Wisdom of Uncertainty in Bloomington, MN

The first recorded appearance of drummer
Susie Ibarra
with the
David S. Ware Quartet
is an auspicious one to be sure. Her contrasting style with former drummer
Whit Dickey
is one of both physicality and fluidity.
Ibarra
is a far more physical drummer than
Dickey
is, and is given to deep rhythmic grooves that produce dance-like flourishes in her accents and fills. How that affects the band is obvious from the opening bars of
"Acclimation,"
where her snare and cymbal work set the pace for
Ware
, who enters singing.
Shipp
carries in a seriously
blues
-inflected chordal series of minor thirds and sixths, and
Parker
is happier than a clam, as his full physical manner of playing is given depth and breadth here. The band charges
's compositions (yes compositions), cornering the tiger in them, only to let it loose again in order to chase it down. There is a brightness and fullness in
's approach that offers
more room to fluctuate in his legato phrasing, turning it over and moving through a series of obligato and even ostinatos in his melodic workups and in his solos -- check the long breaks in
"Utopic"
and
"Continuum."
Likewise,
is free to rumble around in the deep registers of the piano he so enjoys, as he does on the opener and
"Antidromic."
His blocky style is far more fluid on this recording, as it shifts its right hands maneuvers with
's angular accents and around the kit flails and rolls -- check her solo in
"Utopic."
This is a record that sings; its song is a wild and wooly one to be sure, but it is a giant leap compositionally for
, and for the ensemble with its new drummer. ~ Thom Jurek