BassX3 - GEBHARD ULLMANN, CHRIS DAHLGREN, CLAYTON THOMAS – Transatlantic (Live - 2009)

Label: Leo Records – CD LR 625
Format: CD, Album; Country: UK - Released: Jan. 2012
Style: Free Improvisation
Recorded live at RBB Studios, Berlin on August 14th, 2009, Mixed December 1, 2009
Design, Cover – Clare M. Cooper; Edited By – Anja Bause
Engineer – Nikolaus Löwe; Mastered By – Ricarda Molder, Photography By – Dietmar Liste; Recording Supervisor – Wolfgang Hoff

Three bass instrumentalists - Gebhard Ullman on bass clarinet and bass flute, Chris Dahlgren on double bass, and Clayton Thomas on double bass, improvising on the lower end of the tonal range of chamber music.

For fans of low tonalities, BassX3′s new album Transatlantic is heaven. It ’ s the second one from multi-reedman Gebhard Ullmann (who plays bass clarinet and bass flute) with bassists Chris Dahlgren and Clayton Thomas. To call this the best jazz album of the year so far invites all kinds of arguments – after all, can a recording this opaque, rhythmically inchoate and impossibly esoteric be much more than a curio? Absolutely! Whether you consider this free jazz, ambient music or indie classical, it ’ s a rich, murky masterpiece. Its centerpiece is the title track, an epic, 33-minute three-part suite. The low drone of the two basses being bowed in tandem builds a chocolatey mist laced with overtones, with the occasional creak, thud or rattle, evoking the hum of the diesels and maybe a hammock swaying in a stateroom. You could call it the Titanic Theme – from the point of view of passengers in steerage, anyway. Ulllmann, as usual, doesn ’ t limit himself to any preconceived tonalities, offering a blithely whistling microtonal solo in the first segment as the bassists rattle the occasional random household item like ghosts flitting through the sonic frame.

                          Clayton Thomas

The other tracks here are just as enjoyable and much less static. The Thing features burbling, echoey twin basses with the bass clarinet wandering the moors, off to the side; then the basses back away, leaving Ullmann prowling contentedly, centerstage. The No Place has the bass flute looming pensive and minimalistic over jagged, distantly percussive bass chords and atonal accents and the occasional jarring pluck of a string: an Asian-tinged horror film score for before the point where the suspense reaches the level of a scream. The aptly titled Epic layers minutely wavering bass flute over a rather menacing backdrop of overtones and low washes; then the group all go spiraling around in what sounds like the bottom of a well before returning to a lusciously droning rumble that Ullmann uses as a long launching pad for some unexpectedly energetic low bass clarinet work. Ornette ’ s Closet contrasts brightly bouncing clarinet over echoey low-register playfulness; the diptych Berlin Is Full of Lonely People, a desolate, brooding tone poem, is the most melodically memorable track here.

Ullmann also has a considerably more lively if less intense release out with his Clarinet Trio, simply titled 4, featuring him playing bass clarinet alongside Jurgen Kupke on clarinet and Michael Thieke on alto clarinet. Fans of Ullmann ’ s back catalog will find this casually conversational session more in line with his previous free jazz work. The tracks include an artfully disassembled, brightly layered Balkan cocek dance; a wryly swaying, atonal blues; a tensely exploding tone poem that might have been a sketch for Transatlantic; a playfully martial study in low-register clusters; all sorts of friendly jousting, and an Ornette Coleman cover. Both albums are out now on Leo Records.

                         Gebhard Ullmann


Written by Glenn Astarita

This Germany-based trio artfully expresses the lower register realm, framed on a program that enables the musicians to share equal ground and incorporate a concentrated focus, cloaking a major portion of the album. With growling basses, sinewy arco-passages and the use of objects to alter sounds and provide an ethereal framework, the musicians uncannily tender motifs that could sometimes allude to the use of background electronics. In a sense, the trio plays tricks with your psyche, abetted by darkly resonating notes and supple passages. They often intimate a sacred rite of passage amid several spikes and interconnecting movements, signaling understated buoyancy.

While playing the bass flute, Gebhard Ullmann amid the bassists' shrewd use of space and contrasting effects, conjure notions of a solemn vista, including delicate treatments and hallowing auras. On various pieces, the musicians radiate craggy tones, complemented by otherworldly extended notes and dense frameworks. Armed with a consortium of concepts, they touch upon minimalism and offset the undulating currents with lashing breakouts.

The piece titled "Berlin is Full of Lonely People (Part One)" is aggressive and inward- looking. They present striking disparities encapsulated by Ullmann's haunting flute phrasings and the bassists' angular statements. Here, they navigate through darkness as blithe settings coalesce with fleeting themes. And at various points throughout the set, they inject a coarse edge where Ullmann's bass clarinet work serves an instigator and prompts the slicing and dicing three-way interactions.

As it might be anticipated, the artists do not simply indulge in wanton cacophony or purposeless improvisation. Hence, it's a cohesive engagement that digs deep into the soul and proposes a surfeit of compelling persuasions.

                          Chris Dahlgren

It used to be usually the pride of any musician (vocalist) to get the highest note possible on the instrument, clear and crisp. The idea of assembling together three low-register instruments might not be revolting today but nevertheless it's not something you meet too often. Which is but one of the reasons BASSX3 project should attract your attention.

BASSX3 is about unusual sound possibilities, and the album's titles gets it right - low bowed notes are not unlike the wailing of the transatlantic's siren, but in their creative adventure they manage to expand the sonic capabilities of own instruments with up to the area of high ear- piercing sounds of metallic overtones, bowed plates and plucked strings. Gebhard Ullmann, Chris Dahlgren and Clayton Thomas create together music that esquisitely original and uniqe in its sonorus vision and captivating in its surreal qualities. Rumbling vibratos, ritual and primal drones, noir suspens of deep tones, waling low-cries as if distorted through some space-time continuum filter, slowed down, maximalized, detailed, deceiptevely minimalistic on the outside, reach and colourfull below the surface. As "Transatlantic" part three which finishes the cd with the drone vibrations and clarinet growls, like boiling water in the pot with the top on, with all the heated vapour trying to escape) . This is music of incredible tension, of gripping, unwordly atmosphere, of almost infinite depth and reach. Majestic, pensieve, meditative and cerebral (as the title aptly suggest like "The Epic" or the three parts of "Transatlantic"; the qualities are reinforced when the gentler sound of the flute substitues for the darker tones of bass clarinet). Restrained, focused yet adventurous, with "Ornette's Closet" being the only change of pace as the musicians prove they can make the notes jump and run in the free bop vein.

An unique concept that gave unique results. Deeply intriguing and gratifying. Music for those who'd like to dive down deep into the depths of the ocean. Surreal voyage. Brilliant.



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GEBHARD ULLMANN Basement Research - Don't Touch My Music, vol. 1 and vol. 2 (2007)

Gebhard Ullmann Basement Research - Don ’ t Touch My Music vol. 1
Label: Not Two Records – MW 803-2
Format: CD, Album; Country: Poland; Released: 2008
Style: Free Improvisation
Recorded Live in concert at Alchemia, Krakow on October 22, 2007. 
Mixed and mastered by Jens Tröndle in March 2008. Band photos by Katarzyna Paletko. Cake drawing by Marta Wajda. Cover photo and design by Marek Wajda. Produced by Gebhard Ullmann for NotTwo Records.
All compositions by Gebhard Ullmann

Gebhard Ullmann – bass clarinet & tenor saxophone | Julian Argüelles - soprano & baritone saxophones | Steve Swell – trombone | John Hebert – bass | Gerald Cleaver – drums

Liner Notes:

How to celebrate your 50th birthday 

I don’t know how most people feel, but when I reach a certain milestone, such as a 50th birthday, I can think of no better way to mark the occasion than by playing great music, your own music with great musicians to enthusiastic crowds from Poland, to the Czech Republic and in your own hometown at a major European jazz festival, one of the biggest of them all. That ’ s exactly what my good friend Gebhard Ullmann did in 2007. Even it wasn ’ t MY 50th, it was great to be there, enjoying his performing with the great musicians you hear here. Not to mention the music was so very hot!!! Being my own DIYer, I know how hard it is to put a good tour together, logistics, hotels, trains, planes. Geb did a fantastic job on this one and everybody in this band understood all the work involved. We just had a ball playing. Those are the ingredients that make a good band great. Not to mention everyone had each other ’ s back. Listen to this disc and you ’ ll see/hear what I mean. From the first night in the Czech Republic this band was spot on. Everyone jumped into Geb ’ s music, tearing up the great music he writes and contributing great solos and support all around. The vibe in this band is so positive, I would vote for some of these guys for President of the U.S. or Germany, if I could. And the people at Alchemia and of course Marek Winiarski of NotTwo were so fantastic some of us hung out at the club till the wee hours. It seems every band I play with at Alchemia does the same thing. It must be the water there.

As far as working with Geb, he really knows how to lead, which is part psychology part musicology. He knows how to get us to play and have a great time doing it. His joy was our joy. He is such a first class guy. We really enjoyed getting down for Geb on this one. And I don ’ t think he touched my music once.

— Steve Swell, NYC April 2008


Review:

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Gebhard Ullmann lays down the ground rules without ado with the slam-bang title Don't Touch My Music. There should be no qualms about that, Ullmann's music is made to draw rapt attention. The closer one listens, the more there is to discover. Ullmann brings in an evolving, and revolving, cast of characters to give voice to his music. Each ensemble brings certain attributes and direction to his compositions that absorb various strains to enrich them. Basement Research with Steve Swell, Julian Arguelles, John Hebert, and Gerald Cleaver has marked an indelible presence with their earlier work. And there's no messing around with them this time either.

The members of Basement Research have honed empathy to a fine skill. Surprise is the hallmark of their cross-pollination of genres. The band dons and doffs styles in seamless motion, playing in sweet consonance at one moment and taking off at tangents the next. An intimate conversation warps into disparate strain. And with the wit and sly humor they inject, this CD turns out to be quite the excellent entertainer. “ Don't Touch the Music ” is a fine showcase for their creativity. Ullmann brings in the tenor saxophone and blows a myriad of blustery notes. Swell and Argulles lay down calmer lines in tandem leaving Ullmann to his own devices.

The melodic theme wisps in and out, the band romps into swing, the horns honk and bop, while the rhythm section lays down a steady beat. The spirit of New Orleans permeates “ Kleine Figuren No. 2 ” with the sounds of Mardi Gras and a funeral march saturating the melody before they turn on the switch and move into a Latin snap, the samba and uppity swing with the meter and tempo making for infectious bedfellows.

Every track is tantalizing.
No matter which way the ear is cocked, the music has vitality, panache, and verve.

By Jerry D'Souza (AllAboutJazz)

Gebhard Ullmann Basement Research - Don ’ t Touch My Music vol. 2
Label: Not Two Records – MW 804-2

Gebhard Ullmann – bass clarinet & tenor saxophone | Julian Argüelles - soprano & baritone saxophones | Steve Swell – trombone | John Hebert – bass | Gerald Cleaver – drums


Review:

When Gebhard Ullmann took his Basement Research into Krakow 's Alchemia Club to celebrate his 50th birthday, he recorded two sets of music. The first was released as Don't Touch My Music, Vol. 1. Like the first, this second set is unedited and unchanged, and shows just how intuitive and empathic the band is.

Ullmann's compositions encapsulate several idioms. He goes from blues to a march, transforming into free idioms without a twinge. And just as his writing is earthy, so too is his playing. He never wastes a note and creates music that leaves its mark on the anvil of time. And if his playing is the cornerstone of the band, his accomplices are no less distinguished in essaying their craft.

Ullmann fires up "Das Blaue Viertle" from a funereal beat into a hot and grinding climax. Along the way, he has Julian Arguelles (soprano and baritone saxophones) and Steve Swell (trombone) help in the transition. The deep growl of the baritone and the wailing cry of the trombone are muscular trajectories, but a waft of swing that cools the air, and the silken curtain that Swell and Arguelles drop behind Ullman, brings their vision full circle.

"New No Ness" takes concept and resolution to another level. In an elegiac encounter, John Hebert (bass) and Gerald Cleaver (drums) are cool protagonists holding a conversation in almost hushed voices. Their path is unhurried as the bass gives voice to a soft shower of chords tempered by the rhythm of the drums. The mood is rent asunder by the invasion of the brass. Shards fly, volatile darts criss-cross, tumultuous lines leap, and the energy is intense. The phases are distinct but just as the calm tells its own story, the storm sets up its own pitch.

In the exquisitely delightful nugget "Don't Touch Our Music," Ullmann, Arguelles and Swell set out on individual roads, marking their journey with breathy phrases, tongue-slapped interjections and quaint melodic lines that disappear almost as soon as they come in. They stop for brief conversations and then traipse off again. It is all quiet and the curtain ringer for a performance that should stay long in the memory.

By JERRY D'SOUZA, Published: August 6, 2009 (AAJ)

_____________________________


Gebhard Ullmann, Steve Swell, Julian Argüelles, John Hebert, Gerald Cleaver

With 'Basement Research' Gebhard Ullmann released his first cd for the italian label Soul Note / Black Saint in 1995.
Four of the most interesting individualists out of the new generation of contemporary jazz players realized their very personal and intense musical ideas. The cd has been widely critically acclaimed and been listed in the us-college-radio-jazz -charts for several months.
The second cd 'Kreuzberg Park east' (with Ellery Eskelin, Drew Gress, Phil Haynes) released on Soul Note in 2000 had even more impact in jazz circles.
After a European tour with Tony Malaby replacing Eskelin in 1999 (documented on the cd 'Live in Muenster') and a 5- year pause the new 'Basement Research' project went on tour again in 2004 as a quintet. the final 2005 line-up featured Gebhard Ullmann (bcl, ts) Steve Swell (tb) Julian Argüelles (bs, ss) John Hebert (bass) and Gerald Cleaver (dr).
The 4th cd 'New Basement Research' was released 2007 once again on Soul Note as part of Gebhard Ullmann's 50th birthday celebrations, made a lot of best-of-the-year lists and received a 4 1/2 star review in DownBeat in March 2008. A very successful tour followed closed by a concert at the prestiguous Berlin Jazzfestival in November 2007.
'New Basement Research' was among the best of 2008 cds in DownBeat and 'Don't Touch My Music vol.1' was named one of the best cds of the year by Allabout Jazz New York.
'Don't Touch My Music vol.1 & vol 2.' recorded live at the Alchemia club in Krakow, Poland was released in 2009.
The band toured Europe again in october 2009. for this tour Tim Daisy replaced Gerald Cleaver.
We are looking forward to record the 7th cd and tour again in February/March 2013. Pascal Niggenkemper will replace John Hebert for this one.

Gebhard Ullmann - tenor saxophone and bass clarinet (photo by Josl. Knaepen)


Budd Kopman in Allaboutjazz about 'Basement Research live in Muenster':
 "Ullmann thrives on playing without a net, and being caught live only enhances the experience. i have always thought that deep inside, Ullmann was a blues man, but in the same way as Coleman Hawkins, neither come right out and play the blues per se, but it always lurks beneath the surface. Perhaps it is not coincidental that "in Muenster" starts with "Blaues Lied (blue song)" a very deep but also deeply twisted blues ...
The band is very, very hot on this record. Malaby gives as much as he gets, Gress plays powerfully, and haynes injects his percussive sounds at will. The music twists and turns, never standing still, as many waves go, crest and crash, only to start again. This performance manifests the sound of surprise that is at the core of the best jazz."

Germán Lázaro in Cuadernos de jazz, Spain about 'Kreuzberg Park East': 
 " ...as dense as Dolphy's 'Out To Lunch'. Without doubt one of the best cd's of the year 2000"

Steve Day in Avant magazine, UK 2000:
 " Kreuzberg Park East is just about the best thing i've heard in this century."

Andrew Bartlett about 'Basement Research' 1995: 
" Ullman's bleating and blatting into spirals and multiphonic mayhem with the utmost reserve. so far, one of the year's finest mergers of jazz vocabularies."

Steve Swell - trombone (photo by Daniel Theunynck)

Born in Newark, New Jersey, Steve Swell has been living, working and performing in New York city for all of his adult life. He has toured and recorded with such diverse jazz personalities as mainstreamers Lionel Hampton and Buddy Rich, to so-called outsiders like Anthony Braxton, William Parker and Jemeel Moondoc. Swell has twelve recordings as a leader or co- leader and is a featured artist on more than sixty other releases.
He first came to public attention performing with Makanda Ken McIntyre in the multi-instrumentalist's concert at Carnegie recital hall in 1985. He toured and recorded with altoist Tim Berne and his group 'Caos Totale.' (two cds on the jmt label). During this time Steve also toured and recorded with Joey Baron's 'Barondown' who released three cds on jmt, New World and Avant.
Even though he is identified with the 'downtown scene' Swell has been developing his style in the more so- called 'traditional avant-garde' arena. Co-leading projects such as 'Space, Time, Swing' with Perry Robinson, being a sideman in William Parker's 'Little huey creative music orchestra' and working with other similar people has kept him on this circuit.
His newest cd, 'unified theory of sound, this now' featuring Jemeel Moondoc, Cooper Moore, Wilber Morris, Kevin Norton and Matt laVelle, was released on the Cadence label in March 2003. Swell was a featured soloist in Anthony Braxton's opera, 'Shala Fears For The Poor'.


Julian Argüelles - baritone and soprano saxophones (photo by Daniel Theunynck)

Julian began his career as a musician at the age of fourteen touring throughout Europe with the European community big band. Quickly he gained recognition as an original musician and joined the much acclaimed 21 piece UK big band "Loose Tubes".
In 1986 he was awarded the prestigious pat smythe award and has also been awarded several BBC awards.
In 1990 the Julian Argüelles quartet, with John Taylor, Mick Hutton and Martin France recorded their first cd "Phaedrus".
The second cd "Home Truths" was released in 1995 with Mike Walker on guitar, Martin France on drums and Steve Swallow on electric bass. The BBC commissioned Argüelles to write 60 minutes of music for a new band to be premiered at the 1996 Bath Festival, the octet was formed and the music became his fourth album "Skull View" which was Voted Jazz cd of the year 1997 by the independent on sunday. His previous two albums had been Voted Jazz cd of the year in both 1995 and 1996.
Julian has worked with musicians drawn from around the world including Archie Shepp, Tim Berne, Hermeto Pascoal, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, Peter Erskine, Chris McGregor, John Scofield and Carla Bley. He is also a member of several big bands including the Kenny Wheeler Big Band, Django Bates' Delightful Precipice and Colin Towns' Mask Orchestra.
In 1999 Julian released his first album for provocateur the critically acclaimed "Escapade". His second, some 5 years later, was the much anticipated "As aAbove So Below", a large scale work for jazz and classical musicians featuring the 20 piece trinity college of music string ensemble.

John Hebert - bass (photo by Daniel Theunynck)

John moved to New York city from New Orleans in 1994, where he has become a highly in demand jazz bassist. he has worked with Andrew Hill, Paul Bley, Lee Konitz, Kenny Wheeler, Dave Liebman, Maria Schneider, Fred Hersch, John Abercrombie, Greg Osby, Tim Berne and many others.
As well as performing John also teaches clinics and master classes world wide including the Rhythmic Music Conservatory of Copenhagen, Portland State University and the maine jazz camp. John holds a b.m. in jazz performance from William Paterson University.

 Gerald Cleaver - drums (photo by Daniel Theunynck)

Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. inspired by his father, John Cleaver, also a drummer, he began playing the drums at an early age.
In 1995 he accepted an appointment as assistant professor of jazz studies at the University Of Michigan, and in 1998 also joined the jazz faculty at Michigan State University. Gerald taught at both universities until 2002, at which time he relocated to New York. He has been a part of several personally significant working ensembles, Roscoe Mitchell's Note Factory being the longest and most important. While a student at u of M Gerald met pianist Craig Taborn and has continued a fruitful and inspiring musical relationship with the fellow note factory member. In Detroit he also met and played with legendary saxophonist Charles Gayle, with whom he has recorded and continues to play with from time to time. In 1999 pianist Jacky Terrasson asked Gerald to be a part of his then-quintet, and also later his favored improvisational ensemble, trio.
Once in New York, Gerald found work with several other ensembles: Mark Helias' Open Loose, David Berkman and Joe Morris' Quartets, and Mat Maneri and Matt Shipp's Varied Ensembles, with whom he has recorded several times. Tim Ries, Henry Threadgill's Very Very Circus, Kevin Mahogany, The Detroit Jazz All-Stars, featuring Kenny Burrell, Hank Jones and Frank Foster, Marilyn Crispell, Ralph Alessi, Muhal Richard Abrams, Marty Ehrlich's Traveler's Tales, among others, are also those whom Gerald has toured with.
Most recently, he has formed the ensemble, Veil of names, and has recorded "Adjust", for the Fresh Sound new talent label.


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