Tyshawn Sorey’s ‘Mesmerism’ celebrates the everyday miracle of the jazz rhythm trio : NPR

TERRY GROSS, HOST:

That is FRESH AIR. African American composer and MacArthur fellow Tyshawn Sorey has written music for orchestra, chamber ensembles and opera corporations and leads his personal teams that includes improvising musicians. Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says earlier than Sorey was an acclaimed composer, he was generally known as a wonderful, versatile jazz drummer. A brand new trio album options Sorey on drums.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “REM BLUES”)

KEVIN WHITEHEAD, BYLINE: Tyshawn Sorey’s trio on Duke Ellington’s “REM Blues” – simply the type of easy-grooving quickie the Duke would carry to an off-the-cuff session to get the gamers in sync. Sorey’s advert hoc trio makes use of it a lot the identical means. They did not rehearse lengthy for his or her album “Mesmerism” to maintain it unfastened. Just a few new music improviser-composers like Tyshawn Sorey have made data the place they swing on requirements for the pleasure of it and to acknowledge their debt to jazz practices that inform their very own layered, complicated, multi-vectored music.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “AUTUMN LEAVES”)

WHITEHEAD: Drummer Tyshawn Sorey with pianist Aaron Diehl and bassist Matt Brewer on the oldie “Autumn Leaves.” To play his personal compositions, Sorey has one other piano trio that make it very spare and un-jazzy, nearer to Morton Feldman than Monk. However this current jazz trio has its personal clear sound. Aaron Diehl is a deft trio pianist and beneficiant accompanist who is aware of to not overplay. Piano and bass depart loads of room for Tyshawn’s limber mutate of drums, which mix propulsion and punctuation.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “AUTUMN LEAVES”)

WHITEHEAD: This Tyshawn Sorey trio can play flippantly and politely, however in addition they dig in. On Horace Silver’s “Enchantment,” they depart open house, however each half matches collectively drum choir-style. Bass turns into a percussion instrument like piano, drums and cymbals.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “ENCHANTMENT”)

WHITEHEAD: Tyshawn Sorey and bassist Matt Brewer have performed collectively in a couple of bands and have a superb understanding. Every immediately adjusts to the opposite’s micro fluctuations. Brewer’s sturdy old-school bass thump provides the band a sound backside and lets him testify with authority.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “REM BLUES”)

WHITEHEAD: Alongside “Blues,” “Autumn Leaves” and “Detour Forward,” for this tradition-minded date, Tyshawn Sorey introduced tunes by Muhal Richard Abrams and Paul Motian, unbiased thinkers who wrote melodies people may play, like Muhal’s waltz “Two Over One.”

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “TWO OVER ONE”)

WHITEHEAD: Tyshawn Sorey’s album “Mesmerism” celebrates the on a regular basis miracle of the jazz rhythm trio. Every participant addresses the beat in a swervy (ph), spontaneous means with out fixed chaos. An off-the-cuff romp like this session makes for breezy listening, however it’s additionally a sensible means for a composer to recharge his musical creativeness earlier than sitting down at a clean sheet of employees paper to plot his subsequent transfer.

(SOUNDBITE OF TYSHAWN SOREY TRIO’S “DETOUR AHEAD”)

GROSS: Kevin Whitehead is the writer of the e book “Play The Means You Really feel: The Important Information To Jazz Tales On Movie.” He reviewed “Mesmerism” by Tyshawn Sorey. After we take a brief break, Maureen Corrigan will overview a brand new novel about work, love and video video games. That is FRESH AIR.

(SOUNDBITE OF MICHAEL BISIO QUARTET’S “A.M.”)

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