Improvisierte Musik:
Alexander Hawkins
Er zählt zu den überraschendsten
Avantgardisten der Gegenwart.
Alexander Hawkins (45)
aus Oxford ist ein Pianist
mit
offenen Ohren für Vergangenheit,
Gegenwart und Zukunft.
Er ist ein Meister der Improvisation,
dessen Musik aber
stets verständlich bleibt. Nun
mischt er mit Flötistin, Harfenist
und Electro-Tüftler Traditionen
zwischen Jazz, afrikanischer
Urmusik und Playstation
auf. Welch aufgeweckte Musik!

North Star Sounds 5.19.26

PRO TIP - CLICK THIS HEADLINE TO READ AND LISTEN IN THE SUBSTACK APP OR IN YOUR BROWSER

Hamid Drake helps elevate the proceedings here, and everybody shifts into a higher gear when he kicks in on these improvisations. There’s Nicole Mitchell’s searching and spellcasting flute, Rhodrie Davies’ harp, but also Matthew Wright’s turntables and live sampling to add some grit with Hawkinss’ synths and sampler. No Nation But Imagination is out on Intakt today.

https://jonmgreenbaum.substack.com/p/north-star-sounds-51926

Ci sono dischi che sono pianeti a sé stanti, anche se i pianeti a sé stanti, sono sempre parte di un tutto che potremmo definire “l’universo musicale”. Il nuovo disco di Alexander Hawkins (Intakt Records) è una creatura piuttosto complessa dal punto di vista musicale, ma anche da quello semantico. Basta dare un’occhiata alla cover del disco e provare a leggerne il titolo ovvero No Nation But Imagination: per leggerlo però occorre ruotare di 180 gradi la copertina poiché No Nation è scritto in un verso e But Imagination al contrario, in modo da far coincidere parzialmente la parte finale del termine “imagi/nation” con il termine “nation”. Una raffinatezza grafica e di lettering di non poco conto e che, a mio modo di vedere, mette sull’avviso l’ascoltatore che il percorso che lo attende è di un certo impegno. Concettualmente poi il titolo espone già un programma musicale, ma forse anche una visione del mondo, e non solo del mondo musicale. Mi voglio sbilanciare intuendo, nella lettura di questo titolo, anche una dichiarazione non casuale in questi tempi di prepotenti nazionalismi e sovranismi.

Dopo la (non) doverosa premessa, lasciamoci andare all’ascolto. A far compagnia ad Alexander Hawkins al pianoforte ci sono la flautista Nicole Mitchell, il genio dell’elettronica Matthew Wright, l’arpista gallese Rhodri Davies e il batterista Hamid Drake. Chi conosce Alexander conosce bene la sua innata curiosità per le sonorità non stereotipate, sia del suo strumento, sia delle possibilità che hanno strumenti diversi e sonorità diverse nell’interagire con un pianoforte. Il quintetto che ha messo insieme, con strumenti tanti e diversi lo dimostra anche prima di pigiare il tasto “play”. Non è un caso che Peter Margasak nelle note di copertina, definisca Hawkins “eterno studente”, una definizione tanto bella e fresca, quanto azzeccata per il grande musicista britannico. E proprio come per un attento studente, una conversazione casuale con Drake ha convinto Hawkins ad approfondire la musica africana e in particolare la kora, ovvero uno strumento formato da cassa di risonanza costituita da una mezza zucca svuotata e ricoperta di pelle di animale e 21 corde fissate su di essa: infatti questo disco è pieno zeppo di scoperte che afferiscono non solo alla musica etnica, ma anche a poderose dosi di improvvisazione e ad iniezioni di sostanza musicale elettronica. Non inganni il quieto inizio del gracchiare di una puntina in un solco di vinile nel brano di apertura, Solo Way Far Gone che già di per sé, almeno per gli ascoltatori non più giovani, suscita un feticistico brivido di piacere che però sembra già, da fin dall’inizio, essere turbato da un inserto elettronico che ci avvisa che il volo musicale presenterà non poche turbolenze. Se passiamo infatti a Resolution Each and Every, le “risoluzioni” ci sembrano diventare “problemi” e qui sta il bello della musica, come dell’arte, se sono vere le parole (e lo sono) di Karl Kraus che affermava che “l’arte fa delle soluzioni un problema”. Il brano è infatti ricchissimo di una suggestione di difficile definizione e che porta in grembo tutto il colorismo della musica africana e tante “cime abissali” (per usare il paradosso di Zinov’ev) del jazz contemporaneo e dell’elettronica. Da un minuto e delicato primigenio caos ad una materia pastosa ricca di infiniti colori musicali, dove il pianoforte sembra contrastare e ribattere tutti gli altri strumenti in una estasi orgiastica di suoni; è proprio ciò di cui si compone il secondo travolgente brano dal titolo Mirror No Border, forse un invito a guardarci come siamo nella nostra ricchezza di popoli diversi e non a dividerci con confini che esistono solo sulle carte geografiche (e non per nulla la magnifica copertina elaborata da Jonas Schoder e realizzata da un’immagine del satellite Copernicus Sentinel, processata poi dall’ESA, riproduce il Delta del Mahakam Rivern Africa). La dolcezza dell’arpa di Rhodri Davies e del flauto di Nicole Mitchell sono l’elemento portante di Circles in the Celestian Garden il cui titolo dice tutto e, quello che non dice, è tutto nel brano di una incantata bellezza che concede un momento di pura rilassatezza a metà del lavoro che prosegue poi con Lullaby Much Further, ovvero ninna nanna molto più lontana: ma lontana da dove? Occorrerebbe chiederselo mutuando il titolo di un celebre romanzo di Joseph Roth: forse è un lontano estremo, magari una ninna nanna per chi sta su un’altra galassia, visto l’impegnativo uso dell’elettronica di Matthew Wright che rimanda a spazi siderali. Ma in fondo gli “al di là infra-galattici”, altro non sono che i futuri confini che non avranno più ragion d’essere, un po’ come i confini geografici di oggi che regolano i commerci ma non fermano le migrazioni, che impediscono le promiscuità, ma non fermano i virus. Davvero un brano impegnativo che invita ad una ulteriore riflessione, mentre il seguente Hocket Fierce Paceful corposo, multiforme e intenso sembra preludere all’esplosione d...

No Nation but Imagination is an album by British pianist and composer Alexander Hawkins, recorded with a quintet featuring Rhodri Davies on harp, Hamid Drake on drums, Nicole Mitchell on flute, and Matthew Wright on turntables and live sampling. Released May 22, 2026, as Intakt Recording #453, the album was recorded on February 3, 2025, at Fish Factory Studios in London by Ben Lamdin, with additional material recorded live at Café OTO on February 2, 2025, by Billy Steiger.

The title of this album is, if needed, a perfect introduction to what awaits within it.

No ‘nation’ for this quintet, first of all. Welsh, British, and American musicians come together here with a shared language, certainly, but above all for who they are and what they are able to offer in this very moment, beyond any other consideration. It even seems that the same applies to Hawkins and his own discography: yes, it is part of him, but today, without nation or borders, does he really need to follow a specific line? Clearly not.

And without ‘nation’, too, in style. Jazz, yes, but as part of something broader. Is it a foundation or a reference point here? Surely. But perhaps more simply, something that belongs to them and lies within reach of their imagination, just as much as the entirety of their experience and potential.

And this is precisely what the second term, ‘imagination,’ presents here. Once freed from borders and barriers, most often artificial ones, imagination can take shape, soar, become true creativity, and offer itself to us as much as to them.

The result, in this sense, is remarkable. The album, in its entirety, surprises — within Hawkins’ discography, in its style, compositions, and arrangements — and genuinely moves through its complete dedication to creative openness. The record gives us, as listeners, a kind of access to that imagination and seems to help dissolve some of the barriers within ourselves. The openness this music proposes emerges precisely through what it reveals: what exists, and what becomes possible once the limits that sometimes simply need to be ignored are set aside.

No Nation but Imagination
Alexander Hawkins: piano, synthesizer, sampler; Rhodri Davies: harp; Hamid Drake: drums; Nicole Mitchell: flute; Matthew Wright: turntables, live sampling

Tracklisting
1. Solo Way Far Gone (2:26); 2. Resolution Each and Every (5:03); 3. Mirror No Border (4:45); 4. Circles in the Celestial Garden (3:49); 5. Lullaby Much Further (8:16); 6. Hocket Fierce Peaceful (9:21); 7. Joy Beyond Blazing (4:37); 8. Open Sea, Boat’s Land (4:39); 9. Coda over the Fence (3:21)

https://bestofjazz.org/alexander-hawkins-no-nation-but-imagination//

Swiss native Sylvie Courvoisier has not escaped notice. She began her recording career in the 1994 and moved to New York four years later. Since then, judging by her faculty page at the New School College of Performing Arts, she has had no difficulties finding either work or fame.

Courvoisier received numerous awards including the United States Artist Fellow (2020); the Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists (2018); Swiss Music Prize (2018); Switzerland SUISA’s Jazz Prize (2017); and Switzerland's Grand Prix de la Fondation Vaudoise de la Culture (2010). She received commissions to compose new works from The Shifting Foundation (2019) and the Chamber Music America's New Jazz Works (2016).

This recording documents two performances in Germany during a 2025 European tour. The trio features the superb bass of Drew Gress and Kenny Wollesen on drums and “Wollesonics.” The latter are instruments invented by Wollesen. You can see some of these fascinating creations at this link: https://www.15questions.net/interview/kenny-wollesen-about-drumming/page-1/ .

Éclats presents a series of compositions built around fairly simple lines. Courvoisier’s piano work ranges from heroic to sparkling. The pieces are coherent and, in many places, dramatic, or even romantic. “Requiem d’un songe” comes closest to telling a story, albeit in a variety of traditional accents. It reminds me of the compositional strategies (though not the sound) of Thelonius Monk.

“Imprint Double” begins with a thumping drive that would make a good soundtrack for a stagecoach scene in a Western. This action is broken periodically by short conversations between the piano and whoever is riding shotgun at the time. This gives way to a pensive conversation with enough space to let each instrument precisely define each moment. Then we are back to riding across the uneven landscape.

“Big Steps Toward Silence” is a lovely piece that might be the place to start if you want to appreciate what each member of the trio brings to the stagebut the percussion creates a soft mood just as effectively as the piano.

For much of the recording, I am never sure where the drums leave off and the Wollesonics begin. “Free Hoops,” however, begins with a very aromatic rattle that doesn’t sound like it comes from any drum kit I am familiar with.

This is a fine album. It makes for excellent background texture whether you are driving or washing the dishes. It also richly rewards careful attention. If it meets your approval, you might check out the Trio’s studio album D’Agala. Both recordings are available from Bandcamp or Amazon Music.

https://www.freejazzblog.org/2026/05/sylvie-courvoisier-trio-eclats-live-in.html

Since Carla Bley's passing in 2023, the growing fascination with her songbook—which had already been steadily building for years—has increased exponentially, as more and more musicians turn to her unique blend of melodic clarity and emotional ambiguity. And so, by now, pieces such as "Ida Lupino" and "Lawns" have cemented their place in the pantheon of modern standards, embraced by artists drawn to Bley's knack for memorable themes that feel at once simple and mysteriously open-ended.

With its suspended melody, slow-moving sustained bass lines and low-simmering groove, the openness of "Lawns" lures improvisers into a vast landscape—one explored in recent years by musicians ranging from Kurt Elling and Rachel Eckroth to Walter Smith III, the Ben Allison—Steve Cardenas—Ted Nash Trio and the Pierrick Pedron—Gonzalo Rubalcaba duo—ideal for creative reinterpretation.

Among the most original renditions of "Lawns" is the version by the trio of Luciano Biondini, Michel Godard and Lucas Niggli—three musicians equally fluent in Renaissance music and contemporary improvisation, and gifted with the kind of storytelling instinct that allows Bley's composition to unfold like the soundtrack to a late-summer open-air meditation. One can easily imagine Carla Bley raising an amused and approving eyebrow at the thought of her music being reimagined by a trio featuring accordion, serpent and percussion.

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/luciano-biondini-michel-godard-lucas-niggli-lawns-play-this

This new album of omnipresent Oxford musician Alexander Hawkins with its sharply shaped title holds quite some challenges for listening and food for reflection and taking positioning. It contradicts the widespread PR rhetoric that gives the impression that musicians primarily work with anything that is readily available for mixing. That is an extremely distorted image of the artistic creative process leading from the given status quo to new frontiers. It is not only a question of finding an itinerary but also a question of but also a question of dissolving existing concepts, immersing oneself in … yes what … . it seems the currents and flows of a large river … from which new things emerge, arise, spring forth. Its this process AND some of its results that both manifests here and became apparent to me upon first listening to the album. What you hear is not only ‘new’ music bit a a new way, a new floating form to get into it as an experience beyond a lot of known. I'll leave it at that. The listening flow will evoke a lot more for everybody.

https://www.europejazz.net/index.php/news/europe-jazz-media-chart-may-2026

Fred Frith : sur les chemins de traverse

Est-il encore nécessaire de présenter Fred Frith ?
Peut-être que, pour certains, après tout…
Donc :

Né le 17 février 1949 dans la petite ville de Heathfield dans le Sussex de l’Est – à 60.9 miles de Trafalgar Square si l’on emprunte la A21 vers le nord – Fred Frith est aujourd’**** considéré comme un des précurseurs de la « guitare préparée ». Mais pas que ça, bien entendu : multi-instrumentiste, il joue tout aussi bien de la basse, du violon, des claviers ou encore du xylophone.

Il est également, avec le batteur Chris Cutler, à l’origine du mouvement musical « Rock in opposition » dans les années 70, mouvement qui avait pour but de transformer la manière de concevoir et pratiquer l’écoute musicale, et, principalement, de marquer leur opposition à l’industrie du disque qui, à cette époque, refusait de produire de tels groupes.

Le 12 mars 1978, à l’initiative de Nick Hobbs, membre du collectif Henry Cow en tant qu’administrateur – devenu par la suite le chanteur des Shrubs, groupe dont j’ai eu l’occasion d’organiser un concert à Liège en 1988 – le festival « Rock in opposition » a vu le jour au New London Theatre. Les groupes qui s’y sont produits venaient d’un peu partout en Europe : Henry Cow, bien entendu, le groupe italien Stormy Six, Samla Mammas Mannavenus de Suède, Etron Fou Leloublan (France) et nos compatriotes d’Univers Zero. Le slogan qui définissait le festival était : « La musique que les maisons de disques ne veulent pas que vous entendiez ».

Mais je m’égare, là… Comme à mon habitude.

Parti pour New York en 1979 comme il l’expliquera dans ses réponses (interview sur le site), il a eu là une influence prépondérante en tant que musicien.

Plus tard, il enseignera pendant 20 ans au Mills College d’Oakland (Californie), haut lieu de la musique expérimentale américaine.

Fred Frith participe à plus de 400 albums. Certains avancent même 600. Ce qui n’est pas peu dire. Et parmi toutes ces participations, on retrouve un paquet de beau monde. Jugez plutôt :

Derek Bailey, Michael Beinhorn, Martin Bisi, Anthony Braxton, Peter Brötzmann, Eugene Chadbourne, Tom Cora, Lindsay Cooper, Lol Coxhill, Chris Cutler, Ivor Cutler (qui n’est pas le frère du précédent), Brian Eno, Tim Hodgkinson, Henry Kaiser, Bill Laswell, René Lussier, Fred Maher, Christian Marclay, Phil Minton, Ikue Mori, Butch Morris, Kazuyuki K.Null, Jim O’Rourke, Bob Ostertag, Zeena Parkins, Robert Quine, Hans Reichel, Sato Michihiro, Sonny Sharrock, Richard Thompson, Robert Wyatt, John Zorn…

Et ce n’est que la partie visible de l’iceberg, que j’ai listée par ordre alphabétique de peur d’égratigner quelques susceptibilités…

Il a aussi fondé, cofondé et été invité à participer à de nombreux groupes : Henry Cow, Skeleton Crew, Aksak Maboul, Art Bears, Keep The Dog, Massacre, Fred Frith Guitar Quartet, Death Ambient, Cosa Brava, Etron Fou Leloublan, Naked City, Material, The Residents, Swans, The Muffins, Half Japanese, Negativland, The Golden Palominos, Violent Femmes et bien d’autres encore.

Mais là, je n’ai pas eu la patience de les reclasser alphabétiquement…

On le retrouve aussi aux côtés de musiciens classiques comme Katia Labèque pour ne citer qu’elle, et de nombreux orchestres interprètent ses œuvres : le BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, le Rova Saxophone Quartet, le Concerto Köln, l’Eclipse Quartet…

Il a également beaucoup composé pour la danse tout au long de son parcours musical, ainsi que pour le cinéma.

Il est lauréat du prix italien Demetrio Stratos, prix dédié à la musique expérimentale, pour l’ensemble de son œuvre. Il est également docteur honoris causa de l’Université de Huddersfield (Yorkshire).

Entre 1988 et 1990, Werner Penzel et Nicolas Humbert ont suivi Fred Frith un peu partout dans le monde et en ont sorti un film : « Step accross the border ». Cet excellent documentaire, aussi expérimental que la musique de Frith a été cité comme un des cent films les plus influents du XXe siècle par les Cahiers du Cinéma.

On pourrait encore parler de lui pendant des heures. Ou plutôt des pages et des pages.

N’hésitez donc pas, pour en savoir encore plus, à taper son nom dans votre moteur de recherche, car il est temps, maintenant, de lui donner la parole.

Sur ce, bonjour chez vous

https://jazzmania.be/fred-frith-sur-les-chemins-de-traverse/

Parmi les nombreuses personnalités que la Suisse, “petit pays”, (a) produit, peu franchissent la frontière qui sépare nos deux pays comme Samuel Blaser – je ne parle pas des figures historiques comme Pierre Favre et Irène Schweizer, mais des musiciens et musiciennes de notre époque – surtout s’ils ne sont pas Romands ou francophones.
Une musicienne qui a vu s’ouvrir les portes de quelques festivals et concerts hexagonaux est la pianiste Sylvie Courvoisier, figure de proue du catalogue Intakt. Son installation à Brooklyn a-t-elle joué sur ses tournées européennes en en faisant une artiste internationale ? Ce sont précisément des extraits de plusieurs concerts, dont un en France au festival Sons d’Hiver, qui ont été choisis pour l’édition de ce disque rétrospectif. La pianiste se présentait en trio avec deux de ses accompagnateurs favoris, Drew Gress et Kenny Wollesen dont la souplesse, le répondant et la musicalité parfois échevelée ne sont plus à démontrer. Ce disque un peu patchwork, qui présente la pianiste dans un contexte où domine la spontanéité, autant pianiste que compositrice, n’a peut-être pas la résonance et la cohérence de son duo avec Wadada Leo Smith (Cf.Culturejazz, L’Europe résiste..., 21/03/2026) mais il a l’avantage de nous la montrer en public dans toute l’étendue d’un talent de très haut niveau.

https://www.culturejazz.fr/spip.php?article4556#sylvie_courvoisier

Nous quittons les rivages de l’improvisation libre (ou encadrée) en compagnie du singulier trio italo-franco-suisse, Luciano Biondini (accordéon), Michel Godard (tuba, serpent) et Lucas Niggli (percussions), qui ne s’était pas retrouvé derrière les micros d’Intakt depuis 2013. Leurs retrouvailles devraient être appréciées par tout amateur de “bonne musique”, qu’on l’appelle jazz ou musiques du monde lorsque ces termes se conjuguent dans la création, le rythme intérieur, l’ouverture d’esprit, la fraîcheur et l’improvisation. L’auteur du texte de livret place ce disque “Flames of Time” sous le patronage de Monteverdi, lequel a fortement marqué la vie musicale de Michel Godard, comme on peut l’entendre parmi les cinq compositions ou arrangements personnels. Luciano Biondini, avec la sensibilité de son jeu d’accordéon, Radiohead, Carla Bley et Steve Swallow sont également sollicités dans l’élaboration de cette musique “baroco-contemporaire” lumineuse qui s’affranchit des catégories et rejoint par là les musique “alpines” de John Wolf Brennan (Pago Libre). Superbe.

https://www.culturejazz.fr/spip.php?article4556#luciano_biondini_michel_godard_lucas_nigglii

In ogni musica d'avanguardia, per parafrasare il pensiero di Claudio Magris, si incontrano e si scontrano due tendenze antitetiche e complementari: quella a un raffinato tecnicismo linguistico, che lavora sul suono per strapparlo al suo logoramento sociale e renderlo così capace di poesia, e quella a procedere al di là o di rimanere al di qua del suono stesso, per ritrovare la poesia pura nella vita ancora non contaminata dalla falsità. La musica di Wadada Leo Smith e Sylvie Courvoisier si può ascrivere alla prima, benché il loro operare contempli anche tracce della seconda. I due artisti hanno modi di suonare diversi - più contorto e fluido quello della cinquantacinquenne pianista, più essenziale quello dell'ottantaquattrenne trombettista - che si combinano perfettamente anche grazie a una collaborazione pluriennale: si erano conosciuti nel 2017 in un concerto organizzato da John Zorn e già l'anno dopo avrebbero suonato insieme in un trio.
Negli otto brani di "Angel Falls", scaturiti dal metodo della composizione istantanea che volutamente non prevede alcuna partitura scritta, la Courvoisier orna con una ragnatela geometrica di suoni sempre educati le note spesso lunghe e lancinanti di Wadada, che si fanno pulsazione nitida, pausata, vivida e piena della massima tensione. Le linee astratte, che fanno però sentire la concretezza del loro essere pienamente parte del mondo, si accampano a piacimento, rispettando principi di equilibrio e di musicalità interni alle leggi dell'opera stessa. I brani respirano, si espandono, si contraggono e scivolano verso risoluzioni inaspettate; la musica si dispiega come una danza, alternativamente melodica e intricata, giocosa e solenne, rivelándosi infine luminosa, limpida e maestosa. Raggiungendo vette di alta poesia.

EN
In all avant-garde music, to paraphrase the thinking of Claudio Magris, two antithetical yet complementary tendencies meet and clash: one toward a refined linguistic technicalism, which works on sound to wrest it from its social wear and tear and render it capable of poetry, and another that moves beyond or stays on this side of sound itself, to rediscover pure poetry in a life not yet contaminated by falsehood. The music of Wadada Leo Smith and Sylvie Courvoisier can be placed in the first category, although their work also contemplates traces of the second. The two artists have different ways of playing — more intricate and fluid that of the fifty-five-year-old pianist, more essential that of the eighty-four-year-old trumpeter — which combine perfectly, also thanks to a long-standing collaboration: they first met in 2017 at a concert organised by John Zorn, and already the following year they would play together in a trio.
In the eight tracks of "Angel Falls", born from the method of instantaneous composition that deliberately requires no written score, Courvoisier adorns Wadada's often long and piercing notes with a geometric web of always refined sounds, turning them into a pulse that is clear, measured, vivid and full of the utmost tension. The abstract lines, which nonetheless convey the concreteness of being fully part of the world, settle freely, respecting principles of balance and musicality internal to the laws of the work itself. The pieces breathe, expand, contract and slide toward unexpected resolutions; the music unfolds like a dance, alternately melodic and intricate, playful and solemn, ultimately revealing itself as luminous, limpid and majestic. Reaching the heights of great poetry.

Michael Formanek has never been content to anchor a bandstand and call it a career. Over decades of work—from sideman stints with Stan Getz and Joe Henderson to the long-running Thumbscrew trio with Mary Halvorson and Tomas Fujiwara—he has operated as a composer and architect, building rooms rather than merely inhabiting them. New Digs recorded over two days in Torres Vedras, Portugal, stands as an ambitious project via this seven-piece trans-Atlantic ensemble shaped by a precise sonic design.

The personnel choices signal intent before a note sounds. Halvorson and Fujiwara return from Thumbscrew, supplying deep rapport and elasticity. A three-horn frontline—John O'Gallagher on alto saxophone, Chet Doxas on tenor, and João Almeida on trumpet —brings sharp contrast and collective force. Most decisive is Alexander Hawkins, a pianist within the Anthony Braxton orbit, here stationed at the Hammond B3 organ. Its presence reshapes the ensemble, functioning as a rhythm engine, harmonic bed, and unruly catalyst. Formanek does not simply add color; he alters the ensemble's internal logic, allowing the group to pivot between density and openness with remarkable control.

The opener, "New Old World," drops the listener into shifting terrain. Horn lines braid and fracture while Halvorson tilts the harmony off-axis. Hawkins treats the B3 as both anchor and disruptor, threading dense comping through linear passages and fractured solos. Formanek guides from within, redirecting momentum with quiet authority. "Prequal" leans harder into abstraction, propelled by Hawkins' gritty pulse and surging horn figures that crest and scatter with intent, the ensemble sounding both combustible and tightly organized.

"Aka the Stinger" offers a grounded counterweight. Formanek's early immersion in Bay Area soul-jazz surfaces in a groove that struts without settling into cliché. The band rides it with restraint, allowing small deviations to keep the tension alive while maintaining a sense of forward motion.

The album's most affecting moment arrives with "Gone Home / Interlude for Susan Alcorn," written in memory of the late pedal steel guitarist. Formanek's arco bass sets a solemn tone, answered by Almeida's poised trumpet line. The ensemble resists excess, favoring space, angled phrasing, and understated interplay that carries emotional weight without sentimentality. Subtle off-centered accents and carefully measured dynamics deepen the piece's quiet gravity.

"Quinze" gathers the threads into a forceful statement. The septet locks into a unified surge, Doxas delivering a searing tenor passage while Hawkins expands the B3's palette beyond expectation. Almeida's closing statement balances lyricism with a touch of steel, sealing the album's emotional arc.

Formanek has long trusted instinct, yet New Digs reflects something more measured: a fully realized vision of ensemble interplay. Each voice contributes with purpose, and the music rewards attentive listening, revealing new structural details and shifting perspectives with each return.

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/new-digs-michael-formanek-intakt-records

Warme Klänge, südliches Licht
Ist das Jazz? Oder eher Weltmusik? Egal. Wenn man sich dem
Klangzauber ergibt, den dieses Trio entfaltet, verlieren
Kategorisierungen jede Bedeutung. Hören wir da nicht eine
Melodie aus Monteverdis «Orfeo», dort nicht einen
mediterranen Dorftanz? Fest steht: Der Akkordeonist Luciano
Biondini, der Tuba-, Serpent- und E-Bass-Spieler Michel
Godard sowie der Schlagzeuger und Perkussions-Poet Lucas
Niggli schaffen eine unwiderstehliche Musik. Körperhaft
ist sie, sinnlich, melodiös. Ob die Musiker improvisieren oder
nahe an den Vorlagen bleiben: Stets ist ihr Spiel von
Aufmerksamkeit, Wärme, Esprit und Phantasie erfüllt. (pap.)

About five years ago, I reviewed Free Hoops, the latest release by the Sylvie Courvoisier Trio. I also commented on a fine, pandemic-era livestream of the trio in concert at Roulette in New York.

>Pianist Courvoisier has been busy since then, releasing sterling duet recordings with the likes of Wadada Leo Smith (Angel Falls) and Mary Halvorson (Bone Bells). But the 57-year-old Swiss native is now back with the trio disc Éclats — Live in Europe, a session that features her partners of a dozen years, Drew Gress on bass and Kenny Wollesen on drums and “Wollesonics,” the latter a technique which, alongside the leader’s audible forays inside the piano, produces intriguing atmospheric moments.

The all-original Courvoisier pieces selected for Éclats were drawn from three live European performances in 2025. Most of the nine compositions have previously appeared on studio recordings, but the threesome’s interactive (and unpredictable) musicality continues to have its special virtues. The group’s ability to introduce shards of free playing into implied structures (and vice versa) is consistently intriguing—and satisfying.

“Big Steps Toward Silence” starts with a bit of agitation before the piano undertakes a series of pensive lopes. Gress is particularly impressive throughout this release, here dancing with the pianist, who at times supplies a quiet, lyrical center. A heavier pulse eventually inserts some drama, with a Wollesen solo elevating the interplay via start-and-stop episodes. A pervasive quality of searching underlies this composition, leading to a quiet finish.

“Just Twisted” is an avant-garde burner that walks you into an imaginary joint jumping with deconstructed rhythms and pianistic onslaughts. “Downward Dog” resonates with a simmering restlessness à la the late Chick Corea (a musician you may think of occasionally as you hear Courvoisier pick a melody apart). Wollesen’s solo caps off a risky/frisky piece that might have gone on a while longer.

“Éclats for Ornette” carries the free-bop flag into blues territory. Courvoisier has carefully studied the master. “Imprint Double” portends an eruption: Courvoisier mingles a down-and-dirty riff with splashes of high notes that hover above a Gress solo. The payoff is the arrival of a marching passage that treats the piece’s opening motif in a more swinging manner. Another important release from this brilliant, longstanding threesome.

https://artsfuse.org/328123/may-short-fuses-materia-critica-6//