In Bernd Schoch’s documentary “But The Word Dog Doesn’t Bark“ about the Schlippenbach Trio, Evan Parker is asked in the bonus material whether it’s possible to play “wrong” in free jazz. In the conventional sense, Parker says, that’s not possible, but that’s not the point. One might miss an opportunity to contribute something to the improvisation, which is worse - because the moment would be gone forever. In For Baritone Sax, Double Bass & Drumset , there are no such lost moments. Here, everything fits perfectly.
There are several examples on this album where you can hear the incredible timing of three masters of European improv - baritone saxophonist Daunik Lazro, bassist Joëlle Léandre, and drummer Paul Lovens. First on the opener “Temps du Corps 1”, which Lazro and Lovens begin tenderly before the saxophone roughens the tone and gives Léandre the opportunity to join in with her arco bass. Or that moment at the 5-minute mark when the musicians seem to be waiting for the perfect moment to kick things off, which Léandre then conjures up with just a few notes, and Lovens brilliantly picks up the pace before they really let loose. Then there’s another example on “Temps du Corps 3“, when Lazro plays Coltrane-ish lines before he and Léandre drop out and leave the field for Lovens, who concentrates on his toms, which lends the improvisation a dark and gloomy quality; after a very short while the three of them really pick up the pace, increase the intensity (it’s mainly Léandre who pushes her instrument to its limits) and bring the improvisation back to the beginning picking up the ballad-like mood again.
In the end, all of this comes together and is taken to the extreme: the final piece even swings here and there, with heart-wrenching, wailing saxophone notes serving as a counterpoint. Finally, it’s taken to the brink of collapse, before exploding at the very end, creating an atmosphere of extreme musical intensity that oscillates between chamber music and free jazz.
All in all, it’s the somnambulistically confident shifts between harsh and lyrical, dense and open, or accelerated and calmer passages, which create the most exciting dynamics.
It’s certainly helpful that the three were able to draw on decades of individual and collaborative experience within the global improvised music scene on this session. For Baritone Sax, Double Bass & Drumsetis a celebration of timbre, texture, sound and communication. Most of the fascination of this outstanding album comes from Lazro’s rich, expressive saxophone language, which is charmed by Léandre’s guttural yet elegant bass lines and Lovens’ subtle and inventive percussive cornucopia.
For Baritone Sax, Double Bass & Drumsetis available as a CD and as a download. You can listen to it and buy it on the Relative Pitch Bandcamp site:
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