In 2020, guitarist
Wolfgang Muthspiel
, drummer
Brian Blade
, and bassist
Scott Colley
issued
Angular Blues
. While all three had worked together previously in various contexts --
Blade
is a longtime member of the guitarist's trio -- this marked the first time they'd recorded as a trio. Whether playing standards or originals, improvising plugged or unplugged, they showcased an easy, natural rapport with locked-in ensemble play. Following extensive tours in 2022 across the U.S, Europe, and Japan, they entered France's Studios La Buissonne in March 2023 with producer
Manfred Eicher
and engineer
Gerard de Haro
. (It should be noted that for
ECM
, a six-month turnaround time between recording, mixing, and release is rare.)
Dance of the Elders
showcases the guitarist's sui generis, folk- and classically influenced compositional approach to jazz amid seemingly instinctive exchanges with his bandmates.
The nearly 11-minute "Invocation" opens the set in two distinct sections: the first is contemplative, consisting of sparse electric guitar and bass solos bridged by ensemble engagement with the melody. The second evolves from that into a rich lyric sequence, unfolding gradually and systemically. "Prelude to Bach" is a reinvention of, and tribute to, the classical composer's "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded." Amid
Muthspiel
's restrained, textured chordal improvisation,
Colley
plays arco, diving, droning, and hovering in the dialogue before shifting to pizzicato as the guitarist reasserts the lyric and introduces
. The title track's form and improvisation offer deft shifts in time and rhythmic signatures before a "clapping loop" underscores
's inventive solo. The gradually unfolding cover of
Bertolt Brecht
's and
Kurt Weill
's "Liebeslied" is an airy jazz waltz.
's electric instrument melds blues and lithe, post-bop notions in his solo. "Folksong" is a musical maze. Using his nylon-string acoustic,
claims it was inspired by
Keith Jarrett
's improvising style.
's contrapuntal dialogic invention compels and complements
's crystalline shapes and single lines above
's subtle yet canny beat punctuation. "Cantus Bradus" was inspired by pianist
Brad Mehldau
, a former collaborator. Its cyclical use of descending figures melds tonality and gentle dissonance amid a bluesy tension, and shadowy augmented or diminished chords borrowed from nuevo flamenco. The set closes with a gorgeous reading of
Joni Mitchell
's "Amelia" from
Hejira
. (
Mitchell
erased the bassline and dubbed in another one by
Jaco Pastorius
).
's approach is revelatory. He frames
's pursuit of
's "grace notes," with sensitivity and a composer's intuition. The guitarist invents, inverts, and references the 1979 live version of the song from
Shadows and Light
, performed by an all-star band that included
Pat Metheny
and
Pastorius
.
Three years and long international tours separate this trio's studio albums. That's an eternity in jazz. The maturity and instinctive empathy these players display in listening to and playing with one another on
is egoless, inviting, and astonishing, albeit in its own gentle way. ~ Thom Jurek