ALEX HUTTON TRIO - Magna Carta Suite
F-IRE PRESENTS: F-IRECD82
Alex Hutton (piano) Yuri Goloubev (bass) Asaf Sirkis (drums) with Liz Palmer (baroque flute) Liesbeth Allart (cor anglais) and Neil Sparkes (recitation)
Recorded August 2014 at Mastersound Studio, London
The harnessing of jazz to express extra-musical ideas is not a new thing: as the reader needs no reminding, Ellington was ever at it and the enthusiasm amongst jazz musicians to invest their music with some higher programmatic purpose continues unabated. Once upon a time jazz scores were inevitably associated with the depiction of noir, of the criminal underworld, but increasingly more diverse pictorial, philosophical and poetic themes have proved amenable to jazz interpretation and this suite by Alex Hutton, inspired by the 800th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta is an impressive addition to the genre.
Drawing on various musical sources to furnish his palette Hutton paints a fairly literal picture of that momentous event in the opening four pieces of the suite but then the music becomes more abstract as he seeks to convey an impression of the Charter’s wider dissemination and ultimate incorporation of its ideas into the American constitution. The opening tracks utilise the conventions of 17th century consort music with Goloubev’s wonderfully sonorous arco bass emulating the sound of the viola de gamba and the flute and cor anglais enhancing the baroque sound reminiscent of an Elizabethan aire or galliard. These elements, riding on Hutton’s arpeggios, are to be found in the evocative, scene setting opener, `Old Yew`, depicting the place where the signing took place. The resourceful percussionist, Asaf Sirkis, injects a forbidding note of menace into these pastoral visions as the confrontation between King John and his Barons becomes more acute but the conflict resolves into a jig like music reminiscent of English folk dance to celebrate the King’s capitulation to the Barons’ demands.
So far so good, the written music has a nobility which befits the theme but at some point jazz, to be worthy of the name, has to break out of the programmatic framework and present itself its abstract form and Hutton manages this most successfully without impairing the unity of the project. In three more substantial central movements which portray the dissemination of Magna Carta principles through the invention of the printing press, exploration and colonisation he loosens the baroque elements to allow for jazz development which itself serves as a metaphor for freedom of expression and is most appropriate in this context. There are satisfying, eventful solos from Hutton and Goloubev , lately an associate of Gwlym Simcock, powerful drumming from Sirkis, who seems very much at home in this type of thing as evidenced by his recent work with Tim Garland, and touches of exquisite colouration from the wind instruments. The suite finishes with the recitation of two sonnets written and delivered by Neil Sparkes which may attribute more influence to Magna Carta than it actually deserves but are nevertheless rousing ,set as they are against the backdrop of Hutton’s `Old Yew` leitmotif , leaving you with a `proud to be British` glow.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
F-IRE PRESENTS: F-IRECD82
Alex Hutton (piano) Yuri Goloubev (bass) Asaf Sirkis (drums) with Liz Palmer (baroque flute) Liesbeth Allart (cor anglais) and Neil Sparkes (recitation)
Recorded August 2014 at Mastersound Studio, London
The harnessing of jazz to express extra-musical ideas is not a new thing: as the reader needs no reminding, Ellington was ever at it and the enthusiasm amongst jazz musicians to invest their music with some higher programmatic purpose continues unabated. Once upon a time jazz scores were inevitably associated with the depiction of noir, of the criminal underworld, but increasingly more diverse pictorial, philosophical and poetic themes have proved amenable to jazz interpretation and this suite by Alex Hutton, inspired by the 800th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta is an impressive addition to the genre.
Drawing on various musical sources to furnish his palette Hutton paints a fairly literal picture of that momentous event in the opening four pieces of the suite but then the music becomes more abstract as he seeks to convey an impression of the Charter’s wider dissemination and ultimate incorporation of its ideas into the American constitution. The opening tracks utilise the conventions of 17th century consort music with Goloubev’s wonderfully sonorous arco bass emulating the sound of the viola de gamba and the flute and cor anglais enhancing the baroque sound reminiscent of an Elizabethan aire or galliard. These elements, riding on Hutton’s arpeggios, are to be found in the evocative, scene setting opener, `Old Yew`, depicting the place where the signing took place. The resourceful percussionist, Asaf Sirkis, injects a forbidding note of menace into these pastoral visions as the confrontation between King John and his Barons becomes more acute but the conflict resolves into a jig like music reminiscent of English folk dance to celebrate the King’s capitulation to the Barons’ demands.
So far so good, the written music has a nobility which befits the theme but at some point jazz, to be worthy of the name, has to break out of the programmatic framework and present itself its abstract form and Hutton manages this most successfully without impairing the unity of the project. In three more substantial central movements which portray the dissemination of Magna Carta principles through the invention of the printing press, exploration and colonisation he loosens the baroque elements to allow for jazz development which itself serves as a metaphor for freedom of expression and is most appropriate in this context. There are satisfying, eventful solos from Hutton and Goloubev , lately an associate of Gwlym Simcock, powerful drumming from Sirkis, who seems very much at home in this type of thing as evidenced by his recent work with Tim Garland, and touches of exquisite colouration from the wind instruments. The suite finishes with the recitation of two sonnets written and delivered by Neil Sparkes which may attribute more influence to Magna Carta than it actually deserves but are nevertheless rousing ,set as they are against the backdrop of Hutton’s `Old Yew` leitmotif , leaving you with a `proud to be British` glow.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
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