GRATKOWSKI, KRUGLOV,-NABOTOV, YUDANOV - Leo Records 35th Anniversary, Moscow
Leo Records – CD LR 719
Frank Gratkowski, alto sax, clarinet, bass clarinet; Alexey Kruglov, alto sax, bassethorn; Simon Nabatov, piano; Oleg Yudanov, drums, percussion.
Recorded live, 13th October 2014
The opening track, Home Free, starts out with apparent trepidation, the four musicians seeming to feel their ways around each other, possibly as four individuals, four strangers might. Their mutual comprehension and empathy are soon linked through their considerable artistry and this first track becomes an entity, a complete body in its own right. The Russian audience respond enthusiastically and the music ascends into an entirely free jazz aesthetic.
The final track, Homecoming, turns the concert on its head, alto and piano rampant before settling the quartet into a more recumbent mode and mood, tailing off finally into a silence which takes the audience by surprise.
It’s a very short concert, finishing all too soon at under 45 minutes, and leaving me wishing for much, much more.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
Leo Records – CD LR 719
Frank Gratkowski, alto sax, clarinet, bass clarinet; Alexey Kruglov, alto sax, bassethorn; Simon Nabatov, piano; Oleg Yudanov, drums, percussion.
Recorded live, 13th October 2014
The opening track, Home Free, starts out with apparent trepidation, the four musicians seeming to feel their ways around each other, possibly as four individuals, four strangers might. Their mutual comprehension and empathy are soon linked through their considerable artistry and this first track becomes an entity, a complete body in its own right. The Russian audience respond enthusiastically and the music ascends into an entirely free jazz aesthetic.
The final track, Homecoming, turns the concert on its head, alto and piano rampant before settling the quartet into a more recumbent mode and mood, tailing off finally into a silence which takes the audience by surprise.
It’s a very short concert, finishing all too soon at under 45 minutes, and leaving me wishing for much, much more.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
