Izvajalec: Lovano, Joe
Založba: EMI Records
Izid: 2008
Joe Lovano is considered one of the best saxophonists of the nineties, and judging by what we hear on the album Symphonica, it’s hard to argue with that. Lovano may well be a consummate saxophonist, but is he also a good enough composer? Probably good enough for the kind of music he makes (pretty traditional jazz), though with jazz that leans so heavily on improvisation, it’s sometimes hard to talk about composing at all.
Lovano’s style is best described as bop jazz, but on this album the orchestral arrangements make the whole thing come off a bit differently. Conductor Michael Abene did a really good job on the arrangements. At times they don’t sound like jazz at all, more like something made for a symphony, which is probably where the album’s name comes from. Of course the jazz woodwinds are often front and center (much like our own Big Band), but in the gentler passages the strings really get their moment too.
Lovano is of course the star of the album, and with his nonstop improvisations he proves he’s an outstanding musician. Where he doesn’t convince is the songs themselves: the music sounds chewed over, like the guy got stuck in time (about 50 years back). Music changes, jazz especially, and I think it matters for jazz that things keep evolving and moving forward. But apparently there’s a trend right now around the world of musicians heading back to more traditional styles, where you really can’t discover America anymore. And people clearly still prefer to listen to tried-and-tested, safe music rather than try something new. That’s exactly Lovano’s trump card. He plays very dependable, safe jazz that won’t scare anyone off, and might even thrill the traditionalists.
EMI obviously has a policy of putting out the safest, most play-it-safe jazz albums possible, which isn’t all that strange given the slump in album sales. Still, Joe Lovano has a bit more of a sense of adventure than EMI’s previous jazz release – Patricia Barber. And for me personally, jazz has always been built on exactly that adventurousness, on discovering something new, on a different kind of musical expression. Joe Lovano has some of that, but way too little for the album to be top-notch. He’s simply too rooted in strict traditional jazz, and despite the lovely, occasionally symphonic orchestral arrangements, Symphonica is for me just one more album, one that will probably be forgotten after this review. Traditional jazz fans will no doubt like it, but I’ll rather treat myself to the other Symphonica, the one by the Japanese band Ruins, which is far more fun, crazy and experimental.
The album isn’t out yet, since it doesn’t drop until September.
Lineup
Joe Lovano – saxophones
WDR orchestra – conductor Michael Abene
Production
Lucas M. Schmid
Track list
1. Emperor Jones
2. Eternal Joy
3. Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love
4. Alexander the Great
5. His Dreams
6. The Dawn of Time
7. I’m All for You
