is a splendid Jazz trumpeter (see his “CMMFind albums with this title” album), plays on the first four tracks over the background provided by the trio, adding a Jazzy glazing on top, which sadly only emphasizes how much this music does not belong within the Jazz idiom. The remaining tracks, on which he does not play, are completely devoid of any musical sense. The album has a very unbalanced sound ambience, with the bass way too high in the mix, resulting in a boomy, unpleasant effect, which is pretty disturbing. Overall, one can only wonder how this album entered the prestigious Polish Jazz series to start with, but of course it is not really the real Polish Jazz series anymore, is it? Side Note The iconic "Polish Jazz" series of recordings, originally released between 1965 and 1989 by the Polish state owned record company Polskie NagraniaFind albums on this label, which used the MuzaFind albums on this label label as its moniker, consists of seventy six LP albums. It presents the history of Polish Jazz recordings during that period, which includes some of the most important Polish / European modern Jazz milestones and reflects the extraordinary development of Jazz music behind the Iron Curtain. It is one of the most important historic documents of Polish Music and of course Polish Culture in general. The series had an eminent logo designed by Roslaw Szaybo and the albums were numbered sequentially from Vol.1 to Vol.76 accordingly. The album's artwork was wonderfully stylish and modernist, featuring the brilliant photographs and characteristic design by the legendary Polish Artist Marek Karewicz. Stylistically the series presented all Jazz genres, from Traditional Jazz to Avant-Garde / Free Jazz, which was extraordinarily liberal considering the cultural censorship imposed by the Socialist Regime. It suffered from some inconsistency, as far as the musical quality and aesthetics were concerned, as well as the internal "politics" of the Polish Jazz scene at the time, but in retrospect it achieved a spectacular overall result, unparalleled as far as consistently documenting a national Jazz scene is concerned. After the Polskie Nagrania catalogue was bought by Warner Music PolandFind albums on this label, the new owner started a reissue process of the Polish Jazz series, carefully remastered, repackaged and including extensive liner notes, which keeps the artwork as close to the original design as possible. So far forty four volumes of the original series were reissued. In 2016 Warner Music Poland decided to continue the original series by releasing new contemporary Polish Jazz recordings under the same format and even to continue the sequential numbering starting with Vol.77 – a decision I personally consider almost sacrilegious. Some things are simply untouchable, and the "Polish Jazz" series is surely one of those things. If Warner Music Poland wants to produce Jazz albums, which is always more than welcome, they could have started a new series, under a new title, rather than exploiting the reputation of the historic series. As a result, some artist whose albums are released as part of the new series might be led to expect instant gratification, fame and stardom, just for being an artificial part of a prestigious past, which of course is as bogus as it is sad.

Updated: 12/01/2022Posted: 12/01/2022

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TOMASZ WENDT TRIO & ATOM STRING QUARTET ~ BEHIND THE STRINGS SJ 018 (Barcode: 5912596066207) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2016 This is the debut album as a leader by Polish Jazz saxophonist / composer Tomasz WendtFind albums by this artist presented in a trio setting with bassist Grzegorz PiaseckiFind albums by this artist and drummer Wojciech BulinskiFind albums by this artist. The trio is accompanied on several tracks by the excellent Atom String QuartetFind albums by this artist (violinists Dawid LubowiczFind albums by this artist and Mateusz SmoczynskiFind albums by this artist, violinist Michal ZaborskiFind albums by this artist and cellist Krzysztof LenczowskiFind albums by this artist). Vocalist Magdalena ZawartkoFind albums by this artist guests on two tracks and pianist Lukasz DamrychFind albums by this artist guests on three tracks. The album presents eight original compositions, all composed and beautifully arranged by Wendt. What might appear on the surface as another "Sax & Strings" Smooth Jazz project turns out to be a brilliant musical enterprise, which offers superb Mainstream Jazz music, which has depth and meaning. The compositions are all wonderfully solid and coherent, full of typical Polish melancholy and lyricism, and all skillfully arranged for this unusual setting. The music is diverse and rich in harmonic layers and rhythmic patterns, providing a fascinating journey to the listener, which is moving from one climax to another. Wendt plays expressively and his improvisations perfectly suit the musical boundaries, being interesting and complex but not crossing the line into becoming too intricate for a mainstream Jazz enthusiast. The rhythm section supports the leader amicably, with Piasecki filling the bottom pulsations which make this music swing and Bulinski setting the pace with his skillful and highly original drum parts. The Atom String Quartet does exactly what it is famous for, i.e. plays some superb string ornamentations and in the process produces breathtaking violin solos. The album is a wonderful example of good taste and elegance. The proportions between the saxophone, rhythm section and the string quartet are beautifully balanced, magnificently recorded at the RecPublica Studios and engineered by Lukasz OlejarczykFind albums by this artist. Overall this is a gem of an album for fans of sophisticated mainstream Jazz, which offers an unusual instrumental setting and great compositions, superb arrangements and perfect execution; in short some of the best Polish Jazz has to offer. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 25/03/2017Posted: 25/03/2017

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