EYOLF DALE - Return To Mind
Edition: EDN1106
Eyolf Dale: piano; Andre Roligheten: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Hayden Powell: trumpet, flugelhorn; Kristoffer Kompen: trombone, euphonium; Adrian Loseth Waade: violin; Rob Waring: vibraphone; Per Zanussi: bass; Gard Nilssen: drums.
Recorded 29th -30th August 2017 by Thomas Vang at The Village Recording Studio, Copenhagen
While the name Eyolf Dale might not be too familiar to readers, many of his band-mates on this set will be, and I think you can often judge a man by the company he keeps. This follows 2016’s ‘Wolf Valley’ CD and many of the pieces have been composed and developed on the road as Dale tours with his band. In the liner notes he says, ‘I often start with images, sometimes abstract, sometimes stemming more from reality’. There is certainly a cinematic quality to the way in which the pieces set up a scene and develop a sense of narrative. So much so, that the collection of pieces could be listened to as a travelogue. But, perhaps, it is not so much a sense of each place visited that Dale captures but rather the sense of home viewed from different points on the compass. The compositions work around folk-like melodies that create simple and delicate harmonies, and Dale’s compositional strength lies in the way he blends the various instruments to create richly rewarding patterns.
The compositions have a nice blend of the chamber group, with its soft tonal palette, and the orchestra, creating sounds that sometimes are much larger than the octet playing them. Dale’s compositions, particularly in his piano soloing have the touch of French Impressionists (one is reminded of Debussy or Ravel in some of the phrasing), and he has a masterful way of drawing in the other instruments to the construction of the pieces. This is not to say that all the pieces have a similarly tranquil feel to them – ‘The Mayor’ (track 3) moves up and down the gears in a well managed bop outing giving space for Waring’s vibes to shine, and ‘I can’t deny’ (track 9) shifts in and out of an off-kilter rhythm with Powell’s trumpet and Waade’s violin weaving around these changing rhythms.
Much as ‘Wolf Valley’ was highly praised, this set is even better.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
Edition: EDN1106
Eyolf Dale: piano; Andre Roligheten: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Hayden Powell: trumpet, flugelhorn; Kristoffer Kompen: trombone, euphonium; Adrian Loseth Waade: violin; Rob Waring: vibraphone; Per Zanussi: bass; Gard Nilssen: drums.
Recorded 29th -30th August 2017 by Thomas Vang at The Village Recording Studio, Copenhagen
While the name Eyolf Dale might not be too familiar to readers, many of his band-mates on this set will be, and I think you can often judge a man by the company he keeps. This follows 2016’s ‘Wolf Valley’ CD and many of the pieces have been composed and developed on the road as Dale tours with his band. In the liner notes he says, ‘I often start with images, sometimes abstract, sometimes stemming more from reality’. There is certainly a cinematic quality to the way in which the pieces set up a scene and develop a sense of narrative. So much so, that the collection of pieces could be listened to as a travelogue. But, perhaps, it is not so much a sense of each place visited that Dale captures but rather the sense of home viewed from different points on the compass. The compositions work around folk-like melodies that create simple and delicate harmonies, and Dale’s compositional strength lies in the way he blends the various instruments to create richly rewarding patterns.
The compositions have a nice blend of the chamber group, with its soft tonal palette, and the orchestra, creating sounds that sometimes are much larger than the octet playing them. Dale’s compositions, particularly in his piano soloing have the touch of French Impressionists (one is reminded of Debussy or Ravel in some of the phrasing), and he has a masterful way of drawing in the other instruments to the construction of the pieces. This is not to say that all the pieces have a similarly tranquil feel to them – ‘The Mayor’ (track 3) moves up and down the gears in a well managed bop outing giving space for Waring’s vibes to shine, and ‘I can’t deny’ (track 9) shifts in and out of an off-kilter rhythm with Powell’s trumpet and Waade’s violin weaving around these changing rhythms.
Much as ‘Wolf Valley’ was highly praised, this set is even better.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
