Oles Brothers / Theo Jorgensmann – Live in Poznan 2006 (2007) ****

Marcin Oles - bass
Bartlomiej Brat Oles - drums
with
Theo Jorgensmann - clarinet

FENOMMEDIA 006





By Adam Baruch

This is the third album by Polish Improvised Music heroes, brothers Marcin Oles (bass) and Bartlomiej Brat Oles (drums) collectively know as Oles Brothers, with the German clarinetist / composer Theo Jorgensmann. The music was recorded live and includes eight original compositions: four composed by Bartlomiej and two each by Marcin and Jorgensmann.

The music presents a wonderful Free Jazz / Improvised Music setting, full of great melody lines, exciting improvisations, fiery displays of virtuosic abilities and telepathic conversation between the musicians involved. Jorgensmann is a very dynamic, but non-aggressive player, who sounds wonderfully melodic even if he improvises freely, which creates an exceptionally easy-going atmosphere, rarely present on Free Jazz albums.

The Oles Brothers are famous for being the best Polish rhythm section in Free Jazz / Improvised Music environment and this album clearly shows why. They are not only technically perfect but more importantly superbly musical, and as a result the music doest not offer a soloist supported by a rhythm section setup but rather a trio of equally important parts playing together as one.

Large part of the material included here is a live version of the same material recorded by this trio on their previous album "Directions", which was recorded in a studio. Those two albums are a splendid manifestation of how music is influenced by circumstances, the presence of an audience and so on. Basically these two albums should be combined into a double CD release – perhaps when reissued at some later date.

Overall this is one of those instant "classics" which simply leave nothing out and are pieces of Culture captured for posterity. Wonderful listening experience from start to finish!