Breath By Breath (Palmetto Records)
Fred Hersch
Released January 2022
70th DownBeat Annual Critics Poll Top 10 Album of the Year
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About:
Fred Hersch’s new album Breath by Breath is the prolific pianist and composer’s first pairing of a jazz rhythm section with a string quartet.
Among the personnel on Breath by Breath, coming in early January, is bassist Drew Gress, a longtime collaborator from the days of Hersch’s first trio. The pair have continued to work with and inspire each other for three decades. Rounding out the rhythm section is Jochen Rueckert, an in-demand session drummer who has worked with other jazz notables such as Pat Metheny, Melissa Aldana and Kurt Rosenwinkel.
Adding to the album’s sound are violinists Joyce Hammann and Laura Seaton, violist Lois Martin, and cellist Jody Redhage Ferber, who make up The Crosby Street String Quartet, named after the New York address of their first rehearsal with Hersch.
“String quartets have been some of my favourite music to listen to my whole life,” Hersch explains in the album’s liner notes. “I grew up listening to string quartets as a very young musician in Cincinnati. My piano teacher was the wife of the cellist in the famous LaSalle Quartet. I used to lie on the rug in their living room as an elementary school student while they rehearsed, quietly following along, hearing how the viola part meshed with the first violin, or the second violin and the cello. And ever since I started studying composition at age eight, almost all of my music has always focused on four melodic parts — so string quartets are a natural musical configuration for me.”
The album’s title is a reference to Hersh’s decades-long practice of mindfulness meditation, which he credits with “saving my life” and has been an important part of his adjustment to life during the pandemic.
But while the record does have more contemplative moments, it also finds Hersch pushing his imagination for jazz composition to its limits. “When I started, I realized that in a way I’ve been meditating my whole life — but on a piano bench,” he says. “I close my eyes when I play and I go into that world. Occasionally I get distracted, but I don’t get wrapped up in it. Instead of my breath being an anchor, the anchor is the sound that I get, the tactile feeling of my fingers on the keys, hearing the space around the music, and leaving that space for other musicians to contribute.”
Track Listing:
The Sati Suite
1. Begin Again 6:52
2. Awakened Heart 4:13
3. Breath By Breath 6:22
4. Monkey Mind 4:01
5. Rising, Falling 5:03
6. Mara 4:38
7. Know That You Are 3:41
8. Worldly Winds 5:26
——————————————————————
9. Pastorale (Homage à Robert Schumann) 6:08
Personnel:
Fred Hersch: piano
Drew Gress: bass
Jochen Rueckert: drums
Rogerio Boccato: percussion (6)
Crosby Street String Quartet
Lois Martin: viola
Joyce Hammann: violin
Laura Seaton: violin
Jody Redhage Ferber: cello
Recorded August 24-25, 2021, at the Samurai Hotel, Astoria, New York
Produced by Franky Rousseau & Fred Hersch
Executive-Producer: Missi Callazzo
Engineered by James Farber & David Stoller
Mixed by Brian Montgomery
Mastered by Klaus Scheuernann
Design: Douglas Heusser
Review:
Pianist and composer Fred Hersch has delivered some of the most interesting music in jazz for the better part of four decades. The art he makes is not disposable in any sense of the word. It is indestructible and lasting. Take, for instance, Breath By Breath, his latest recording of jazz trio with string quartet, an amazingly satisfying listening experience. Many jazz-meets-classical projects have come out in recent months, and what places Hersch at the forefront of this particular trend (see DownBeat’s February 2022 issue) is his singular vision of presenting something of depth, all the while displaying a quintessential mastery of both the piano and composition. On Breath By Breath, Hersch creates a suite of music based on his long-time dedication to the practice of meditation. Many of the songs (like “Rising, Falling”) create a sense of breathing in and out as the strings, piano, bass and drums play in, through and around the pulse. But don’t think of this as some experiment in new-age faux mysticism. This is a high-level melding of jazz and classical elements, one that seems easy, natural and full of life. “Begin Again KSM3” kicks off the suite with Hersch playing a simple piano motif. It’s classic Hersch — catchy, classy and thoughtful. Enter bassist Drew Guess and drummer Jochen Rueckert, along with the Crosby Street String Quartet of violinists Joyce Hammann and Laura Seaton, violist Lois Martin and cellist Jody Redhage Ferber. The strings function almost like a fourth member of the trio — punctuating, pulsing, adding color — but it is not just for show. There are elements of absolute beauty on pieces like “Awakened Heart,” the title track “Breath By Breath” and the closer “Pastorale.” And there are moments of near giddiness on numbers like “Monkey Mind” and “Mara.” These compositions masterfully transform the two groups into one, and together they build a musical universe that’s different from anything else on the scene today.
Frank Alkyer (DownBeat)
