The greatest of composers
are musical chameleons able to span
genres, borrow ideas from the greats
that preceded them without sounding
like mere imitators, and reinvent their
sound in a great number of ways. Dave
Brubeck certainly falls into this mold,
being one of the great daring improvisers
in jazz, as well as a literal member
of the American Classical Music Hall
of Fame. His experimentations in musical
forms, rhythms and time signatures not
normally employed in jazz broke ground
for such luminaries as Stan Kenton and
Wynton Marsalis, as well as inheriting
from the tradition of Gershwin, Copland
and Stravinsky.
The major work on this
disc, Chromatic Fantasy Sonata
is a direct derivation of the music
theory of J.S. Bach. However, when this
piece is listened to, it is immediately
discovered to be anything other than
a rehashing of ideas hundreds of years
old. It is a daring musical reinvention
of the classical Sonata form, and uses
some of Bach’s own melodic material
from Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue
in D minor (DWV 903) as inspiration.
Additionally, Brubeck describes in the
liner notes that he also attempted to
use Bach’s SATB voicing theory for the
Chorale section and his fugal theory
for the 4-part Fugue movement.
The selections from
Two-Part Adventures are short
musical musings by the composer that
sound like a musical melding of Guiraldi
and Debussy. Again, Brubeck’s ability
to merge jazz voicing and classical
sensibilities is wonderfully displayed.
In Tritonis, Brubeck reinvents
himself by taking a work he had written
for guitar and flute, then performed
with his jazz quartet, and uses flamenco-inspired
voicings on the solo piano version.
The Salmon Strikes Back was written
specifically for the performer John
Salmon, recorded here, and the excellence
of the performance, highlighting both
his virtuosity and his emotion, is a
testament to that fact. Finally the
disc concludes with Rising Sun,
which is another work originally done
for Brubeck’s jazz quartet and reinvented
for solo piano with great success.
The performance on
this disc by John Salmon is of the highest
caliber. Brubeck and he have a long
standing personal acquaintance, and
Salmon’s understanding of Brubeck’s
work is evident throughout. He plays
beautifully, both with precision and
expertise, and pulls the most out of
each note. His facility at the keyboard
is wonderful. If a better performance
of these works can be done, I would
be amazed.
Brubeck claims that
his greatest compositions were probably
done at the moment, for the moment,
and were probably neither recorded nor
written. I can scarcely imagine what
musical gems have been lost if that
is true, for these works are generally
superior. While they perhaps lack the
spontaneity of true musical improvisation,
they are the synthesis of a lifetime
of musical ideas, and lack nothing in
freshness or vigor. I can only believe
that Brubeck is too hard on himself,
as many composers are. Either that,
or we can but hope that his genius is
able to recapture those moments so they
can be notated for the rest of us to
enjoy.
In short, this disc
is truly excellent. The music is a joy.
The performance is exquisite. Very highly
recommended.
Patrick Gary
John Salmon, Piano