Reviewed: 2018-02-22
Genre: Jazz
FCCs: none
Review: British jazz pianist tries his hand at improvising on pipe organs. Intrigued by the creative possibilities of the many organs in country churches around the UK (which are rarely used for new music or improvisation), he made a point of using organs of different sizes: large, medium, and small. Their different properties directly influenced the creative process.
If You Like: Keith Jarrett, Django Bates, Stefano Battaglia
Track Review (favorites denoted by *):
*1/ Kings (6:17) – slow & enveloping> quick fade
2/ Black Is The Colour (4:04) - slow tempo> fade
*3/ Rings of Saturn (6:11) – starts hesitatingly > dark & mysterious with clouds of harmony> slow as molasses> false stop> slow solo> fade and a note
*4/ Seeing Things (2:16) – spacy uptempo start> like fairies dancing> quick stop
5/ Modern Gods (4:32) – duet with sax> pulsing midtempo start segues into hesitating & fluctuating flurry of notes> segues into majestic midtempo solo> quick stop
6/ The Bone Gambler (4:36) – slow & quiet start> contemplative> slow fade
*7/ Flying Foxes (3:13) – a bit of fanfare to start> swings uptempo> like a modern carousel> crescendo end
*8/ Ruth’s Song For The Sea (5:30) – midtempo start> slow shifting melodies like waves> slow fade
9/ Last Leviathan (6:21) – majestic slow start> swells in volume> long slow fade
10/ The Gift (3:03) – slow start> slow tempo> slow fade