PAGO LIBRE & FRIENDS - Got Hard
Leo Records CD LR 835
This is the Pago Libre quartet with the ABO – the Alpentöne Blasorchester – and friends.
The quartet is John Wolf Brennan; Piano; Tom Götze, double bass; Florian Mayer, violin; and Arkady Shilkloper; French Horn, Flugelhorn
Recorded live at the Alpentöne Festival, August 19, 2017
Pago Libre started out in 1988, as a drum-less, avant-garde quartet, offering jazz from a different perspective, its instrumentation being somewhat unusual for any jazz line-up: violin, piano, French horn and double bass. Together they present equivalent shares of composed and improvised pieces.
The pieces offer a wide spectrum of Alpine styled music – which is what the festival is all about – and a broad look at Alpine humour too. Throughout, the Alpine yodel is heard, as are Celtic reels and similar sounds, all reflections of the possible roots of the Alpine people as well as their music.
Alpine music often tries to sound as authentic as possible and alphorn players and yodellers will often lean towards dressing the part. Meanwhile, jazz, rock and other brands of contemporary musicians have tried to assimilate the music into the pastiche of their own genre and in this they are not alone: Brahms and Schubert were also influenced, as are some of the contemporary avant-garde.
This is what seems to be the intention here and I have to say that it’s not for me. I don’t like the Alpine sound and I don’t think it fits with any kind of jazz in my experience. This is not intended to put you off – you should listen for yourselves and decide if it is for you. All reviewed music is a little like that – fit for some and not for the rest. So be it.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
Leo Records CD LR 835
This is the Pago Libre quartet with the ABO – the Alpentöne Blasorchester – and friends.
The quartet is John Wolf Brennan; Piano; Tom Götze, double bass; Florian Mayer, violin; and Arkady Shilkloper; French Horn, Flugelhorn
Recorded live at the Alpentöne Festival, August 19, 2017
Pago Libre started out in 1988, as a drum-less, avant-garde quartet, offering jazz from a different perspective, its instrumentation being somewhat unusual for any jazz line-up: violin, piano, French horn and double bass. Together they present equivalent shares of composed and improvised pieces.
The pieces offer a wide spectrum of Alpine styled music – which is what the festival is all about – and a broad look at Alpine humour too. Throughout, the Alpine yodel is heard, as are Celtic reels and similar sounds, all reflections of the possible roots of the Alpine people as well as their music.
Alpine music often tries to sound as authentic as possible and alphorn players and yodellers will often lean towards dressing the part. Meanwhile, jazz, rock and other brands of contemporary musicians have tried to assimilate the music into the pastiche of their own genre and in this they are not alone: Brahms and Schubert were also influenced, as are some of the contemporary avant-garde.
This is what seems to be the intention here and I have to say that it’s not for me. I don’t like the Alpine sound and I don’t think it fits with any kind of jazz in my experience. This is not intended to put you off – you should listen for yourselves and decide if it is for you. All reviewed music is a little like that – fit for some and not for the rest. So be it.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
