Record Reviews

JOANNA BEJM ~ JESTES SOLITON 972 (Barcode: 5901571099729) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz & Poetry Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the debut album by Polish vocalist / songwriter Joanna BejmFind albums by this artist recorded with a Jazz trio consisting of keyboardist Rafal StepienFind albums by this artist, bassist Wojciech PulcynFind albums by this artist and drummer Sebastian FrankiewiczFind albums by this artist. Violinist Marcin SkabaFind albums by this artist plays on six tracks and several additional guests participate on selected tracks. The album presents ten original songs, all composed by Bejm or co-composed by her and Skaba. All the lyrics are by Polish poetess Halina PoswiatowskaFind albums by this artist, one of Poland´s most striking literary figures. As such the album falls comfortably within the Polish Jazz & Poetry idiom. As someone familiar with Poswiatowska´s poetry I admit approaching this album with great anticipation mixed with some trepidation, considering the depth and intellectual complexity of the literary layer. I am glad to say that Bejm managed to embrace the poetry with considerable talent and respect, carefully selecting the poems and dressing them in appropriate musical attire. There is always a danger that profound literary work could be trivialized by inappropriate musical treatment, which sadly does happen from time to time, but certainly did not happen in this case. The music is, as expected, full of typical Polish melancholy and lyrical emotionality, which Polish Jazz warmly embraces on a day to day level, but in particular within the Jazz & Poetry projects. Low key ballads with slow intrinsic motion are like a gentle wind carrying the words like yellow autumn leaves. The deep sadness, which characterizes the poetry, is somewhat softened by the music, making it perhaps more approachable to the listeners. The instrumental parts are all excellent, as expected from these seasoned veterans. The rhythm section is steady like a rock and sensitive like velvet, Stepien is a superb player both on the acoustic piano and the electric keyboards, always playing only what is truly needed and his piano soli are the cherry on top. The guests add their part amicably and the entire album offers a coherent musical continuity. Bejm manages the vocal parts with respect and restrain, which of course is ideal in this case. She is an instrument delivering the poems, which are the focus of this album and she cleverly eschews unnecessary theatrics, which would have spoiled the magic. Considering the fact that this is her debut album, she does a remarkable job. The only small criticism I could think of is the packaging of the album, which sadly does not include the printed version of the poems – an addition that as a Jazz & Poetry buff I consider absolutely necessary. Of course there are copyright issues, etc, but it would have been nice to have them. Overall this is a beautiful piece of Art, an absolute must for all Jazz & Poetry lovers around the world, even those who are not native Polish speakers – the music transcends language barriers. Well done Milady!

Updated: 25/11/2019Posted: 25/11/2019

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KUBA RACZYNSKI ~ MY MUSIC SOLITON 1170 (Barcode: 5903684231706) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2020 - 2021 Released: 2021 This is the debut album by young Polish Jazz saxophonist / composer Kuba RaczynskiFind albums by this artist recorded in a classic quartet setting with pianist Rafal StepienFind albums by this artist, bassist Andrzej ZielakFind albums by this artist and drummer Radek BolewskiFind albums by this artist. Five musicians, including saxophonist Maciej SikalaFind albums by this artist, guest on selected tracks. The album presents eleven original compositions, all by the leader. The music is all within the modern mainstream, highly melodic and very well structured. It manages to eschew the usual lethargic paste of most Polish Jazz mainstream albums and offers several medium and up tempo numbers, which inspires the general atmosphere of the album to sound more alive. But the most impressive quality of the music is it’s melodic / harmonic quality, which is truly heartwarming. Raczynski, who plays alto, soprano and baritone saxophones, as well as clarinet and bass clarinet, has a wonderfully warm sound, which acts like honey on the listener’s ears. The diverse stylistics employed within the compositions allow him to display the full palette of his instrumental abilities, which after all debut albums are about. The rest of the quartet performs splendidly, with Stepien accompanying the soloists amicably and adding several highly impressive, but not superficially flashy soli of his own. The rhythm section drives the music with vigor and precision, exactly as the doctor prescribed, The guests all add some icing on the cake, making the proceedings less uniform, but more sparkling, except for the one vocal track, which is a bit tacky and honestly out of context. Overall, this is a very nice mainstream Jazz album, somewhat on the lighter side of the spectrum, but highly enjoyable, offering a pleasant listening experience to a wide audience of Jazz listeners. It is definitely an earnest debut album, which shows a lot of talent by the leader, especially as a composer. It is full of youthful naiveté, but shows a lot of promise, which will surely not disappoint. Well done!

Updated: 31/12/2021Posted: 31/12/2021

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ANNA SERAFINSKA ~ GROOVE MACHINE POLSKIE RADIO 1662 (Barcode: 5907812246624) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 2013 Released: 2013 This is a live radio recording by veteran Polish Jazz vocalist / songwriter / educator Anna SerafinskaFind albums by this artist with her group called Groove MachineFind albums by this artist, which consists of mostly younger musicians: keyboardist Rafal StepienFind albums by this artist, guitarist Andrzej GondekFind albums by this artist, bassist Michal BaranskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Cezary KonradFind albums by this artist. The group also includes a couple of female backing vocalists. The album includes ten pieces, nine of which are originals on which Serafinska contributed the music or the lyrics or both and only one is a standard. The group´s name conveys exactly its musical direction, which is Funk, Soul-Jazz and Groove, without exception. Although marginally Jazzy, this music is quite excellent at what it stands for and does not fall behind similar efforts recorded anywhere else in the world, US included. The band plays with a superb feel and groove, as expected, driven by the excellent rhythm section of brilliant Baranski and veteran Konrad, who never fails regardless the musical environment. Keyboards and guitar, which provide the melodic content as well as atmospheric ornamentation, are also spotless and inspired. The tasty hints of ambient and electronic sounds by the keyboardists bring the overall sound up to date sounding completely contemporary. Serafinska, who sings in Polish and English, does a good job, obviously technically proficient and with a lot of feeling and understanding for this kind of music. However, her voice lacks any distinctive elements and is simply unremarkable. But the lack of luster is definitely a minor drawback and overall she really does an excellent job here both as a performer and composer / lyricist. This is what it is – good time music, which manages however to preserve musical quality, aesthetics and integrity. With excellent sound quality and truly entertaining contents this is definitely worth listening to, especially while driving a convertible on a see-side road. Groovy indeed!

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ANNA SERAFINSKA ~ CHOPIN TRIO ART HORSE 001 (Barcode: 5908254159701) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Classical Fusion Recorded: 2017 Released: 2017 This is the sixth album by Polish vocalist Anna SerafinskaFind albums by this artist, this time recorded in a trio setting with pianist Rafal StepienFind albums by this artist and drummer Cezary KonradFind albums by this artist. As the title suggests, the album presents eight interpretations of pieces composed by the Polish composer Frederic ChopinFind albums by this artist, two of which have been complimented with lyrics. Serafinska´s previous albums have all been only marginally Jazz oriented, dominated by Pop, Soul and Groove, which makes this her most ambitious endeavor to date. Additionally, considering the fact that Chopin´s music has been the subject matter of a multitude Polish Jazz (and non-Jazz) albums over the years, including such lofty vocal interpretations like those done by the NOVI ensemble, attempting to tackle this subject seems a priori highly risky. I am happy to say that the album turned out to be a nice surprise in contrast to the initial reservations. Serafinska uses the full range of her voice here for the first time on record, reaching operatic ranges and performing spiraling vocalese parts which are able to break glass. Her vocal improvisations are Jazzier than at any time before and the intimate, minimalistic trio format works out splendidly. The music is non-trivial and sometimes even quite complex and the entire project has a much more aesthetic ambiance than ever before. Spiced with a subtle dose of good humor, it is simply great. The vocals / piano / drums trio is highly unusual and takes time to get fully used to, but it is very effective musically, with Stepien laying down the melodic / harmonic background and Konrad performing a myriad of percussive pyrotechnics, both of them supporting the vocalese / vocals amicably. The resulting sound is innovative and intriguing, which in general is pretty rare these days. Of course as a result of this ambitious and sophisticated approach the music becomes less acceptable and requires more attentive listening than Serafinska´s earlier efforts. Overall this is a very surprising and unexpected outing, better that anything Serafinska recorded earlier on and disclosing her abilities in new areas. By selecting the right partners and choosing the new format she redefined her artistic environment very successfully. Both Chopin and Jazz lovers should find this album intriguing and challenging, but at the same time highly entertaining. Well done indeed!

Updated: 24/10/2017Posted: 24/10/2017

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