More inspired jazz from overseas. It's musicians like Daniel Schenker and albums like
Iridium that make this country's so-called jazz polls so patently ludicrous. Technically and
creatively,
Schenker is on a par with many of the trumpeters whose names regularly appear at or near the top
surveys conducted by critics or laymen and published in our leading jazz magazines. The
downside is that Schenker and his companions make their home in Switzerland, which is somewhat
removed from New York City and other metropolitan areas in the U.S. where most of those critics
and laymen reside.
As a result, Iridium won't be widely heard stateside. But it should be. Jazz knows no
boundaries, and this Swiss quartet plays the contemporary post-bop variety about as well as
anyone. Schenker has studied with another Swiss master, Bert Joris, as well as with Tom Harrell,
Wynton Marsalis, Randy Brecker, Jack Walrath and others. He has obviously listened closely to
such gurus as Chet Baker, Freddie Hubbard, Donald Byrd, Blue Mitchell and Art Farmer. His
teammates, pianist Chris Weisendanger, bassist Peter Frei and drummer Elmar Frey, boast
impressive resumés, having performed with a large number of well-known jazz stars from the U.S.
and abroad. Weisendanger is bright and energetic throughout, while Frey delivers an impassioned
solo on his own composition, "The Call" (one of only three numbers not written and/or
arranged by
Schenker).
Schenker wrote "Mir" for the Russian space station, "Iridium" for Freddie
Hubbard, "Chet"
quite obviously for Mr. Baker. He also composed the ballad "Jedesmal Anders," the
flag-waving
"N.S.E.W." (North, South, East, West), which uses the four symmetrical keys Gb, A, C and
Eb, and
arranged Wayne Shorter's billowing "Black Nile" and Brazilian composer Ary Barroso's
ballad
"Na Batucada da Vida." "Mir," which is quite simply delightful, is based on
John Coltrane's
"Satellite," which uses the chord changes of the standard "How High the
Moon." Splendid solos by
Schenker and Weisendanger help get the album off to a running start, and the pace doesn't
slacken until everyone has crossed the finish line.
As is true of a number of small-group sessions I've appraised recently, Weisendanger's
piano is often recorded too prominently. Aside from that, Iridium is first-rate, another dazzling
example of how Europeans have embraced "America's classical music" and added their
own special point of view.
Contact: Brambus Records, P.O. Box 44, CH-7004 Chur, Switzerland. Web site
www.brambus.com;
email mail@brambus.com
~ Jack Bowers
