stan sulzmann
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JIGSAW "it
simply doesn't get any better than this" - John Kelman. "In
a move that, on first glance, seems more aimed at garnering him a broader
audience than anything else, British sax legend Stan Sulzmann is teamed
with a dream team of American players including pianist Marc Copland,
bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Bill Stewart for his latest release,
The Jigsaw. But if the grouping smells suspiciously of “session
gig,” one listen to this outstanding disk is enough to dispel such
skepticism. Truth be told, Copland has a relationship with Sulzmann that
goes back over twenty-five years and while Grenadier and Stewart may be
newcomers to Sulzmann's distinctive playing and writing style, you'd be
hard pressed to tell. The Jigsaw may not win any awards for breaking new
ground, but in the realm of post bop it simply doesn't get any
better than this. Copland
continues to be a most intuitive accompanist. In the past couple of years
he has recorded with artists including Gary Peacock, Greg Osby, Kenny
Wheeler, John Abercrombie and Dave Liebman. In each case his own sensitive,
impressionistic and at times abstract sensibilities seem to at once meld
with those of the artists he is teamed with while, at the same time, asserting
his own musical personality. On “Jack Stix,” which has just
the slightest of Latin overtones in the theme, Copland asserts himself
as a distinct personality who has evolved far beyond his original influences
of Evans, Jarrett and Hancock. Grenadier
and Stewart make, quite simply, one of the best young rhythm sections
around. Stewart, in particular, mines the same territory first carved
out by Jack DeJohnette, but brings a sense of melody all too rarely heard
from drummers. The
Jigsaw could have been just another session but instead, with fine writing
from Sulzmann, Copland, Stewart and Wheeler, the interplay is all the
more uncanny for the fact that this group only convened for two short
days. Unquestionably one of the best post bop releases of the year, Sulzmann's
The Jigsaw will hopefully hip North American audiences to what the British
have known all along".
John Kelman, Allboutjazz.com "Despite
his (entirely justified) high reputation among musicians and close observers
of UK jazz, saxophonist/flautist Stan Sulzmann has made relatively few
albums as a leader; The Jigsaw goes a considerable distance towards righting
this wrong. Pianist Marc Copland and Sulzmann are longtime musical partners,
and their easy rapport lies at the heart of a fluently interactive band,
completed by a Rolls-Royce US rhythm section, lithe bassist Larry Grenadier
and vigorous, punchy drummer Bill Stewart. All in all, though, this is
Sulzmann's album, his elegant, alternately warbling and pleasantly rasping
sound perfectly suited to his deceptively simple-sounding compositions,
to those of his bandmates and Kenny Wheeler's typically plangent title-piece.
Stewart and Grenadier push things along with just the right mix of power
and delicacy, but it is the main soloists, Copland and Sulzmann, who render
this unfussily virtuosic album compulsively listenable".
Chris Parker, Jazz at Ronnie Scott's "Tenor-soprano
saxophonist Sulzmann may be one of Britain's best kept secrets, but the
fact remains he's a truly outstanding player. And on this memorable album,
made in New York last January, he's among peers; pianist Marc Copland,
bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Bill Stewart are as good as it gets.
Moreover, Sulzmann's compositions - five of the eight pieces here are
his; the remaining three are by Copland, Stewart and Kenny Wheeler - have
a very savoury, distinctive character. Likewise, his lines are simultaneously
logical and full of surprise. Most of all, the quartet goes about things
with compelling relish and imagination. Sulzmann is in Whelan's next Sunday
with Copland and the pianist's "working" trio of Drew Gress
and Jochen Rückert. Not to be missed".
RAY COMISKEY, THE IRISH TIMES, 17 SEPT
Five Stars***** ORDESA “Brainfood
Jazz” 'No
drum'n'no bass What
do you get when you mix a trumpeter, a saxophonist and a guitarist? A
very nice record' There
are some good tunes, such as Wheeler's Niceness (great title, absolutely
sincere!) and Sulzmann's A Warm and Rocky Place, cleverly and carefully
arranged for the drummerless, bassless trio, but this exposed, "chamber
jazz" sound is tricky to sustain across an hour-long CD. Nevertheless,
Ordesa has many great moments, and the players provide a master class
for anyone learning jazz guitar, trumpet, saxophone or flute'. Introducing
the third way While
the cavernous concert halls of the Barbican and the South Bank are generally
the London venues of choice for visiting American stars, some of the most
rewarding music is to be found in intimate upstairs rooms such as the
Vortex and the Spitz. Thursday night's concert by this new trio, which
goes by the name of Ordesa, was no exception. No drums, no bass or keyboards,
and pitifully little in the way of air-conditioning on a sweltering evening
don't sound like the ingredients for a relaxing soirée. But into
the stillness of the night came music that struck at the core of the listener,
seeming to lift the curtain on a deeper wisdom, and to which silent awe
was the only possible response. Those
familiar with Kenny Wheeler will know that this is no exaggeration. A
slightly shambolic, mournful looking man, Wheeler could easily be cast
as the janitor, disappointed by life, in an American film. When not playing,
he stands motionless on stage. Not a shadow of a thought seems to pass
over his impassive face. But when he lifts his flugelhorn or trumpet to
his lips, the tumult in his mind is revealed. He is a man who asks questions,
who knows life, and realises that the simple answers are almost certainly
fatuous. The Wheeler sound is one of the most distinctive in the history
of the jazz trumpet. A thin, overblown note is followed by a florid flurry,
the high squeal by a long low note he rolls around his mouth like a chewy
mint. Although his phrases are bordered, like blotting paper in ink, with
romanticism, the comforting phrase is superseded by the querulous, a moment
of tenderness by a scream of panic. He has his trademark tics, but is
incapable of producing a hackneyed phrase. Like words from a prophet,
every note counts. This
trio provides a perfect setting for Wheeler. He and Stan Sulzmann go back
a long way, having been mainstays of the most rewarding strand of British
jazz since the Sixties. The intuitive connection they have was evident
in the way they phrased together, the intervals between the two horns
twisting in trademark fourth and fifth intervals on the melody, slurring
across the bar lines and forming a counter-rhythm to the metre. Sulzmann
has a direct tone on tenor saxophone, accents spat out in rich dry chunks.
On soprano sax, his sound seems too big to escape from such a fragile
instrument when he's on full force. He, too, avoids cliché, always
searching for new modes of expression. Younger
than the others, John Parricelli holds the trio together. His excellent
compositions featured strongly in the concert, his guitar invariably introducing
them and using a variety of textures to lay the ground on which the horns
could tread. Two of his tunes stood out. "Ordesa", after which
the group is named, is a valley in Spain. Wheeler painted dawn breaking
over the crest of a hill, while Parricelli laid down a simple backing
loop over which he plucked clear, singing lines. "Noah" emerged
from dissonant chaos into a powerful statement of a timeless melody. When
that melody was restated at the end it was staggered, with first Parricelli,
then Sulzmann and then Wheeler following a couple of beats behind each
other. It was quite astonishing. When
I first heard of this trio, I wondered if the lack of a traditional rhythm
section would limit it. But after this uncompromising concert, I'd venture
that this may be the strongest new band in Britain today. Sholto
Byrnes (Independent) 20 August 2002 LIAM
NOBLE GROUP 'Some
wonderful, hooting, almost country-blues music balances the busyness,
and Sulzmann - superb on tenor sax throughout - has rarely played better'.
John Fordham, The Guardian 7th February 2003
One of the most highly regarded musicians in Britain, Sulzmann has a résumé
that includes work with Michael Brecker and Gil Evans, but perhaps his
most enduring relationship has been with trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, whose
title tune closes out the album. Sulzmann's style is, in some ways, the
lyrical equivalent of Wheeler's own melancholy melodicism, and the two
have teamed up numerous times, including '02's outstanding Ordesa, a trio
featuring Sulzmann, Wheeler and guitarist John Parricelli. But The Jigsaw
is the first record in a number of years to feature Sulzmann as leader
and primary composer, and it paints a vivid picture of an artist whose
solos tell compelling stories. “Figurine,” for example, is
a dark ballad that would not feel completely out of place in the Ralph
Towner songbook, with a sense of delicate drama that never becomes melodrama.
Sulzmann, heard on soprano, delivers a solo that manages to swing in its
own quiet way.
'Don’t look to this trio for hummable tunes. Wheeler on trumpet
and flugelhorn, and Sulzmann on flute, tenor and soprano saxes, pitch
themselves away fro the obvious as a matter of course. Accompanied only
by Parricelli’s guitar, there is nothing here to force the tempi
on, leaving the music (all originals bar one)to ebb and flow in mesmerising
fashion. Does any other British player refresh the ear like Wheeler? His
recordings are always stimulating, while his watery , blustery, romantic
tone poses questions with no easy answers. No flashy tricks; this is brainfood
Jazz'. Sholto Byrnes The Independent on Sunday 28/7/02
'Sulzmann, Parricelli and Wheeler
John Parricelli's Indigo, the opening track of Ordesa (Symbol) by the
trio of Sulzmann, Parricelli and Wheeler, already feels like a classic.
The piece slowly unfolds, with the composer's guitar ostinato setting
the mood: it's a perfect sound, with just the right amount of reverberation.
Trumpeter Kenny Wheeler and saxophonist Stan Sulzmann play the theme -
clearly articulated, beautifully in tune, complex enough to hint at their
musical abilities and simple enough to be memorable. You might yearn for
a whole album like that.
'But a shining light of the whole attractive enterprise is the presence
of Stan Sulzmann, who seems to sound more personal and hauntingly moving
than ever'. John Fordham, Jazz UK
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