Record Reviews

MICHAL BARANSKI ~ MASOVIAN MANTRA (POLISH JAZZ VOL. 88) WARNER MUSIC POLAND 5054197299612 (Barcode: 5054197299612) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2021 Released: 2022 This is the debut album as a leader by Polish Jazz bassist / composer Michal BaranskiFind albums by this artist, recorded in a trio / quartet setting with Polish pianist Michal TokajFind albums by this artist and drummer Lukasz ZytaFind albums by this artist and Israeli guitarist Shachar ElnatanFind albums by this artist. Seven additional Polish musicians guest on selected tracks. The album presents eight tracks, seven of which are original compositions by Baranski and one is his arrangement of a Polish Folk song. Baranski earned his reputation as one of Poland’s top bass players since the turn of the Millennium, appearing on dozens of albums by Polish and international musicians, always being in absolute top form. He was mentioned as a co-leader on three albums over the years, but it is truly amazing to see that his debut recording as a leader arrives only now. Perhaps this should be appreciated, since the decision to record this album is a result of many years of studying and developing his musical personality, and his natural modesty and patience prompted him to make this album when he really had something to say. The music is an elegant amalgam of modern Jazz and Folkloristic influences, both Polish Folklore and the Indian konnakol vocal percussion technique, which is one of Baranski’s passions since several years. Based on solid melodic themes, the music emphasizes the rhythmic facets, which often are very intricate and require some “elasticity” from the listener, who might find some of these rhythms very unusual and even hard to follow. The decision to involve Elnatan, who is one of numerous Israeli Jazz players active on the NY Jazz scene, with a rich Ethnic background of Yemenite and other Middle Eastern influences, resulted in providing the album with many exotic sonic colors and other vistas, way beyond what can be found on most Polish Jazz albums. But his old friends, Tokaj and Zyta, also contribute brilliantly for the entire duration. The guests decorate the album with their contributions on selected tracks, putting the proverbial cherries on top. The result is definitely one of the most refreshing and interesting Polish Jazz albums released in 2022, and the fact that just a few days ago it won the “best Polish Jazz album of the year” prize and Baranski won the “Jazz artist of the year” prize, is hardly surprising and well deserved in this case. Overall, this is both a very interesting and beautiful album, recorded by top Polish Jazz musicians, offering a deep exposure to diverse rhythmic patterns, which are not found usually on Jazz albums. The inquisitive and open-minded listeners should find every second of this music highly fascinating. 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: 25/04/2023Posted: 25/04/2023

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