JENNY SCHEINMAN

New Blues Aki Takase (Enja/Yellowbird)
En Corps
Eve Risser/Benjamin Duboc/Edward Perraud
(Dark Tree)
Games and Improvisations (Homage à György Kurtág)
Katharina Weber/Barry Guy/Balts Nill (Intakt)
Orchestre Idéal Johanna Borchert (WhyPlayJazz)
by John Sharpe
Right from the time when most women in the
entertainment business were either singers or dancers,
the piano supplied one of the few acceptable entrees
for female instrumentalists to the world of jazz. Even
though such prejudices have been left way behind, the
keyboard remains where women are most strongly
represented on the bandstand.
Berlin-based Japanese pianist Aki Takase creates a
beguiling mix of the old and the modern day, with her
original compositions rubbing shoulders with tunes by
Fats Waller, Jelly Roll Morton and WC Handy. In many
ways New Blues is a follow up to 2003’s Plays Fats
Waller (Enja), with almost the same lineup, including
the spirited yet knowing vocals by maverick guitarist/
18 March 2013 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD
banjo player Eugene Chadbourne. Some of the pianist’s
numbers sit well alongside the standards, such as the
jaunty “Seven Eleven”, featuring quicksilver interplay
between the bass clarinet of Rudi Mahall and the
boisterous trombone of Nils Wogram, while others
boast a barreling vivacity and angular unisons, as well
as bursts of piano dissonance from the leader. There is
a madcap edge to the polyphony, which bursts out of
the confines of “The Joint Is Jumpin’”, “Dr. Jazz” and
“Dead Man Blues”, even though the last comes
complete with a funeral march introduction.
Very different but equally enthralling, En Corps
features the French triumvirate of pianist Eve Risser
working with the seasoned bass and drums of Benjamin
Duboc and Edward Perraud. Remarkably selfless,
Risser tempers her keyboard with all manner of
preparations, including wooden and metal blocks,
accentuating the percussive nature of her instrument.
Over two lengthy excursions the trio indulge in what
might be termed tantric jazz: mysterious, veiled, slow
burning and perfectly judged. Indeterminate sounds
flicker like stars in the cosmic void, as brief shards of
rhythmic patter form part of a larger arc that
disjointedly moves to a stunning crescendo, without a
hint of tune or steady tempo, before Risser’s distant
hammered tremolo sees the energy slowly dissipate.
On Games and Improvisations, Swiss pianist
Katharina Weber interprets 11 brief (mainly less than a
minute) piano works by contemporary Hungarian
composer György Kurtág. She follows each one, in the
company of compatriot percussionist Balts Nill and
English bass virtuoso Barry Guy, with a reaction to the
initial work. Weber, who studied with Kurtág, is a
precise and self-contained practitioner, balanced by
Nill who is as much sound sculptor as percussionist
while Guy’s astonishing range of textures act as the
NEW FROM RED HOUSE RECORDS!
glue between them. At times the links between
inspiration and resultant extemporization are clear, as
with “Palm Stroke”, where the ensuing improvisation
is correspondingly thorny and energetic, while
elsewhere the connection becomes more oblique, as
with “Hommage à Szervánszky: Silence”, melodic but
interspersed with quiet, which draws an initially lowkey,
lower case response before the three voices
variously overlap and mesh. The set can be enjoyed on
several different levels: Kurtág’s pieces, spare to the
point of haiku, can be savored in their own right; or
inviting investigation of the relationships to the
corresponding exploration or as an extended suite.
German pianist Johanna Borchert extracts the
essence of the orchestra from her piano, harpsichord
and autoharp over the course of 13 short tracks on
Orchestre Idéal. Like Risser, she also makes extensive
use of preparations but to very different ends. At times,
such as on the tolling “Obertöne”, she evokes
minimalism, provoking contemporary classical
comparisons. Elsewhere she summons Erik Satie,
especially on the dreamy “Lillies”. The latter is one of
four pieces improvised on her own compositions, more
lyrical than the unpremeditated cuts. In her
explorations of texture, layers and moods, several
events often happen simultaneously, such as the
pointillist plucked notes and dramatic piano sweep of
“Königlicher Schlafgang” or the ghostly ape-like hoots,
percussive taps and isolated keystrokes that comprise
“Gemolkene Stäbchen”. Many of the pieces are left
hanging and this, combined with the general austerity
of conception, means that a similarly unresolved air
hangs over the album as a whole.
For more information, visit enjarecords.com,
darktree-records.com, intaktrec.ch and whyplayjazz.de
HEATHER MASSE AND DICK HYMAN
LOCK MY HEART
www.redhouserecords.com
“a coalescence of musical vision and sound.”
– ALL ABOUT JAZZ
“timeless...makes old school new cool.”
–@CRITICALJAZZ
The surprise duo fi rst heard on public
radio’s A Prairie Home Companion!
The brilliant honey-voiced alto and
songwriter from The Wailin’ Jennys
meets the legendary pianist in a stunning
new recording of classic jazz vocals.
The sound quality and performances
are astounding!
AVAILABLE IN BOTH REGULAR CD AND
SUPER AUDIO CD (HYBRID SACD) FORMATS.
RECORDED IN HI-REZ DIRECT STREAM DIGITAL.