Record Reviews

ALON NECHUSHTAN ~ WORLDS BEYOND BUCKYBALL 024 (Barcode: 697855002428) ~ ISRAEL ~ Jazz Recorded: 2010 Released: 2010 New album by Israeli (resident in NY) pianist Alon NechushtanFind albums by this artist, this time in a trio setting with bassist Francois MoutinFind albums by this artist and drummer Dan WeissFind albums by this artist, which presents nine brilliant compositions by the leader and an exceptional performance by the trio. Nechushtan is of course fondly remembered for his fantastic work with the TalatFind albums by this artist quintet ("The GrowlFind albums with this title" on TzadikFind albums on this label Records), which to this day is one of my favorite albums of the last decade. This album is completely different from his work with Talat, which combined Jazz and Klezmer / Hasidic music, and presents superb modern Jazz unrelated to any particular ethnic references. Nechushtan again shines both as a composer, with his tunes sounding like instant classics, which could have been composed by the likes of Chick CoreaFind albums by this artist or Herbie HancockFind albums by this artist, and as player, displaying dazzling technique and sensitivity. His supporting team is also brilliant all the way, with Moutin doing some incredible stuff with his bass (don´t try this at home) and Weiss beating the hell out of the drum kit, but always right on the beat. Overall this is a great album, immensely enjoyable and deeply moving emotionally. I can´t imagine any true Jazz fan not falling in love with this album instantly, and therefore I recommend it wholeheartedly. A true must!

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend

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

DANIEL ZAMIR ~ ONE TAV 8 (Barcode: 7290012387197) ~ ISRAEL ~ Jazz Recorded: 2009 Released: 2009 This is the sixth album by brilliant Israeli saxophonist / composer Daniel ZamirFind albums by this artist, one of most renowned Israeli Jazz musicians born in the country, who also managed to establish an international career. Zamir was born to a secular family, but during his stay in the US re-discovered Jewish religion and became an orthodox Jew. Zamir lived in the US since 2000 and returned to Israel in 2006, where he now lives, writes music, performs and records. During his stay in US he was "discovered" by John ZornFind albums by this artist and eventually recorded four (so far) albums for Zorn´s TzadikFind albums on this label label. This is his second album recorded and released in Israel. His music is a wonderful mixture of Klezmer, Jewish music, Eastern European and of course Jazz, which is completely unique. His technical fluency and unlimited expressionist powers place his among the world´s saxophone virtuosi. He now plays the soprano saxophone exclusively and his sound is often reminiscent of John ColtraneFind albums by this artist´s. This album includes music composed entirely written by him and he´s accompanied by some of the best Israeli Jazz players: Nitai HershkovitsFind albums by this artist – piano, Jonathan AlbalekFind albums by this artist– guitar, Noam VisenbergFind albums by this artist – bass and Daniel DorFind albums by this artist – drums. A string quartet is also present on the four-part suite dedicated to Noam Shalit. The album is a beautiful listening experience to every sensitive music lover, with everybody being able to discover the many different facets of this great music. Wholeheartedly recommended!

CD 1 Slipcase Recommend To A Friend

DANIEL ZAMIR ~ AMEN TAV 8 (Barcode: 7290010781539) ~ ISRAEL ~ Jazz Recorded: 2006 Released: 2006 This is the 4th album by brilliant Israeli saxophonist / composer Daniel ZamirFind albums by this artist, one of most renowned Israeli Jazz musicians born in the country, who also managed to establish an international career. Zamir was born to a secular family, but during his stay in the US re-discovered Jewish religion and became an orthodox Jew. Zamir lived in the US since 2000 and returned to Israel in 2006, where he now lives, writes music, performs and records. During his stay in US he was "discovered" by John ZornFind albums by this artist and eventually recorded four (so far) albums for Zorn´s TzadikFind albums on this label label. This is his first album recorded and released in Israel. His music is a wonderful mixture of Klezmer, Jewish music, Eastern European and of course Jazz, which is completely unique. His technical fluency and unlimited expressionist powers place his among the world´s saxophone virtuosi. He now plays the soprano saxophone exclusively and his sound is often reminiscent of John ColtraneFind albums by this artist´s. This album includes music composed entirely written by him and he´s accompanied by some of the best Israeli Jazz players: Omri MorFind albums by this artist – piano, Omer AvitalFind albums by this artist – bass and Daniel FriedmanFind albums by this artist – drums. Israeli trumpeter Avishai CohenFind albums by this artist guests on several tracks. The album is a beautiful listening experience to every sensitive music lover, with everybody being able to discover the many different facets of this great music. Wholeheartedly recommended!

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend

DANIEL ZAMIR ~ MISSING HERE TAV 8 (Barcode: 7290013087850) ~ ISRAEL ~ Jazz Recorded: 2010 Released: 2010 This is the 7th album by brilliant Israeli saxophonist / composer Daniel ZamirFind albums by this artist, one of most renowned Israeli Jazz musicians born in the country, who also managed to establish an international career. Zamir was born to a secular family, but during his stay in the US re-discovered Jewish religion and became an orthodox Jew. Zamir lived in the US since 2000 and returned to Israel in 2006, where he now lives, writes music, performs and records. During his stay in US he was "discovered" by John ZornFind albums by this artist and eventually recorded four (so far) albums for Zorn´s TzadikFind albums on this label label. This is his third album recorded and released in Israel. His music is a wonderful mixture of Klezmer, Jewish music, Eastern European and of course Jazz, which is completely unique. His technical fluency and unlimited expressionist powers place his among the world´s saxophone virtuosi. He now plays the soprano saxophone exclusively and his sound is often reminiscent of John ColtraneFind albums by this artist´s. This album includes music composed entirely written by him and he´s accompanied by some of the best Israeli Jazz players: Omer KleinFind albums by this artist – piano, Omer AvitalFind albums by this artist – bass and Aviv CohenFind albums by this artist – drums. Guest players include trumpeter Itamar BorochovFind albums by this artist and trombonist Avi LeibovitchFind albums by this artist. Israeli singer / pianist Eviatar BanaiFind albums by this artist guests on the title track. The album is a beautiful listening experience to every sensitive music lover, with everybody being able to discover the many different facets of this great music. Wholeheartedly recommended!

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

TALAT ~ THE GROWL TZADIK 8113 (Barcode: 702397811329) ~ ISRAEL ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2006 Released: 2006 Klezmer / Hasidic music and Jazz have a lot in common, at times being almost undistinguishable. Although based on quite different musical foundations (Eastern European folk motifs vs. the blues), both these musical genres are mainly about improvisation, the most significant characteristic that sets them apart from most other types of music. The attempts to merge these two genres have been undertaken by many musicians active in both genres with various degrees of success. John ZornFind albums by this artist’s label TzadikFind albums on this label (which released this album) is the home label to some of these musicians, as is another Jewish owned NY label called Knitting FactoryFind albums on this label. Although I’m pretty familiar with most of this stuff, hearing this album really knocked me out completely. Never before have I heard such a harmonious and clever interchange of these two genres, almost painfully brilliant. TalatFind albums by this artist is a NY based quintet led by Israeli composer / pianist Alon NechushtanFind albums by this artist, who composed and arranged all the music on this album. His cahoots are four young players (Marc MommaasFind albums by this artist – saxophones, Matt ShulmanFind albums by this artist – trumpet, Matt PavolkaFind albums by this artist – bass and Jordan PersonFind albums by this artist – drums) with exceptional abilities and technique. The music cleverly moves between the Klezmer-like melodies and the jazz-like improvisations with such ease and elegance that the transition seems to be perfectly natural and smooth. The arrangements are devilishly clever and intricate, but easy on the ear, so this wonderful music should please even the less experienced listeners who had little experience with contemporary improvised music. Alon’s incredible gift to make complex music sound easy is one that many fellow musicians should envy, as it is rare and precious. This is a rare gem and an essential example of music transcending the limitations of what is considered humanly possible. A must!

CD 1 Essential Recommend To A Friend

SAMECH ~ QUACHATTA TZADIK 8169 (Barcode: 702397816928) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2011 Released: 2012 This is a debut album by the Polish Jazz-World Fusion quartet SamechFind albums by this artist, which consists basically of a string trio: Anna OstachowskaFind albums by this artist who plays voila, Magdalena PlutaFind albums by this artist who plays cello and Marek LewandowskiFind albums by this artist, who plays double bass with percussionist Robert SztorcFind albums by this artist (who in his distant past was a member of the Prog outfit T.A.O.Find albums by this artist). The quartet plays acoustic music, which to some extent is based on Jewish and Klezmer music elements, but takes the music much further into Medieval European music, Turkish swirling rhythms, Sephardic, rather than Ashkenazi musical tradition and the Iberian Peninsula Moorish heritage. The album consists of ten wonderful pieces, seven of which are written by Ostachowska or co-written / co-arranged with Agata KrauzFind albums by this artist, one is by Krauz herself, one is co-written by Pluta and Lewandowski and the remaining one is by the DavkaFind albums by this artist ensemble (another great Jewish Music ensemble, from US, which also records for the TzadikFind albums on this label label). The incredible sound of the viola and cello combined with the bass pulsations and mostly Oriental percussion is simply stunning and completely unique, which immediately places Samech in a class of its own. The performances are all very exciting and manage to keep the listener on his toes through the entire duration of the album. The overall sound is well balanced with all four instruments clearly audible, which is such a relief opposite the much cluttered sound one comes across so often in contemporary recordings. This is a perfect example of innovation rather than imitation, which of course is highly commendable. The album should delight many quite diverse audiences, as it speaks to World Music, Classical and Jazz connoisseurs alike and is of course highly recommended. Hopefully the ensemble will follow the superb debut effort with additional future achievements. Well done indeed!

CD 1 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