MARCIN WASILEWSKI
TRIO
January
ECM
The extremely good news is that January,
the second ECM release by the Marcin Wasilewski Trio, shows
a group that has grownby leaps and bounds since the release
of their first disc, Trio.
The group has been named after its pianist
now, not merely by virtue of the fact that the pianist is
often the leader, but also because Wasilewski is truly leading
this excellent group of musicians. Nonetheless, the group
is in every sense a modern piano trio, meaning that bassist
Slawomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michal Miskiewicz are equal
members of the band, not merely the ‘rhythm section.’
Kurkiewicz is a much stronger presence on the new recording,
and the musical bond between he and Wasilewski has been
strengthened by their work with drummer Manu Katche’s
recording group.
They have also learned about making and sequencing
a successful jazz recording, something they no doubt gleaned
from trumpet player Tomasz Stanko and ECM magnate/producer
Manfred Eicher. January flows like music that simply was
there, and which Wasilewski and his cohorts merely plucked
out of the air and made audible to the rest of us. The opening
“First Touch,” an original composition, unfolds
slowly, like a meditation, with Wasilewski delivering gorgeous
Bill Evans meets Keith Jarrett piano while Kurkiewicz and
Miskiewicz provide depth of color and texture. Following
this serene opening the group launches into a series of
covers that demonstrates their ability to vary their style
and their knack for finding just the right material to interpret.
Gary Peacock’s “Vignette” was included
on the bassist’s 1977 recording Tales of Another,
which just happened to feature a trio comprised of Peacock,
Jack DeJohnette, and Keith Jarrett. Coincidence? Not a chance.
Wasilewski know that Jarrett’s Standards Trio is the
standard by which new piano trios are judged, and they take
on this tune and make it their own. If Wasilewski and company
are the new Young Lions to Jarrett, Peacock, and DeJohnette’s
old masters, they manage to do more than merely pay tribute
to their elders.
Both “Cinema Paradiso” and Prince’s
“Diamonds and Pearls” are romantic, melodic
pieces in this group’s hands, but they are not facile
exercises in empty beauty. Rather, each element seems as
though there was no other element that could have taken
its place, such is the perfection of the group’s conception
of these tunes. Both tracks allow their melodic secrets
to slowly unwind rather than hitting you in the face with
them. It is fully half of “Cinema Paradiso’’s
eight and a half minutes before Kurkiewicz and Miskiewicz
lock into a groove. And while they create a fantastic atmosphere
for Wasilewski, it is still all the pianist’s show
on this tune. One senses that Wasilewski has a soft spot
for this tune, so careful is his attention in playing it.
“Diamonds and Pearls” features the interplay
between Kurkiewicz and Wasilewski, as the bassist first
introduces the song’s descending melodic line, then
is joined by Wasilewski in octaves, finally handing the
melody off to the pianist.
Tomasz Stanko’s classic composition
“Balladyna” is handled nicely by the trio, as
they supplement it’s slightly disturbing melodic statement
with chord clusters. The rhythm section goes fairly free-form
during Wasilewski’s solo, and the group’s roiling
intensity simmers like a summer thunder cloud. Carla Bley’s
“King Korn” also sounds reliatively free in
its initial presentation, but the song’s strong structure
helps define it, and the group goes into a swinging hyperdrive
about a third of the way through, demonstrating that they
can play solid mainstream post-bop when they want to.
The last four tunes are original compositions
(the last, ‘New York 2007’ is a group improvisation).
First up is Wasilewski’s “The Cat,” driven
by a springy bass figure over which Wasilewski plays his
Jarrett-influenced piece. This group is capable of getting
into an irresistible groove, a fact they have demonstrated
numerous times with Stanko and now as a trio. Kurkiewicz
also solos on the track, providing proof of his growth.
The title track is a Wasilewski tour-de-force, a gorgeous
and meditative number that pulls the listener in with its
intimacy. “The Young and Cinema,” also by Wasilewski,
references a Polish film festival by that title, and tips
the hat to the cinematic quality of this group’s conception.
In countries such as Poland, where democratic reforms are
still within recent memory, the arts have all rapidly developed
hand in hand as a greater degree of individual expression
is welcomed. This piece in particular is reminiscent of
the work Wasilewski has done with Manu Katche.
It is not just the individual players who
have grown since the trio’s first disc, but the group
as an entity. The final number, “New York 2007”
is a group improvisation, the only one on January.
The group did several such experiments on their first recording,
but the level of group interaction has increased here, and
the results are stunning. January puts the Marcin
Wasilewski Trio at the head of the class of young jazz groups
out there, both from Europe and the U.S., who respect the
traditions of jazz but are determined to put their own spin
on it.
