CHICK COREA / GARY BURTON - Crystal Silence
ECM 674 3112
Chick Corea (piano); Gary Burton (vibes)
Recorded November 6, 1972
Who would have thought that when brought together at the suggestion of producer, Manfred Eicher, that the pairing of pianist Chick Corea and vibraphone master Gary Burton that the partnership would last more than forty years and resulting in music that can truly be defined as the art of the duo. As a duet, Corea and Burton recorded three albums for ECM, two in the studio and a double live recording from Zurich in 1979 (there was also The Lyric Suite for Sextet that featured the duo with a string quartet), but it is this first meeting that I return to the most.
The pianist supplies more than half the material heard, many of which have become contemporary standards and the most endearing and enduring of Corea's output. The set begins with the phenomenal 'Señor Mouse', an exuberant tour de force of an opener with a powerful rhythmic figure from Corea's left hand that propels the melody and the flying mallets of Gary Burton. Corea also gives a second outing for 'What Game Shall We Play Today' that he recorded earlier in the year for his Return to Forever album with Flora Purim on vocals. However it is perhaps the title track that perfectly captures the duo at their most intensely fascinating. The gentle tempo and crystalline perfection of the melody and its execution is sheer beauty.
If Corea's compositions contribute to the success of the music played, then the creativity is more than maintained with the inclusion of three tunes written by by bassist, Steve Swallow. So impeccably are they performed by Burton and Corea it is difficult to believe that they had not been written especially for the recording.
Overall this is an immaculately played and recorded set that has stood the test of time and can be ranked as one of the label's finest releases over the last half century.
ECM 674 3112
Chick Corea (piano); Gary Burton (vibes)
Recorded November 6, 1972
Who would have thought that when brought together at the suggestion of producer, Manfred Eicher, that the pairing of pianist Chick Corea and vibraphone master Gary Burton that the partnership would last more than forty years and resulting in music that can truly be defined as the art of the duo. As a duet, Corea and Burton recorded three albums for ECM, two in the studio and a double live recording from Zurich in 1979 (there was also The Lyric Suite for Sextet that featured the duo with a string quartet), but it is this first meeting that I return to the most.
The pianist supplies more than half the material heard, many of which have become contemporary standards and the most endearing and enduring of Corea's output. The set begins with the phenomenal 'Señor Mouse', an exuberant tour de force of an opener with a powerful rhythmic figure from Corea's left hand that propels the melody and the flying mallets of Gary Burton. Corea also gives a second outing for 'What Game Shall We Play Today' that he recorded earlier in the year for his Return to Forever album with Flora Purim on vocals. However it is perhaps the title track that perfectly captures the duo at their most intensely fascinating. The gentle tempo and crystalline perfection of the melody and its execution is sheer beauty.
If Corea's compositions contribute to the success of the music played, then the creativity is more than maintained with the inclusion of three tunes written by by bassist, Steve Swallow. So impeccably are they performed by Burton and Corea it is difficult to believe that they had not been written especially for the recording.
Overall this is an immaculately played and recorded set that has stood the test of time and can be ranked as one of the label's finest releases over the last half century.
