Record Reviews

BESTER QUARTET ~ KRAKOFF FOR TUNE 0011 ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2013 Released: 2013 Rising like a Phoenix from the ashes of the Holocaust, Jewish Culture in Poland, which flourished for almost a millennium before being abruptly and mercilessly eradicated from the face of the earth, enjoys today a tremendous renewed Renaissance. Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, Warsaw´s Singer Festival and the New Jewish Music Festival are only the main events celebrating the Jewish Culture, which should have disappeared into thin air like the smoke from the chimneys of the crematoriums. However, a cautious examination of this phenomenon reveals several fundamental differences between the pre-Holocaust Polish Jewish Culture and its renewed manifestation: Firstly Jewish Culture was created by Jews for Jews, rarely, if at all, escaping the closed Jewish environment almost completely separated from their Polish neighbors. Jewish music was performed during Jewish celebrations and Holidays, in Jewish shtetls, where gentiles (goyim) were seldom present. Even in the major towns, like Warsaw itself, Jews had their own entertainment centers, again rarely frequented by gentiles. Since there is no sizeable Jewish population in Poland, today´s Jewish Culture is of course presented to the non-Jewish Poles, most of which were born after WWII, most of them with little or no knowledge whatsoever about Jews and their Culture. And yet for some inexplicable reason this Culture fascinates these audiences, a sort of nostalgia to something they know existed once but is no more. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly from the Artistic standpoint, the reborn Jewish Culture in Poland is in fact only slightly associated with the original Jewish Culture per se, often referring to the tradition as a source of inspiration rather that an attempt to revive it as it was. Even when the new culture uses the "old" terminology, like the idiom "Klezmer" for example, there is no direct similarity to what is considered or called Klezmer music today to what it was in the past. And yet a continuum was definitely achieved, which is wondrous indeed. Bester QuartetFind albums by this artist is a classic example of the case at hand. Formed in 1997 by accordionist / composer Jaroslaw BesterFind albums by this artist, the ensemble was initially called The Cracow Klezmer BandFind albums by this artist and under that moniker released six albums on the highly respected TzadikFind albums on this label label owned by John ZornFind albums by this artist. The quartet played ambitious original music, brilliantly performed by its virtuosi members, but quite honestly calling this music Klezmer or even Jewish was definitely farfetched. At some stage Bester probably realized that dichotomy and by 2012 changed the name of the ensemble to Bester Quartet (and also changed the bass player) and since released two more albums on Tzadik, the latest of which, called "The Golden LandFind albums with this title" features music written entirely by Mordechai GebirtigFind albums by this artist and seems to be the closest to Jewish roots. This, their ninth album, is a live recording at the National Philharmonic Hall in Warsaw, captures the band before "The Golden Land" album was released and features mostly music from their previous album "MetamorphosesFind albums by this artist", a couple of pieces from earlier albums and one sneak preview of a Gebirtig tune. The quartet includes Bester, violinist Jaroslaw TyralaFind albums by this artist, multi-instrumentalist Oleg DyyakFind albums by this artist and the new young bass player Mikolaj PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist. They all perform elegantly, spotlessly and obviously are highly spirited. Of course as a band they are perfectly together and they respect each other´s space, allowing for extended improvised passages. The music, which is always superbly melodic, is unfortunately somewhat unfocused stylistically. Although the arrangements try to present a "unified" musical coherence, the musical influences run freely between Gypsy folklore, Argentinean tango, Eastern-European melodic lines, Balkan rhythmic patters, in short "around the world in 70 minutes". Jewish? Not really. But of course, since there is no "Klezmer" anywhere on the cover, I have no problem with this. Overall this is music which can be enjoyed by connoisseurs all over the world and people who like to hear diversity and sophistication in the music they enjoy. The music is beautifully recorded with superb sound quality, especially so in the case of a live recording. The album comes bundled with a DVD of the same concert, which has no additional musical content, but is a nice document of the event. This is the first album by the quartet released on a Polish label and kudos to For Tune for finally putting the record straight, which they do repeatedly time after time.

CD+DVD 2 Recommend To A Friend

BESTER QUARTET ~ THE GOLDEN LAND TZADIK 8178 (Barcode: 702397817826) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2013 Released: 2013 The Polish / Jewish poet / songwriter Mordechai GebirtigFind albums by this artist was born, raised and lived in Krakow, where he also found his tragic death from a Nazi bullet in the Krakow Ghetto in 1942. His vast legacy proves he was the preeminent Yiddish songwriter of his time, but more importantly his prophetic vision of the Jewish fate in Europe is truly astounding in retrospect. This album presents a collection of ten songs written by Gebirtig and performed by the Bester QuartetFind albums by this artist, a Polish ensemble, which also comes from Krakow. The ensemble was originally formed as the Cracow Klezmer BandFind albums by this artist in 1997 and later on changed its name to Bester Quartet. The songs were arranged by the leader of the Bester Quartet, accordionist / composer Jaroslaw BesterFind albums by this artist. The remaining members of the quartet are violinist Jaroslaw TyralaFind albums by this artist, multi-instrumentalist Oleg DyyakFind albums by this artist and bassist Mikolaj PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist. On this album the lineup also features three guest musicians: trumpeter Tomasz ZietekFind albums by this artist, cellist Magdalena PlutaFind albums by this artist (from SamechFind albums by this artist) and bass clarinetist Marcin MalinowskiFind albums by this artist. The Cracow Klezmer Band / Bester Quartet released eight (including this one) albums on the prestigious TzadikFind albums on this label label, as part of the "Radical Jewish Culture" series, which marks them as the heroes of the Jewish Cultural Renaissance in Poland, which is now in its second decade. Some people, me included, find this "Renaissance" somewhat perplexing, intriguing and even a bit ridiculous, especially in view of the fact that there are practically no Jews left in Poland and the infamous Polish anti-Semitism is still looming in the background. But a thousand years of Jewish presence in Poland can be still traced and the fact that some artists are interested in preservation of this lost Culture is wonderful regardless of the circumstances. Bester and his companions are all truly wonderful musicians and his skillful arrangements are delightful and quite sophisticated. I would have enjoyed this music much more if it wasn´t pre-sold under the Jewish tag, as honestly there is very little left of the original Eastern-European Jewish feel herein. Yes there are some sentimental violin or clarinet parts, and other typical shticks but overall this is simply some great Jazz-World Fusion, which sounds Argentinean, Parisian, Balkan or whatever, and honestly since I know these songs in their original versions since my early childhood, I´m not sure Gebirtig himself would have recognized them as his own. Nevertheless this music deserves to be heard and can be enjoyed by music connoisseurs anywhere in the world. The level of performances and execution is definitely first-class and there is so much beauty and deep melancholy in this music that nobody should be left cold. Personally some other releases in the Radical Jewish Culture series on Tzadik made a much stronger impact on me than this release, but I can still appreciate the dedication and talent that went into making this recording. A bi gezunt!

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

CUKUNFT ~ WILDE BLUMEN LADO ABC C/18 (Barcode: 5907709922457) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2011 Released: 2013 This is the third album by Polish ensemble CukunftFind albums by this artist, led by guitarist Raphael RoginskiFind albums by this artist with clarinetists Pawel SzamburskiFind albums by this artist and Michal GorczynskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Pawel SzpuraFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight compositions, six of which are originals by Roginski, one is an ensemble composition and one is by the great Polish / Jewish poet / songwriter Mordechai GebirtigFind albums by this artist. The usage of the Yiddish language to name the ensemble and its songs does not leave any doubts as to the cultural affinity of this music. Cukunft is one of several Polish ensembles, which create the so called "new Jewish music" in Poland during the last decade or so, contributing to the overall renaissance of the Jewish culture in Poland, a phenomenon which is completely unique and difficult to explain in any logical way due to the fact that there are almost no more Jews living currently in Poland and the tiny Jewish community certainly does not have a critical mass to produce any significant cultural output. And yet against all odds the Jewish culture is thriving in Poland, both in a reconstructed version, i.e. performing cultural output created during the period between the two World Wars as well as in a completely innovative version, which creates new, vibrant and ambitious works of Jewish culture, like Cukunft does. The musicians who form the ensemble belong to the new generation of Polish Jazz / Avant-Garde players, who are the most active and creative force in contemporary Polish Jazz. The music of Cukunft is an amalgam of Jewishness and contemporary music genres, based on Improvisation and cross genre explorations. The music is mostly composed, with distinctive melody lines, which clearly adopt the melancholic feel of traditional Jewish music, but differ in the way the music is expressed and performed. The dialog between the electric guitar, which can hardly be associated with Jewish tradition, and the clarinets, which are the epitome of Jewishness, builds up a completely new musical form. The entire album is a wonderful experience to every music lover, regardless of their proximity to the Jewish culture. These wonderful melodies and the superb way the music is performed should be able to melt any cultural / religious barriers. This music goes directly to the listener´s heart and transcends the intellectual need to analyze and classify. All one need in order to enjoy this music is "a bisele glik" to put one´s hand on a copy of this album, and the rest is simply a no brainer. This is definitely one of the best examples of the new Jewish music made in Poland. Enjoy!

Updated: 12/04/2019Posted:

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend

MELECH ~ PLAYS GEBIRTIG MULTIKULTI MPT 015 (Barcode: 5907796319826) ~ POLAND ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2015 Released: 2016 This is the debut album by Polish Free Jazz / Avant-Garde quartet MelechFind albums by this artist, which comprises of clarinetist / composer Piotr MelechFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Marcin Albert SteczkowskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Marcin JadachFind albums by this artist and drummer Michal KasperekFind albums by this artist. The album presents six pieces, five of which were composed by the Polish / Jewish poet / songwriter Mordechai GebirtigFind albums by this artist and one is an original composition credited to all four members of the quartet. The album continues the interest in Jewish music by the Polish Jazz Avant-Garde, which is one of the most fascinating developments on the local scene since the turn of the Millennium. A whole "New Jewish Music" scene developed in Poland, exploring the treasures of Jewish Music and creating contemporary Jewish Music, despite the fact that there are almost no members of the Jewish community left in Poland at the moment. Gebirtig´s legacy is one of the most re-visited, which is no surprise considering the wealth, depth and strength of his creations. Some of the treatments of his songs in the past suffered from too many liberties, but this album is a wonderful example of just the right way to respect the original music and take it forward to contemporary Avant-Garde. The quartet manages to preserve the spirit of the music in spite of the radically changed musical environment and the individual contributions by the quartet members fit the transposed sounds ideally. Melech states the original melodies almost faithfully, before those are picked up by the rest of the band and transformed, stretched and re-composed in Free Form. The rhythm section is elevated to a full membership within the quartet, adding its invaluable contributions. I wonder what would Gebirtig say to these transformations, but considering his progressive intellectualism, he would probably embrace them wholeheartedly. Overall this album is a wonderful example of preservation by modernization, where Culture is brought forward to contemporary recipients in form and shape that bridge over time barriers. It manages to stand by itself both as a contemporary work of art and as a tribute to the past. Thanks to the talent of the musicians involved and their respect towards the source of this music, their goal was achieved in full. This is definitely one of the most successful tributes to Gebirtig´s legacy done within the Polish Jazz Avant-Garde. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 28/10/2019Posted: 17/12/2016

CD 1 Mini-Sleeve Recommend To A Friend