Arctic Riff (ECM)
Marcin Wasilewski Trio / Joe Lovano
Released June 26, 2020
AllMusic Favorite Jazz Albums 2020
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About:
The first-time creative teaming of Poland’s Marcin Wasilewski Trio and US tenorist Joe Lovano brings forth special music of concentrated, deep feeling, in which lyricism and strength seem ideally balanced. The alliance plays tunes by Marcin and by Joe, as well as Carla Bley’s classic “Vashkar”, plus collective improvisations with strong input from all four players. Produced by Manfred Eicher, Arctic Riff was recorded at Studios La Buissonne in the south of France in August 2019.
The album opens with Marcin Wasilewski’s rubato ballad “Glimmer of Hope” which, the composer explains, is “based mainly on one motive moving through some tonalities. I was very curious to hear how it would sound with Joe’s tone.” The piano gently prepares for the saxophone’s entry, and Lovano’s very first phrase – underpinned by Michal Miskiewicz’s soulful brushwork – establishes the sensitive atmosphere of intense listening that characterizes the session.
Carla Bley’s “Vashkar” follows, a tune interpreted in many different ways over the last half-century. Marcin, who first heard it on the album Footloose by the Paul Bley Trio with Steve Swallow and Pete LaRoca, finds new possibilities inside the world that Carla’s theme opens up: “I really like Carla’s compositions, and I wanted to play “Vashkar’’s beautiful melody with Joe.” Lovano bears down authoritatively on that melody before the Polish trio unravel some of its implications. Joe had performed Carla Bley’s music as a member of her band in 1983 and, in 1986, with Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra, but the present recording marks a first encounter as player with “Vashkar.”
“Cadenza” is the first, and at nine minutes the longest, of the collective pieces shaped in the moment on Arctic Riff. “On each of our recordings we’ve tried to explore musical areas that we haven’t documented before. There was no preconceived plan at all for the improvised pieces, but just as we were concluding a musical statement together on ‘Cadenza’, I had the feeling that it might be good to take it a little further. In that second, I heard Manfred saying through the headphones, ‘Marcin, please continue.’ That was a special moment, and helped to make the whole thing, spontaneously, a better piece of art.”
Wasilewski’s elegant ballad “Fading Sorrow” finds ways to keep the music fresh inside the song format. Slawomir Kurkiewicz’s bass feature here, soloing against Marcin’s subtle chording and discreet drums, is a highlight. Slawomir is also to the fore in the free piece “Arco” which, as its title implies, takes off from his bowed bass entry. “Free improvisation is a very rewarding experience based on mutual trust and openness,” says Slawomir. “As a working trio we’ve played freely many times and It was so touching to see Joe jumping right in there with such directness and clarity. It is great to hear his voice in such a context.” Lovano’s strengths as a player include his enthusiastic capacity to embrace all the things that jazz has been, including its traditional, modern and experimental expressions.
Joe’s sly, jaunty tenor sets up “Stray Cat Walk”, soon joined on its nocturnal prowl by Slawomir’s bass and Michal’s drums. Michal: “The beauty of Joe’s melodies and his amazing rhythmical flow encourage you as a musician to be more creative and spontaneous.”
“L’amour fou” is a piece Marcin wrote to showcase Lovano’s skills in a fast tempo context; the working title was “Crazy for Lovo”. The tune’s author has a bright sparkling solo here, too, after which Joe takes flight, buoyed by the spirited rhythm section, and Michal also has a brief, adroit solo.
“A Glimpse” is a kaleidoscopic free miniature of shifting focus, highly alert throughout. Miskiewicz: “From my point of view it’s necessary to be deeply concentrated on each single note, and to predict somehow what may happen in the next second, few seconds or sometimes imagine the whole sequence.”
A second version of “Vashkar” grants more of the solo space to Lovano. Joe: “’Vashkar’ is a beautiful, expressive piece of music. Each of the two versions has its own feeling, structure and exploration. I’m glad Manfred decided to include both takes. Carla’s music is inspired and inspiring – and I would say the same for the music we created on Arctic Riff.”
Joe wrote “On the Other Side” for the session, “as a contrast to Marcin’s compositions.” It’s a swinging free flowing piece with a specific sequence of events to be followed: “The drums set up the theme which is a question-and-answer exchange between the tenor and drums and the piano trio. A piano and drums duo follows, then adding bass into a trio moment without piano. Piano then re-enters, leading to the final theme with embellishments. The outcome was just what I was hoping for. “
And, finally, there is Marcin’s “Old Hat”, a moving ballad in classic jazz style, with tender solos from both Wasilewski and Lovano, its title referencing both the nostalgic flair of the piece and Joe’s penchant for vintage headgear.
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The Wasilewski Trio’s members have been playing together since high school days in Koszalin, Poland; the present line-up was established in 1993. Marcin Wasilewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz and Michal Miskiewicz first recorded for ECM as members of Tomasz Stanko’s quartet on the album Soul of Things in 2001, soon followed by Suspended Night and Lontano. Previous ECM albums in trio format are Trio (2004), January (2007), Faithful (2011), and Live (recorded 2016, released in 2018). For Spark of Life (2014), the trio was joined by Swedish saxophonist Joakim Milder. Wasilewski, Kurkiewicz and Miskiewicz also appear on Norwegian guitarist Jacob Young’s album Forever Young (2013).
Joe Lovano made his ECM debut in 1981 with Paul Motian’s Psalm. Further recordings with the Motian/Lovano/Frisell are It Should have Happened A Long Time Ago, I Have The Room Above Her, and Time And Time Again. Lovano has also recorded for ECM with John Abercrombie (Open Land, Within A Song), Marc Johnson (Shades of Jade, Swept Away), and Steve Kuhn (Mostly Coltrane). 2019 saw the release of two critically-acclaimed recordings with Lovano – Trio Tapestry, introducing Joe’s trio with Marilyn Crispell and Carmen Castaldi, and Roma, a live album with Enrico Rava, Giovanni Guidi, Dezron Douglas and Gerald Cleaver.
Track Listing:
1. Glimmer of Hope (Marcin Wasilewski) 08:33
2. Vashkar (Carla Bley) 05:56
3. Cadenza (Slawomir Kurkiewicz / Joe Lovano / Michal Miskiewicz / Marcin Wasilewski) 09:12
4. Fading Sorrow (Marcin Wasilewski) 06:01
5. Arco (Slawomir Kurkiewicz / Joe Lovano / Michal Miskiewicz / Marcin Wasilewski) 04:00
6. Stray Cat Walk (Slawomir Kurkiewicz / Joe Lovano / Michal Miskiewicz / Marcin Wasilewski) 02:32
7. L’ Amour Fou (Marcin Wasilewski) 08:52
8. A Glimpse (Slawomir Kurkiewicz / Joe Lovano / Michal Miskiewicz / Marcin Wasilewski) 02:10
9. Vashkar (Carla Bley) 04:38
10. On the Other Side (Joe Lovano) 05:01
11. Old Hat (Marcin Wasilewski) 05:35
Personnel:
Marcin Wasilewski Trio
Marcin Wasilewsk: piano
Slawomir Kurkiewicz: double bass
Michal Miskiewicz: drums
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Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone
Recorded August 2019, Studios La Buissonne, Pernes les Fontaines, by Gérard de Haro
Mastering: Nicolas Baillard
Cover Photo: Thomas Wunsch
Design: Sascha Kleis
Produced by Manfred Eicher
Review:
The first meeting between Polish pianist Marcin Wasilewski and saxophonist Joe Lovano, 2020’s Arctic Riff is a richly textured and atmospheric recording. Joining them are Wasilewski’s longtime associates bassist Sławomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michał Miśkiewicz. Together since the early ’90s, Wasilewski’s trio gained widespread acclaim in Europe as members of the late trumpeter Tomasz Stanko’s ensemble before embarking on their own. Arctic Riff is Wasilewski’s sixth solo outing for ECM, following 2014’s Spark of Life with saxophonist Joakim Milder and 2018’s Live. The album also arrives on the heels of Lovano’s own ambient and exploratory 2019 ECM album Trio Tapestry. Both Wasilewski and Lovano bring decades of experience to their collaboration, drawing upon a wealth of straight-ahead post-bop and avant-garde-leaning projects. Arctic Riff benefits from both ends of the spectrum with tracks that move from the conventional to the completely abstract. The opening, “Glimmer of Hope,” is a particularly accessible piece, evoking the languid and dusky atmosphere of ’70s neo-noir films like Body Heat and Chinatown. Similarly, “L’amour Fou” is a brisk, French-sounding hard bop number that brings to mind Dexter Gordon’s later-career output. More outre are cuts like “Stray Cat Walk,” with its slinky free-jazz interplay between Lovano and Wasilewski. Also intriguing is the impressionistic “Arco,” which finds bassist Kurkiewicz laying down a moody, bowed improvisation as the rest of the band join in with an eerie soundscape of woody bird tones, percussive gongs, and sparkling, off-kilter harmonies. Elsewhere, they stumble into “A Glimpse,” with Lovano and Wasilewski dancing against the rhythm section like bugs flitting against a porch light. They also offer two artfully shaded variations of Carla Bley’s “Vashkar,” the latter of which finds Kurkiewicz laying down heavy bass chord waves for Lovano and Wasilewski to surf over. They return to languid territory on “Old Hat,” a slow, elegant ballad that sparkles with the saxophonist’s swooning tones and the pianist’s sun-dappled chords. Arctic Riff is an absolutely transfixing collaboration that makes the most of Lovano and Wasilewski’s deeply empathetic skills.
Matt Collar (AllMusic)
