Braces Are Beautiful - Los Vaqueros En La Cocina (2013) ***

Braces Are Beautiful (band)

Jacek Steinbrich - guitars, Philicorda organ, mini Korg, kalimba, recorder, percussion (4)
Tim O’Flaherty - bass guitar, drums
Łukasz Szulc - percussion (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10)

Los Vaqueros En La Cocina (2013)

Braces Are Beautiful A musical project started by Jacek in 2008, it has since then gone through various transmutations, from jazz and prepared music to punk, blues and free jazz. On this record Jacek, along with help from Tim and Łukasz, presents songs which he has created specially for the Polish-American-Spanish co-production Los Vaqueros en la Cocina, a film about one individual’s 19th-C. battle with consumerism, as seen within the context of a crisis in the management of culinary resources. The music, a mosaic of surf rock, free, trash country, western punk and hip hop, contains elements of minimalist, Jamaican and ethnic sounds.

Jacek Steinbrich - His musical interests range from minimalism, jazz, free jazz, classical, contemporary, and prepared music to blues, dance, punk and film soundtracks. Talented at various stringed instruments, not to mention a keyboardist who occasionally dabbles in percussion too, Jacek has written music for the band JoaoBAB and is a founder of the free jazz project Re.mus. A finalist in the competition CAGE 1, 2, 3 (Poland, 2012), he has also collaborated with many different artists, including Olgierd Dokalski and Wojtek Kwapisiński, as well as other musicians from the worlds of improvisation, jazz, and free jazz in Dublin.

Tim O’Flaherty - He first came into contact with planet earth at the age of 8, when he finally got his hands on a clarinet. Since then Tim has also used saxophone, bass and drums on his various trips into the stratosphere – especially during 15 years as a member of the New York band A Stillwater Satellite. His quest to learn the Polish language later brought him to Lublin, Poland, where, as a bassist, he has collaborated with the group JoaoBAB as well as participated in the final of the competition CAGE 1, 2, 3. He is currently a translator and English teacher living in Warsaw.

Łukasz Szulc (aka Senhor Efebo) - An African and Latin American culture enthusiast, as well as DJ, percussionist, and passionate promoter of the all-embracing concept of “tropical music,” Senhor has collaborated with various Polish collectives, including Soulservice and Uratujmy Afrobeat (“Let’s Save Afrobeat”). In 2003, he, along with other percussion enthusiasts, founded the rhythm ensemble (batucada) Sambasim, which has toured both throughout Poland and abroad. In 2009 he supported the composer and guitarist Wagner Barbosa and his group, the Barbosa Trio, on tour. Between January and February 2010 he participated in the project Brazil Cantado, along with the pianist Kuba Pałys and the guitarist To Brandileone. During 2012 he supported the acoustic group Open Source as well as the band JoaoBAB. He currently plays in clubs, bars, pubs and anywhere else his brand of percussion-heavy music is welcome.

(sorce: press release)

DOWNLOAD ALBUM IN MP3 (ZIP, 84 MB, cover JPG)

Polish Jazz TOP TEN 2013 by Maciej Nowotny

When back in 2009 I started this blog it began as typical online diary whereI posted texts about few CDs I bought for my private collection. At that time I was shy of making any end-of-the-year top lists as I felt I only was able to listen to a fraction of what was produced with participation of Polish artists. But with blog rapidly growing I have found myself in unique position of being one of few persons in this country to actually listen to (nearly) ALL jazz releases which can be attributed as belonging to Polish jazz! Since then I decided that making such a list, though I am not great enthusiast of them, to certain degree is my obligation.

You will not find on this list great names of Polish musicians who in this year released new albums. Tomasz Stańko, Leszek Możdżer, Aga Zaryan, Anna Maria Jopek or Adam Pierończyk - they all recorded good CDs this year but what is astonishing as far as Polish jazz is concerned - there were many totally unknown (at least to international audience) artists who recorded albums equally or even more interesting than those considered to be stars. A selection of them (by far not all!) you will find on my personal Polish Jazz TOP TEN 2013 list:

1. Marcin Masecki - Polonezy 

2. Obara International - Komeda 

3. Mikrokolektyw - Absent Minded 

4. Power Of The Horns - Alaman 

5. Fortuna/Dys - Tropy 

6. Hera with Hamid Drake - Seven Lines 

7. Hunger Pangs - Meet Meat 

8. Shofar - Ha Huncvot 

9. RGG - Szymanowski 

10. Dominik Wania Trio - Ravel

HeFi Quartet feat. Krzesimir Dębski - Live (2013)

Leszek Hefi Wiśniowski - flute, saxophone

Paweł Kaczmarczyk - keyboards

Tomasz Kupiec - bass

Bartek Staromiejski - drums

Krzesimir Dębski - violin

PRIVATE EDITION





By Adam Baruch

This is the third album by young Polish Jazz flautist / saxophonist / composer Leszek HeFi Wiśniowski, this one being released under the moniker of his current HeFi Quartet, which also includes the fabulous keyboardist Paweł Kaczmarczyk, bassist Tomasz Kupiec and drummer Bartek Staromiejski. The music includes one studio track (from 2013), three live radio tracks (from 2012) and six live concert tracks (from 2011), which also feature the veteran violinist Krzesimir Dębski. All the music was composed by Wisniowski except one track which is credited to the entire group and one which is a traditional folklore tune.

The music is exciting Modern mainstream with some World Music influences, a bit of Fusion and other ingredients, all well amalgamated compositionally and beautifully executed. The first part of the album (the radio/studio recordings) is mostly calm and relaxed, whereas the second part (the concert recordings) with Dębski is much more energetic, loud and expressive, with Dębski's input being quite dominant. Overall the music is truly excellent, but the album suffers a bit from being a somewhat hectic collection of music recorded under different circumstances rather than an integral statement.

Wiśniowski also makes a mistake of employing/inviting musicians, who are simply excellent, which sadly makes him the least impressive player of them all, even if he's the leader. Kaczmarczyk completely "steals" the show with his superb solos, which are all simply brilliant, both technically and emotionally. The rhythm section also performs beautifully, way beyond just supporting the soloist, but actually contributing actively to the process of creating the music. These young musicians have already quite a lot of experience performing and even recordings behind them, which is immediately noticeable. Dębski, as already mentioned, is a veteran with a very flamboyant style of playing. As a result the leader's solos really sound rather pale in comparison.

Nevertheless this is still a very strong album, which many Jazz listeners will enjoy immensely. Not too complex and yet interesting and versatile stylistically, this is definitely something worth listening to and at the same time accessible to a relatively wide range of connoisseurs.

Fusion Generation Project – No Fusion (2013) ***1/2

Dariusz Petera - keyboards
Krzysztof Lenczowski - guitar
Lukasz Jan Jozwiak - bass
Krzysztof Kwiatkowski - drums

ALLEGRO 027






By Adam Baruch

This is the debut album by young Polish quartet called Fusion Generation Project, which consists of keyboardist Dariusz Petera, guitarist / cellist Krzysztof Lenczowski, bassist Lukasz Jan Jozwiak and drummer Krzysztof Kwiatkowski. They perform nine original compositions, six of which are by Petera and the rest are one each by the other three quartet members. Saxophonist Marcin Kajper and American trumpeter Michael Patches Stewart appear as guest on a few tracks.

The music is a nice brand of Jazz-Rock Fusion, on the lighter side of the genre almost touching on instrumental Pop occasionally. The tunes are very melodic and pretty straight-forward, but the level of performances as well as the general atmosphere of the album is quite excellent. There are also a few nice surprises, for example when the guitarist plays the cello out of the blue, and other less enjoyable ones when the album starts with a long drums solo track. The keyboardist, who is also the principal composer of the material, is the Jazziest player in the quartet, whereas the guitarist (at least when playing the guitar) is a definite Rocker. The excellent rhythm section is quite Funky on the other hand, so the overall effect works well, without taking any major risks.

The usage of the sax and trumpet seem a bit out of place as the band sounds pretty balanced as a quartet and loses the focus with the addition of the brass. Stewart's solos, although adequate, seem out of place stylistically and sort of misguided. But overall the music is good fun and a nice listen, especially when driving.

I'd prefer that such talented musicians would have played a more adventurous and challenging music altogether, but each to his choices and the future will tell where does all this lead. In the meantime this album will surely find many satisfied listeners.

Polish Jazz TOP TEN 2013 by Adam Baruch

This year we first publish individual lists of best albums of 2013 before we combine these list into our official POLISH JAZZ TOP TEN 2013. Yesterday you could read the list assembled by Tomasz Łuczak (READ) and today we want to present you Adam Baruch's choice:

1. High Definition Quartet - Hopasa 

2. RGG - Szymanowski 

3. Fortuna/Dys - Tropy 

4. Magnolia Acoustic Quartet - Boozer 

5. Maciej Fortuna Trio - At Home 

6. Sławomir Kulpowicz - Complete Edition 

7. Irek Wojtczak - The Bees' Knees 

8. Tomasz Stanko New York Quartet - Wisława 

9. Marek Napiórkowski - Up! 

10. Anna Gadt - Breathing

Polish Jazz TOP TEN 2013 by Tomek Luczak

As usual at the end of the year we publish our lists of best (?) recordings released in the given calendar year in which Polish musicians have participated. This list is the effect of combining three separate lists arranged by myself, Tomek Łuczak and Adam Baruch who all constitute our editorial office. On three consecutive days we we will publish our separate individual lists and then our final list with some new featuresthat will be added to TOP TEN for the first time. We hope that this will be a lot of fun for our readers and eventually it will also help you to get a grip of what was the most interesting in Polish Jazz in year 2013. 

Tomek Łuczak TOP TEN Polish Jazz 2013:

1. Obara International – Komeda 

2. Wacław Zimpel Quartet – Stone Fog 

3. Power Of The Horns – Alaman 

4. Mikrokolektyw – Absent Minded 

5. Mazolewski/Gonzalez Quintet – Shaman 

6. Fortuna/Dys – Tropy 

7. Nor Cold – Nor Cold 

8. Kaluza/Majewski/Mazur/Suchar – Tone Hunting 

9. NSI Quartet – Introducing 

10. Marek Kazana Project – Tangola

Please, find HERE also our last year Polish Jazz Top Ten 2012. On top of that we also want to direct your attention to Polish Jazz Project 2013 managed by Tomek which comprises full list of all jazz recordings featuring Polish artists released in 2013.

An On Bast/Maciej Fortuna – Electroacoustic Transcription Of Film Music By Krzysztof Penderecki (2013) ****

An On Blast - live electronics, trumpet processing

Maciej Fortuna - trumpet, live electronics, trumpet processing, miscellaneous

FM 013

 

 

 

 By Adam Baruch

This is the third album by the Polish duo, which consists of ambient / electronic music artists An On Bast (a.k.a. Anna Suda) and Jazz trumpeter / composer Maciej Fortuna. The album includes thirteen tracks, which were composed and conceived by the duo, all inspired by music composed by the Polish Classical composer Maestro Krzysztof Penderecki, which was either composed as soundtrack music for cinematographic productions or used in such capacity. The album also includes a DVD, which presents six short videos by visual artist Pawel Wypych, based on six tracks present on the CD, which visualize the music using black & white animations and collages.

Penderecki's involvement with film music is relatively less acknowledged in comparison to his large scale symphonic works, but it has always been some of the most impressive and dramatic of its kind and accompanied some of the best films by some of the most important directors, like David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, Andrzej Wajda and others.

This is by far the most complex and advanced project realized to date by the duo, which shows another perspective as well as another depth of their music. The personal and artistic courage to undertake a project like this one is to be admired and encouraged. After generations of Polish Jazz repeatedly dealing with the music of Frederic Chopin, often ad nauseam, the young and bold Polish Jazz lions discover contemporary Polish Classical music as the source of their inspiration. In 2012 the pianist Piotr Orzechowski released a sensational album with his interpretation of music by Maestro Penderecki ("Experiment: Penderecki") and now this album does it again, no less boldly one may add. Other Jazz albums, for example with music by Wojciech Kilar, were also released lately. This is definitely a refreshing trend.

The music included herein is truly overwhelming. Listeners with little or no experience with electronic music or the usage of electronic effects might find it initially strange and a bit difficult, but a couple of listening sessions should break the ice. An On Bast uses an array of different sound effects to create a rich and diverse background upon which Fortuna adds his incredible trumpet passages. These two elements: the electronic and the acoustic, work perfectly together to create a deeply atmospheric musical creation, floating in the infinite sonoric space.

Album after album and step after step Fortuna builds up a body of work that is most impressive and simply can not be ignored. His immense talent and versatility, as demonstrated herein in the collaboration with contemporary musical vocabulary, is awe-inspiring. The level of intellectual and emotional dialogue between these two young artists is a ray of hope in this dark age where most things seem to be simply fading out. Thank you!

Anna Gadt – Breathing (2013) ****

Anna Gadt - vocals
Łukasz Ojdana - piano
Maciej Garbowski - bass
Krzysztof Gradziuk - drums

UNIVERSAL 602537564392





By Adam Baruch

This is the third album by Polish Jazz vocalist Anna Gadt (a.k.a. Ania Stepniewska) and her first collaboration with the fabulous RGG trio: pianist Lukasz Ojdana, bassist Maciej Garbowski and drummer Krzysztof Gradziuk. The album consists of eleven original songs, ten of which were composed by Gadt and nine of which feature her lyrics, all in English. The tenth song uses a quote by American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, combined with another quote by American opera singer Beverly Sills, with the entire quote credited only to Emerson? The remaining song was composed by Garbowski and features lyrics by Polish poet Miron Bialoszewski. The album was recorded at Poland's finest recording facility, Studio Tokarnia, engineered as usual by the man with a pair of best ears in Poland, the studio owner Jan Smoczynski.

At the first glance this album had the potential to achieve the status of one of the best Polish Jazz recording in 2013: the finest Polish Jazz piano trio active on the scene, fascinating music, highly sensitive vocal delivery, superb sound quality, in short a dream come true. Sadly this potential proved to be unfulfilled as a result of committing one single mistake, the same unforgivable mistake which hunts the Polish Jazz vocal scene consistently since decades, namely the unexplainable desire to sing in English. Why on earth would anybody, who is not a natural English speaker, want to sing in that langue is a total mystery to me? It is plainly obvious that the articulation, the pronunciation and the accent will be always against you, so why even try? Time after time all Polish Jazz vocalist fall into the same trap and nobody's learning; what a pity. This album is no different; the vocals sung in English sound odd, unnatural and even bizarre at times. As if to prove the case, the only song with the Polish lyrics is simply heavenly and untouchable, as are the moments when Gadt is utilizing wordless vocalese. On the bright side, the music composed by Gadt is simply excellent from start to finish. Intelligent, atmospheric, versatile, moving, in short she made no mistakes whatsoever in that department and deserves all the praise.

Of course there are plenty of wonderful moments left to be enjoyed. The trio plays delightfully from start to finish and stands up to the challenge of accompanying a singer, which is quite different and in many respects more difficult that playing by themselves. Together with their astounding album "Szymanowski" released earlier this year, these two recordings firmly reassure their prime and unchallenged standing, which withstood the ground shaking personnel change they went through. They are simply beyond words. The way the trio improvises "around" the songs Gadt composed is simply a genius at work. In spite of the problem created by singing in English, Gadt is obviously a great vocalist, with exquisite sensibility, musicality and musical intelligence. All these qualities come through against all odds in these circumstances. One can only imagine what a brilliant, superb album this would be if she had decided to use Polish lyrics.

All things considered this is an amazing album after all, even magnificent at times. A magnificent failure? Well not quite, simply just another step on the long way which has no beaten tracks and leads to a place worth going. You win some, you lose some, c'est la vie…

Switch On Quintet – Our Car Will Never Stop (2010) ****

Maciej Fortuna - trumpet
Marcin Kajper - saxophone
Jakub Kujawa - guitar
Michal Rybka - bass
Bogumil Romanowski - drums

FM 003





By Adam Baruch

This is an excellent debut album by Polish Jazz-Rock Fusion Switch On Quintet which comprises of young musicians making their early stepson the local scene: trumpeter Maciej Fortuna, saxophonist Marcin Kajper, guitarist Jakub Kujawa, bassist Michal Rybka and drummer Bogumil Romanowski. They perform eleven original compositions, four by Romanowski, three by Fortuna, three by Kajper / Kujawa and the remaining one by Kajper. Keyboardist Michal Szlempo guests on selected tracks.

The music is a superb fresh approach to Fusion, which balances the Jazzy sound and feel of the brass with the Rocky sound and feel of the electric guitar, which although reminiscent of the legendary Chicago, is completely up to date and kicks ass like mad. To be perfectly honest I haven't heard such great Fusion in a very long time and this album is real treat. What a pity it remains almost completely obscure. These young Polish cats could teach a thing or two to all those wannabe American Fusion players, who constantly flood the marked with Fusion garbage.

As usual on the Polish scene the level of virtuosity displayed by the musicians is astounding, especially in view of their age. Fortuna's fiery solos soar through the air with incredible intensity, Kujawa's distorted guitar rips the air and its Bluesy undertones break your heart and Kajper's saxophone (especially the soprano) twist and turn like a snake on acid. The rhythm section kicks exactly when and where needed, keeping the ride right on time and your feet tapping uncontrollably.

Honestly this is one of the best Fusion albums I've heard in a long time and an absolute joyous musical ride, highly recommended to all Fusion heads out there. Fortuna, who since recording this album produces already a plethora of superb Jazz and other music, shows here his incredible versatility and I hope he'll return to play his chops in a Fusion environment again. Not to be missed!

Polish-Jazz blog provides media patronage for new album by Glabulator !!!

Glabulator

Tomasz Glazik - tenor saxophone, bass clarinet, modular
Jacek Buhl - drums, percussion

Jeden Dzień Bez Godzin (2013)

Glabulator was founded in 2005 by Tomek Glazik and Jacek Buhl. Their music is based on improvisation and the experimental sounds of the saxophone, bass clarinet, synthesizer, drums and percussion. Their last performance was in November 2007 at the third edition of the "Muzyka z Mózgu" ("Music of the Brain") festival, which was recorded and repeatedly broadcast by TVP Kultura. It has taken some time for them to re-appear since their last project, but they have now released their debut album "A Day Without Hours", which was recorded in October 2012 at the MÓZG recording Studio in Bydgoszcz. Most of the material consists of the improvisation of the tenor saxophone, bass clarinet and drums. There are also regular pieces using loops and the modular. All this is set in a melancholy, free yass suspension.

Tracks:

01. Przeziębiony słoń
02. Samotne serce
03. Chaotyczny spacer
04. Bob trapezowe oko
05. Linie papilarne
06. Chwilowe zejście
07. Marabut i jego syn
08. Uwertura c-moll
09. Jeden dzień bez godzin
10. Piosenka partyzancka