Record Reviews

GRZEGORZ ROGALA PROJECT ~ ENTHUZJAZZM SOLITON 030 (Barcode: 5901549899306) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2010 Released: 2011 The incredible Renaissance of Jewish Culture, which erupted in recent years in Poland, the country which hosted Jews for centuries and then witnessed their extermination during the Holocaust, is truly wondrous and unprecedented. The renewed interest in Jewish Culture and Tradition has its musical sides of course, like Jewish Music Festivals and smaller, more intimate projects like this one - a Jazz quartet which brings together three Polish and one Israeli Jazz musicians: trombonist Grzegorz RogalaFind albums by this artist, bassist Lukasz BorowieckiFind albums by this artist, drummer Michal BryndalFind albums by this artist and female saxophonist Sagit ZilbermanFind albums by this artist. An oud player and a rapper guest on one track each. Together they perform seven compositions, which combine Jazz with Jewish folklore (and Polish folklore as well) – not a new concept, but certainly one which is able to produce very interesting results. Of the seven compositions three are by Rogala, two by John ZornFind albums by this artist (the legendary pioneer of the Radical Jewish Jazz movement), one by Zilberman and one is a standard arranged by Zilberman. The overall sound and musical approach of the quartet is very original and unique, with the two soloists improvising on top of a very solid rhythmic background provided by the rhythm section. In fact the bass player holds the music together in a truly admirable way. The quartet is not trying to play another version of Klezmer / Hasidic Jazz mixture, which has already been explored by many other ensembles, but creates their own stylistic approach, which although not completely Free, has a lot of freedom and space, which allows individual expression. Overall the album sounds fresh, interesting and unique, which doesn´t happen too often these days. Definitely worth investigating!

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend