Hommage à Bartók (Silkheart)
Steve Swell’s Kende Dream
Released June 20, 2016
DownBeat Four-and-a-Half-Star Review
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nv35hcjGLEcFg2p0BoOg7r-LIvAfNcE_k
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/3gHuZtGKNrYV5sOUvYouly?si=3p-Hr_bPQEiEAnKttDe4qg&dl_branch=1
About:
Trombonist Steve Swell’s approach to a Bartók homage on Kende Dreams is a synthesis and it advisably leaves the encounter with the Hungarian a relatively loose and oblique affair, with specific points of convergence but an end product that feels more like it was inspired by the composer than obliged to adopt his methods. The seven tracks are creative music pitched at the highest level; as is that music’s unalienable right, it absorbs and transforms things that it comes into contact with. So, unlike Milhaud’s attempts to quote or characterize jazz, this is jazz eating and fully digesting modern classical music, turning it into something else completely. »
John Corbett
Track Listing:
1. Roswellian Folk Song (Steve Swell) 07:57
2. For Will Connell Jr. (Steve Swell) 07:51
3. After SQ4 (Steve Swell) 09:59
4. Attack of the Mikrokosmos (Steve Swell) 08:12
5. Bartók Screams (Steve Swell) 13:40
6. Lent-Oh! (Steve Swell) 14:09
7. Ultima (Steve Swell) 08:34
Personnel:
Rob Brown: alto saxophone
Steve Swell: trombone
Connie Crothers: piano
William Parker: bass
Chad Taylor: drums
Recorded December 5, 2014, at Park West Studios, Brooklyn, New York
Mixed and Mastered by Jim Clouse
Produced by Steve Swell and Lars-Olof Gustavsson
Cover Artwork by Iñaki Bonillas
Layout by Stéphane Berland
Executive Producers: Lars-Olof Gustavsson and Stéphane Berland
Review:
Early stints with Buddy Rich and Lionel Hampton helped trombonist Steve Swell build a foundation, but it is as a contributor to the New York Downtown scene that he found and pursued his own path. In 2015, he celebrated his 61st birthday with a series of recordings, including a new quintet, Kende Dreams, and his first ever solo recording. Swedish label owner and producer LarsOlof Gustafsson came up with the concept for Hommage À Bartók. In many ways, the music is typical Swell: the catchy melody line used as a springboard for unfettered improvisation or the intensity of group interplay. However, he had a eureka moment in inviting pianist Connie Crothers to join an already stellar group of long time collaborators (alto saxophonist Rob Brown, bassist William Parker, and drummer Chad Taylor). Her simple comping on “Bartók Screams” has the power to transform the composition, and Swell credits her for being the “Bartókian” element. She can also assume different roles, an asset that frees up the other musicians and allows them to let their creative juices flow. Full of improvisational highlights, Hommage À Bartók is a mature work that ranks high in the trombonist’s discography.
Alain Drouot (DownBeat)
