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BuddyDeFranco/Martin TaylorBuddy DeFrancoMeets Martin TaylorHEP JAZZ 2030AAA 1 /2Last summer at theChicago Jazz Festival,Buddy DeFranco showeda few thousand listenersthat everything he oncehad that made him the music’s leading clarinetisthe still has. I mention that because whenthis all-too-brief session was made in London 25years ago, DeFranco was already, at 60, a fabledveteran of considerable legend who seemed tohave touched all bases from Tommy Dorsey toCharlie Parker and Miles Davis.As one of the great transitional figures injazz, he reminds in the first and final tracks onthis modest but welcome reissue that the spacebetween swing and modernity was more a hopthan a leap. That seems to be among DeFranco’smessages as Paul Whiteman’s 1920 hit,“Whispering,” suddenly transforms without somuch as a hiccup into “Grooving High”; and hissubtly out-of-tempo “I Got Rhythm” assumes itsmodern identity as “Anthropology” withDeFranco and co-star Martin Taylor riding thebebop line in tight unison.Taylor, who was 29 when this was made,was and is a renowned U.K. player, conspicuousHailey NiswangerConfeddie(SELF-RELEASE)AAAAt just 20, Texas-born,Oregon-raised saxophonistNiswanger is already offthe blocks and barely lookingback, save for nods toHerbie Hancock, JoeHenderson, Benny Golsonet al. She opens this CD with a brave take onone of the hardest Thelonious Monk heads,“Four In One,” which, together with her enthusiasmfor Eddie Harris’ quartal constructions (theeponymous track is an unlikely pun on thisinfluence, quite brilliantly performed, if withentirely different thrust to Harris), indicates shelikes a challenge.Although Niswanger also plays clarinet,flute and soprano, she sticks to alto saxthroughout Confeddie and has lots of fluencyallied to a warm mid-to-low range. A hip balladselection, “La Mesha,” reveals that yes, thisgal has chops and sensitivity, as she fluttersbuttery-toned through Kenny Dorham’s themewhile agile pianist Michael Palma sprinklesangel dust in back.Guitarist Mark Whitfield’s son (as his namein the U.S. for his work withStephane Grappelli and occasionallyDavid Grisman. He isDeFranco’s match at everyturn, especially on some of thefast first-chorus accompanimentswhere he swirls aroundDeFranco like a hummingbirdspinning out strong single-notecounterpoint in the manner ofa pianist. He also contributestwo interesting originals,“Manhattan Tea Party” and the more conventional32-bar “Angles Camp.” The balance ofthe nine tunes, including the lovely “DarkIsland,” which sounds like an old Scottish folkmelody, are attractive ballads in which theleader shows proper deference to the composer.For a CD, the playing time is relatively modest,which makes one wonder why producerAlastair Robertson didn’t combine this reissuewith another DeFranco-Taylor effort for Heprecorded on tour in 1983. The presence of thesecond “Just Friends” would have been no burdenwhere these two remarkable players areconcerned.—John McDonoughBuddy DeFranco Meets Martin Taylor: Whispering (Groovin’High); I Got A Right To Sing The Blues; Manhattan Tea Party;Goodbye; Just Friends; Angels Camp; Dark Island; Prelude To AKiss; I Got Rhythm (Anthropology). (46:53)Personnel: Buddy DeFranco, clarinet; Martin Taylor, guitar; AlexShaw, piano; Ronnie Rae, bass; Clark Tracey, drums.»Ordering info: hepjazz.comsuggests) shows taste andreserve on drums, and youngbassist Greg Chaplin belieshis age with great feel. Palmadallies with the time on thewaltzing “Sometime Ago,”holding back, then surgingforward, the mark of a superiorplayer. Niswanger rips inaggressively before reprisal ofthe head, dusting out theschmaltz and adding a littleJohn Coltrane-ish turnaround at the end for goodmeasure. Her choice of Henderson’s nugget“Serenity,” which she articulates alongsideChaplin, indicates interest in inward-lookingmaterial, though the rhythmic edge inHenderson’s approach is a life study.The jam session staple “Stablemates” is lessof a surprise, but reminds Niswanger of timespent with composer Golson when he visitedBerklee. Chaplin strides mightily here, and thesustained vamp at the end shows that Niswangercan hang in support of her sidemen, rather thanhog the glory.—Michael JacksonAl Di Meola World SinfoniaLive From Seattle And ElsewhereVALIANA MUSIC AND MEDIAAAA 1 /2As inspired and inspiring as Al Di Meola’s performanceswith reunited fusion superstarsReturn to Forever were—count me among thosewho found the concerts surprisingly engaging—the guitarist, hero to several generations of sixstringers,has said he views his latter-day RTFactivity as “a nostalgic thing.” Meanwhile, hisprimary passion seems to be a continuing explorationof multiple world-music styles, as viewedthrough the lens of a remarkably agile playerwhose musical sensibilities were largely shapedby jazz and rock.Di Meola’s long-running collaboration withAfro-Cuban cajon player and percussionistGumbi Ortiz and a recently stabilized group ofother simpatico players makes an amenablehome for the leader’s melding of his distinctive,lightning-fast acoustic and electric riffs withrhythms and textures from South America, theCaribbean and the Middle East. The guitarist’slimited-edition new CD, intended to be the firstin a new series of live recordings, captures hiswell-travelled band, now known as New WorldSinfonia, amping up the rhythmic interplay andspeedy lines during bracing 2009 shows inSeattle, San Francisco and Istanbul.Di Meola blends his single-note runs, quickstrums and flickering patterns with second guitaristPeo Alfonsi and Fausto Beccalossi’s accordionplaying, which often serves as the warmglue holding these pieces together. The interplayamong those three musicians is particularlyappealing on two originals—color-shiftingopening track “Misterio” and the slow-chugging“Fireflies.” Ortiz, appropriately enough, gets thespotlight during the stripped-down midsection of“Gumbiero,” a Di Meola composition thatdemonstrates the high-energy intensity that thisgroup achieves on stage. —Philip BoothLive From Seattle And Elsewhere: Misterio; Siberiana;Paramour’s Lullaby; Gumbiero; Fireflies; Umbras; No PothoReposare. (55:17)Personnel: Al Di Meola, Peo Alfonsi, guitars; Fausto Beccalossi,accordion; Gumbi Ortiz, percussion; Peter Kaszas, drums andpercussion; Victor Miranda, bass.Confeddie: Four In One; Oliloqui Valley; Confeddie; La Mesha;Sometime Ago; Serenity; Stablemates; Yes Or No. (48:75)Personnel: Hailey Niswanger, alto saxophone; Michael Palma,piano; Greg Chaplin, bass; Mark Whitfield Jr., drums.» Ordering info: haileyniswanger.com» Ordering info: aldimeola.com64 DOWNBEAT May 2010