eMusic Review 0
Trio 3 is a long-standing group that includes alto saxophonist Oliver Lake, bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille. All three have decidedly hefty pedigrees. On Berne Concert, they up the stakes by adding the pianist Irene Schweizer. She works as both sympathetic collaborator and challenging provocateur, never letting the jangling music settle into anything familiar. This isn't to suggest that traditions (and post-'60s energy music by now has a rich history of them) aren't respected. All four players have the entire jazz avant garde firmly under their fingers; they are each in part responsible for the formulation of that music. During Berne Concert, they hold down their separate corners of the performance while responding to what the others play. This music lives moment by moment, and the moments wind up connecting. This is the last great lesson of Coltrane: improvisation (and rhythm in particular) doesn't have to be horizontal.
Oliver Lake's playing is emotionally unrestrained. On "Flow," he takes simple blocks of melody, repeats them, and then moves forward deliberately. The power of his performance comes from his tonal manipulation. He allows his notes to wail, scream, and screech.
Schweizer is a virtuoso, reminiscent of … read more »
