Below, from the August 2010 issue of All About Jazz-New York. (Check the new AAJ-NY website, the result of its split from AllAboutJazz.com.)
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There was one sure way for tenor saxophonist Noah Preminger to heighten the freewheeling melodic onslaught of his quintet gig at Smalls (July 1st): add alto saxophonist Loren Stillman to the frontline. Ornette Coleman’s music was a recurring theme, and Stillman and Preminger brought to mind the rough-hewn wail of Coleman and Dewey Redman on the opening “Toy Dance” (from New York Is Now!) and the penultimate “Law Years” (from Science Fiction). But guitarist Nir Felder approached Ornette from another angle, with Frisellian chordal clouds that lent harmonic dimension to a music not easily harmonized. Just as the free vibe became established, however, Preminger threw a curve and called two straightforward ballads, “Until the Real Thing Comes Along” and the closing “Then I’ll Be Tired of You.” Drummer Ted Poor began the former with sticks — not brushes as one might expect — and gave it a propulsive feel throughout. Bassist John Hébert took his only solo on the latter and brought forth the kind of lyricism he’s employed so effectively with Fred Hersch. Preminger knit these divergent pieces together with the force and insouciant command of his tenor, bringing out caustic dissonance even in tender passages, making every risk feel natural and necessary. With Stillman as an energetic foil, he kept the band centered, yet productively off-balance, during Felder’s swinging “Old Angels” and his own wistful straight-eighth chart “Today Is Tuesday.” (David R. Adler)
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Bassist Marc Johnson, with Joey Baron in the drum chair, has backed Italian virtuoso pianist Enrico Pieranunzi on a number of fine recordings (Dream Dance, Live in Japan, As Never Before). But easing into the late Wednesday set at the Village Vanguard (July 7th), Pieranunzi and Johnson faced a very different type of partner in drum legend Paul Motian. Recall that Motian has made a significant mark on Pieranunzi’s catalog, on discs including Special Encounter (with Charlie Haden) and Doorways (with Chris Potter). Incidentally, Motian also played the Blue Note in May with Chick Corea and Eddie Gomez; in late 2008 he played Birdland with Pieranunzi and Steve Swallow. Happily, this Vanguard stint was far better in terms of consistency, focus and fire. “Abacus” gave a taste of Motian’s compositional excellence, and the rugged swing of Pieranunzi’s lines and harmonies didn’t relent on “Jitterbug Waltz” and a highly abstracted “Autumn Leaves.” Motian’s wholly off-kilter approach, his way of articulating the beat by not quite articulating it, can generate all sorts of welcome tension, although there were times in this set when just locking in and burning would have been more welcome still. If one thing brought the trio’s rapport into sparkling relief it was ballads: first a brilliantly harmonized “I Fall In Love Too Easily,” later Pieranunzi’s new “Unless They Love You.” The lively “La Dolce Vita” (from Fellini Jazz) brought the curtain down. (DA)
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