DAVID S. WARE – Onecept (Rank & File - RFS 33-203 / AUM064-LP / 2LP-2011)

Label: Rank And File – RFS 33-203 / Aum Fidelity – AUM064-LP
Format: 2 x Vinyl, LP, Album, Limited Edition, Gatefold
Country: Germany / Released: 2011
Style: Free Jazz, Avant-garde Jazz
Recorded live (December 2, 2009) in '3D Sound' at Systems Two Studio, Brooklyn, NY.
Pressed By – A to Z Media
Artwork [Cover] – Richard Cohen
Design, Layout – Ming@409
Photography By [Session Photography] – John Rogers
Recorded By, Mixed By, Mastered By – Michael Marciano
Producer [Produced By] – David S. Ware, Steven Joerg
Liner Notes – Steven Joerg
Composed By – Ware / Smith / Parker
Published By – Gandharvasphere/ Daswa
Matrix / Runout (Side A): RFS 33-203 - A / AUM064-LP A
Matrix / Runout (Side B): RFS 33-203 - B / AUM064-LP B

side 1
A1 - Book Of Krittika ................................................................................................ 7:53
A2 - Wheel Of Life ................................................................................................... 6:31
A3 - Celestial ........................................................................................................... 6:24

side 2
B1 - Desire Worlds .................................................................................................. 6:56
B2 - Astral Earth .................................................................................................... 14:54

side 3
C1 - Savaka ............................................................................................................ 4:35
C2 - Bardo ............................................................................................................... 6:43
C3 - Anagami .......................................................................................................... 6:50

side 4
D1 - Vata ................................................................................................................. 4:27
D2 - Virtue ............................................................................................................... 6:47
D3 - Gnavah ............................................................................................................ 9:06

Personnel:
DAVID S. WARE – tenor sax (A2,A3,C2,D3), stritch (A1,B2,C3), saxello (B1,C1,D1,D2)
WILLIAM PARKER – double bass
WARREN SMITH – drums / tympani / percussion

Under exclusive license from AUM Fidelity this alpha omega 2xLP edition of 500 produced by rank & file / AUM / ℗+© 2011
Vinyl edition features two exclusive bonus tracks (D2/D3) from Onecept session unavailable elsewhere.

David S. Ware's Onecept was recorded to celebrate his 50th year of playing saxophone; the sessions took place a year after the session's initially planned recording date due to his undergoing a kidney transplant. It follows Saturnian, the 2009 album of a completely improvised solo concert that Ware played using his tenor, a stritch, and a saxello. Those horns are present here too, and like that live date, this studio session is completely improvised on the spot with no previous rehearsal with bassist William Parker and drummer Warren Smith. It marks the first time in his career he's recorded this way.Ware introduces the date with "Book of Krittika" unaccompanied for 53 seconds before Parker enters playing arco elegantly, as Smith employs a timpani, playing sparely, quietly, before bringing a cymbal into play. This is truly free jazz, spontaneous, collectively envisioned, and played with an integrity of spirit that is almost entirely free of overindulgence. On "Celestial" and "Bardo," Ware searches for something out of earshot of the other players momentarily. The rhythm section, rather than trying to fill in the gap in that understanding, simply begins to react to the way his soloing develops, then articulates what he eventually finds. Smith in particular does an outstanding job of finding a place not behind but between Ware and Parker, adjusting his idea flow, and extending it into dialogue. Force, momentum, and dynamic shift around that collectively new voice and something is born into a previously unimagined sound. "Astral Earth" is an extended blues meditation with Ware on stritch where everything is in perfect balance; it's the most beautiful thing here. He begins "Desire Worlds" with an insistent flurry of notes on saxello that is not furious, but busy. Parker adds ballast by bowing a series of deep-register phrases that underscore the frenetic speech; because of the repetitive nature of his playing, he anchors it in mantra-like articulation. Smith finds accent points at the expulsion of Ware's breath, and then uses his notes not to fill, but to push the conversation further in that direction. This is the beauty in this kind of improvisation, when it works as it does here. Far from being a mere blowing session, it is instead a listening session, where everything centers around what these players hear individually and collectively.

Certainly there are moments when the dialogue gets a little bottlenecked, but it frees itself with movement and space rather than just force. Ware's development as a player is no longer reliant on his physicality -- though he still possesses it in abundance. Rather, it's his centering on that collective voice, which offers so many dimensions and textures to explore, where he expresses his creativity and mastery of his horns. Onecept is an exciting next step in Ware's musical evolution.

(By Thom Jurek)

If you find it, buy this album!

DAVID S. WARE TRIO – Live In New York 2010 (Private / DSW ARC03 – 3LP)

Label: Private Press / Unofficial Release / AUM102/103/104-3LP
Series: David S. Ware Archive Series – DSW ARC03
Format: 3 x Vinyl, Album / Country: Switzerland / Deluxe Limited Edition
Style: Free Jazz, Free Improvisation
Recorded live in performance at the Blue Note, NYC on the night of October 4, 2010.
Artwork – Jeff Schlanger
Multi-track recording by Jimmy Katz
Mixed with & final mastering by Michael Marciano at Systems Two Studios, Brooklyn, NYC
Produced by Steven Joerg
All compositions by David S. Ware with William Parker & Warren Smith
© Gandharvasphere/Daswa
Matrix / Runout (LP-1, side A): DSW ARC03 Private AUM102 – 01
Matrix / Runout (LP-1, side B): DSW ARC03 Private AUM102 – 01
Matrix / Runout (LP-2, side C): DSW ARC03 Private AUM103 – 02
Matrix / Runout (LP-2, side D): DSW ARC03 Private AUM103 – 02
Matrix / Runout (LP-3, side E): DSW ARC03 Private AUM104 – 03
Matrix / Runout (LP-3, side F): DSW ARC03 Private AUM104 – 03

side 1                         SET ONE
A - 1-A ...................................................................................................................... 15:41

side 2
B1 - 1-B ................................................................................................................... 14:27
B2 - 1-C ..................................................................................................................... 6:42

side 3
C - 2-A ..................................................................................................................... 17:40

side 4
D1 - 2-B ..................................................................................................................... 9:04
                                   SET TWO
D2 - 3 ...................................................................................................................... 14:47

side 5
E1 - 4-A ................................................................................................................... 14:40
E2 - 4-B ..................................................................................................................... 3:58
E3 - 4-C .................................................................................................................... 5:25

side 6
F1 - 5 ....................................................................................................................... 10:21
F2 - 6-A ..................................................................................................................... 8:38
F3 - 6-B ..................................................................................................................... 8:40

Personnel:
DAVID S. WARE – alto saxophone [stritch] / tenor saxophone
WILLIAM PARKER – acoustic bass
WARREN SMITH – drums / percussion

''The fluency and fluidity with which he rapidly unspools ideas is startling. Whether alone or joined by Parker and Smith, Ware unfurls long expository statements with virtuosity and a mastery over phrasing, rhythm, and accent in ways that are exemplified by literary giants such as Thomas Pynchon. Breathtaking.'' – Point of Departure

Live in New York, 2010 presents a tremendous one-night engagement by saxophone colossus David S. Ware and his latter day Trio in an intimate club setting – the Blue Note on October 4, 2010. With his perennially steadfast musical partner William Parker on bass, and equally incomparable Warren Smith on drums, they were celebrating the recent release of the studio album, Onecept. Having played an electrifying set at Vision Festival in June, this extended night in October was the third and final magnificent time on which this trio convened.
The two hour+ sets, with repast in-between, allowed him and group to inhabit the space; afforded more time to stretch out and breathe with the music. As Ware was exclusively dealing with spontaneous forms during this period in his creative life, the six extended suites here were newly created on that night. None of these fantastic multi-track recordings have been previously released.

The more highly distinctive aspect of this performance was Ware’s use of his Beuscher straight alto saxophone, or stritch, which features on four of the six pieces. While compositions featuring this instrument appear on three albums recorded & released in the last years before his passing, this recording is by a great measure the most extensive documentation that exists of David S. Ware on alto. Further to his absolute command & control, he brought forth Middle & Far Eastern sonorities on the instrument, which served his modus operandi of music as a transcendental experience very well indeed. The final pieces of each set here feature him on his trademark tenor sax, upon which he earned–and then some–his status as a saxophone colossus.

This is the third edition in the David S. Ware Archive Series, preceded by the Birth of a Being (Expanded) set and the Live in Sant’Anna Arresi, 2004 duo with Matthew Shipp. This set is a musical treat for those who are already fans of his work, and a bountifully potent entry point for new converts.

A note on the track titles:
During this last phase of his creative arc, David would give titles to compositions after listening to final mixes of the recordings thereof. In his absence, AUM did not take latitude to do so, beyond the elemental.

If you find it, buy this album!

SAM RIVERS – The Live Trio Sessions (2LP-1978)

Label: Impulse! – IA-9352/2

Series: The Dedication Series – Vol. XII

Format: 2 × Vinyl, LP / Country: US / Released: 1978

Style: Free Jazz, Free Improvisation

Liner Notes – Robert Palmer

Mixed By – Al Schmitt Jr. (tracks: A, B), Baker Bigsby (tracks: C1 to D2), Ed Michel (tracks: C1 to D2), Michael Cuscuna (tracks: A, B)

Producer – Ed Michel

Design by – Vartan/Rod Dyer Inc.

Photography by – Charles Stewaet

A  -  Hues Of Melanin - Part One (Soprano Saxophone Section) ................................. 15:30

B  -  Hues Of Melanin - Part Two (Flute And Vocal Section) ........................................ 18:47

C1 - Hues Of Melanin - Part Three (Ivory Black - The Piano Section) ........................... 4:13

C2 - Hues Of Melanin - Part Four (Violet - The Tenor Saxophone Section) .................. 5:38

C3 - Encore ..................................................................................................................... 3:05

C4 - Mauve ..................................................................................................................... 4:17

C5 - Indigo ...................................................................................................................... 1:28

D1 - Suite For Molde - Part One ..................................................................................... 8:06

         a. Onyx - The Soprano Saxophone Section

         b. Topaz - The Flute Section

D2 - Suite For Molde - Part Two (The Tenor Saxophone Section) ............................... 11:27

Tracks A-C2 recorded live on November 10, 1973 at the Battel Chapel, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.

Track C3 recorded live on July 6, 1973 at The Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland.

Tracks C4, C5 recorded live on October 27, 1972 at Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.

Tracks D1-D2 recorded live on August 3, 1973, at the Molde Jazz Festival, Molde, Norway.

Sam Rivers – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute, piano, vocals

Cecil McBee (tracks: A1 to C3) – bass

Richard Davis (tracks: C4, C5) – bass

Arild Andersen (tracks: D1, D2) – bass

Barry Altschul (tracks: A1 to C2, D1, D2) – drums, percussion

Norman Connors (tracks: C3) – drums, percussion

Warren Smith (tracks: C4, C5) – drums, percussion

Recorded live at concerts in Molde, Norway, Yale University, the 1973 Montreux Jazz Festival and at Rochester, Michigan, this long-out-of-print double LP has all of Sam Rivers' recordings from the 1972-73 period. The music "Hues of Melanin" (here divided into four parts) lasts 47 minutes. In addition to three much briefer pieces, the two-part "Suite for Molde" is over 19 minutes long. On these numbers Rivers is joined by either Cecil McBee, Richard Davis or Arlid Anderson on bass and Barry Altschul, Norman Connors or Warren Smith on drums. There is surprisingly little tenor playing from Rivers during the performances (including just 5½ minutes of "Hues of Melanin"); he does stretch out more on soprano, flute, piano and even a little eccentric vocalizing. The passionate music is quite adventurous and outside, as close as Rivers came to free jazz. Excellent, but definitely not for all tastes.

_ Review by Scott Yanow

Excerpt from the Liner Notes by Robert Palmer:

...this is a part of the ambitious program Backer and Michel effected during their Impulse tenure. The exceptions are „Onyx“ and „Topaz“, recorded at the Molde Festival in Norway; and „Ivory Black“ and „Violet“, recorded at Yale. These performances were included in „Hues“, an Impulse album of short excerpts from long trio performances, while most of the rest of the present album was scattered over „The Saxophone, Impulse! Artists on Tour, No Energy Crisis“ and „The Drums“. Michael Cuscuna has gone back and restored the integrity of the original sessions, so that the remarkable „Hues of Melanin“ from Yale, with the rhythm section of Cecil McBee and Barry Altschul that Rivers prefers today, and the „Suite for Molde“ are heard complete for the first time.

Rivers may have begun the Yale and Molde performances with an empty stage, but the stage did not remain empty for long, for these are remarkably rich and cohesive examples of group improvisation. Like any discipline that is practiced long enough, Rivers's trio performances have developed their own conventions–the uptempo and midtempo swing sections, the vaguely Eastern sounding drone sections, and so on–but it's remarkable how little convention and how many new sound and new ideas are present here. One could point to the overwhelming momentum of the Yale concert or to the alchemy that occurs between Rivers's flute and Arild Andersen's bowed bass on the second part of „Suite for Molde“ as particular highlights, but in fact, everything here is exceptional. And since Rivers has really recorded very little of his free-form trio music–most of his later trio dates, such as the brilliant „The Quest“ with Holland and Altschul, bring compositional elements into play–the addition of this album to his discography is particulary welcome...

...Rivers's feelings about this music make the album doubly welcome. „Trio performances are the only thing I like to leave completely free“, he said in 1974. „That's really my style of playing, and I've been doing it long enough to be very conscious of developing forms. I start to build into some kind of form and set it up so that there's a rise and fall throughout. I didn't really feel that „Streams“ was one of my best trio performances. I flew over to make the gig in Montreux, and it was kind of hectic. The selections which they put on „No Energy Crisis“ and „Impulse! Artists on Tour“ [these were excerpts from the Yale and Molde concerts] „were better performances; they showed more emotion than „Streams“.“

That should tell you something about the way Rivers evaluates his own music. „Streams“ is a marvel of inventiveness and stamina but it is, perhaps, a little icy. Rivers at his best, as he was at Yale and Molde, is warm and expressive as well as technically formidable. In the end, both these attributes are equally important. „You can't survive in his business on just your intuitive thing“, he said when I interviewed him again in1978. „You can come out here and be an intuitive musician and be really happening, but your dreams and visions won't last forever. If you don't get into the books and get this technical thing together while your intuitive thing is happening, it's over.“ Rivers's great strength is that he has so much of both, the technical and the intuitive. He isn't in the music for one short, apocalyptic instant, he's in it for the long haul. His work, which he considers American classical music, is intended to last, and it's fortunate that these performances, restored to their original length, are going to last along with the rest of his recordings.

Enjoy!

If you find it, buy this album!

ANTHONY DAVIS – Epistēmē (LP-1981 / Gramavision)

Label: Gramavision – GR-8101

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album / Country: US / Released: 1981

Style: Free Jazz, Avant-garde Jazz, Modern

Recorded at Mixed at Vanguard Studios, 1981.

Album Design By – Neal Pozner

Engineer – John Kilgore

Producer – Jonathan F. P. Rose

I probably first heard Anthony Davis on Leo Smith's "Reflectativity" album on Kabell and shortly thereafter, in the waning days of the loft jazz era ('78-'79), caught him live around town a bunch., sometimes with Chico Freeman's band and one memorable occasion in duo with vibist Jay Hoggard (I think on the same NYU bill as the Jarman/Moye duo). iirc, it was on that date that Davis played several compositions of his, including his beautiful "A Walk through the Shadow", that he'd return to often over the next decade.

Still, "Episteme" came as a shock. I think it had to do somewhat with the sheer precision of the band, that overlay of a classical approach (via minimalism, Lou Harrison, etc.) that you rarely if ever heard among the jazz avant-garde...

_ By Brian Olewnick

A1 - Wayang No. II (Shadowdance) . . . 7:40

A2 - Wayang No. IV (Under The Double Moon) I - Opening – Dance . . . 8:04

A2 - Wayang No. IV (Under The Double Moon) II - Sustained Tones . . . 4:39

B1 - Wayang No. IV (Under The Double Moon) III . . . 16:23

        a) Variations

        b) Pulse

        c) Trombone Solo

        d) Flute Interlude

        e) Kecak (Repeated Clusters)

        f) Return

B2 - A Walk Through The Shadow . . . 5:03

Anthony Davis – piano, composed

Dwight Andrews – flute, piccolo flute, bass clarinet

Warren Smith – marimba, xylophone, vibraphone, glockenspiel,

                          timpani, bass drum, gong [Chinese], cymbal

Jay Hoggard – vibraphone, marimba, glockenspiel

Shem Guibbory – violin

George Lewis – trombone

Abdul Wadud – cello

Rick Rozie – bass (track A1)

Pheeroan Aklaff – drums, gong, cymbal

Mark Helias – conductor

As a composer, Anthony Davis sensed the limitations of free jazz improvisation while coming up through the music's hotbed in the '70s. While seeing the benefits of wide open solo and ensemble playing, he also pushed for something akin to thoroughly composed music with improvisation as its lifeblood. Davis' ideas would eventually find full scope in his opera X (a chronicle of Malcolm X) and through various teaching stints, but maybe the purest setting for his compositional approach can be found in his Episteme ensemble. That's also the title of this 1981 album for Gramavision, which includes multiple sections of Davis' extended piece "Wayang" and the short piano meditation "A Walk Through the Shadow." The Episteme group features fellow travelers of the New York free jazz scene like bassist Mark Helias (who takes up conducting duties here), drummer Pheeroan Aklaff, cellist Abdul Wadud, percussionists Jay Hoggard and Warren Smith, and trombonist George Lewis, among others. The players ably wend their way through Davis' Balinese gamelan-inspired "Wayang," adding their own spin to the pianist's mix of fast and repetitive tempos, furtive horn arrangements, and dramatic atmospherics. Like the work of similarly disposed artists such as Henry Threadgill and Muhal Richard Abrams, Davis' pieces require effort to understand and appreciate. It's definitely knotty and cerebral stuff, but repeated exposure will bring its own rewards.

_ Review by Stephen Cook

If you find it, buy this album!