PIERRE DORGE & THE NEW JUNGLE ORCHESTRA - Tjak, Tjaka, Tchicai
Steeplechase Records: SCCD 31777
Pierre Dorge (guitar, conductor) Gunnar Halle ( trumpet) Morten Carlsen ( taragot, tenor sax) Jakob Mygind ( tenor and soprano sax) Anders Banke (tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet) Kenneth Agerholm ( trombone) Irene Becker ( piano, synthesiser) Thommy Andersson (bass) Martin Andersen (drums, cajon) Ayi Solomon (congas, percussion) Recorded in Denmark, September 28th & 29th
The New Jungle Orchestra lead by avant-garde guitarist, Pierre Dorge, is something of an institution on the Danish jazz/improv scene being in existence for around 40 years and having produced two dozen albums. They take their inspiration from Ellington’s `Cotton Club` orchestra in respect of their use of exotic effects but celebrate music from around the globe with particular reference to African, world music and free jazz influences. As well as Ellington one hears shades of Mingus and Gil Evans in the mix as well as the outlandish orchestrations and rock like drive of Zappa’s `Grand Wazoo` enterprise.
On this occasion their focus is on the musical influence exerted by John Tchicai, Denmark’s most influential free jazz saxophonist, who died in 2012, having earned his place the jazz pantheon through his involvement in Coltrane’s `Ascension` and Albert Ayler’s `New York Eye and Ear Control`, both of which are important free jazz recordings. Upon his return to Denmark Tchicai, having both Danish and Congolese antecedents, explored the possibilities offered by combining African influenced jazz with European avant-garde music in a band he called `Cadentia Nova Danica` (New Danish Song /Improvisation) which in turn provided the impetus for Dorge, as a young admirer, to form his own band and it is Tchicai’s influence that largely informs this, his latest project
The expressive capabilities of this highly talented aggregation are greatly enhanced by having the horn men able to double on a range of reeds and these resources are put to good use in realising Tchicai’s artistic vision and reprising music that he was strongly associated with when he himself was a member of Dorge’s ensemble. Of the eleven pieces offered one is a Tchicai original , a lovely ballad combining phrases from Danish children’s songs with exotic African rhythms, whilst the remainder are creations by Dorge, his wife Irene Becker and saxophonist, Mygind and are heavily indebted to Tchicai’s tropical muse, reflecting his love of exotic flora, fauna and folk lore, invoking a generally equatorial atmosphere.
Added to the vibrant instrumentation and stirring percussive elements are call and response vocal interjections which are in turn melded into free jazz passages all contributing to a vivid portrayal of a fascinating artist whose legacy and reputation can only be preserved and enhanced when re-examined and re-interpreted in such a masterly fashion.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
Steeplechase Records: SCCD 31777
Pierre Dorge (guitar, conductor) Gunnar Halle ( trumpet) Morten Carlsen ( taragot, tenor sax) Jakob Mygind ( tenor and soprano sax) Anders Banke (tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet) Kenneth Agerholm ( trombone) Irene Becker ( piano, synthesiser) Thommy Andersson (bass) Martin Andersen (drums, cajon) Ayi Solomon (congas, percussion) Recorded in Denmark, September 28th & 29th
The New Jungle Orchestra lead by avant-garde guitarist, Pierre Dorge, is something of an institution on the Danish jazz/improv scene being in existence for around 40 years and having produced two dozen albums. They take their inspiration from Ellington’s `Cotton Club` orchestra in respect of their use of exotic effects but celebrate music from around the globe with particular reference to African, world music and free jazz influences. As well as Ellington one hears shades of Mingus and Gil Evans in the mix as well as the outlandish orchestrations and rock like drive of Zappa’s `Grand Wazoo` enterprise.
On this occasion their focus is on the musical influence exerted by John Tchicai, Denmark’s most influential free jazz saxophonist, who died in 2012, having earned his place the jazz pantheon through his involvement in Coltrane’s `Ascension` and Albert Ayler’s `New York Eye and Ear Control`, both of which are important free jazz recordings. Upon his return to Denmark Tchicai, having both Danish and Congolese antecedents, explored the possibilities offered by combining African influenced jazz with European avant-garde music in a band he called `Cadentia Nova Danica` (New Danish Song /Improvisation) which in turn provided the impetus for Dorge, as a young admirer, to form his own band and it is Tchicai’s influence that largely informs this, his latest project
The expressive capabilities of this highly talented aggregation are greatly enhanced by having the horn men able to double on a range of reeds and these resources are put to good use in realising Tchicai’s artistic vision and reprising music that he was strongly associated with when he himself was a member of Dorge’s ensemble. Of the eleven pieces offered one is a Tchicai original , a lovely ballad combining phrases from Danish children’s songs with exotic African rhythms, whilst the remainder are creations by Dorge, his wife Irene Becker and saxophonist, Mygind and are heavily indebted to Tchicai’s tropical muse, reflecting his love of exotic flora, fauna and folk lore, invoking a generally equatorial atmosphere.
Added to the vibrant instrumentation and stirring percussive elements are call and response vocal interjections which are in turn melded into free jazz passages all contributing to a vivid portrayal of a fascinating artist whose legacy and reputation can only be preserved and enhanced when re-examined and re-interpreted in such a masterly fashion.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
