Search - Armand Angster, Xavier / Donato, Jacques Di Charles, Mark Dresser :: Double Trio: Green Dolphy Suite

One of the best CDs I have if not the best!

clarnibass | Israel | 11/13/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is truely one of the best I've heard, and maybe even the best one I have.

I've never met a good musician who didn't think this album is excellent.

The music on this album is influenced mostly by classical music, jazz and folk, but if I had to describe this music in one word it would be 'original'.

The ensemble is original already. Mark Feldman - violin, Ernst Reijseger - cello, Mark Dresser - doublebass, Louis Sclavis - clarinet/bass clarinet, Armand Angster - clarinet/bass clarinet/contrabass clarinet, Jacques Di Donato - clarinet/bass clarinet.

Feldman and Dresser are Americans, Reijseger from Holland, and the three clarinetists are French.

Technically all six players are absolutely amazing. It's the closest thing to technical perfection I've heard.



The first track, Green Dolphy Suite by Louis Sclavis, is devided into a few parts. It starts with violin solo and a weird melody (big intervals) by the clarinets. Then continues to a jazzy melody with a walking bass and a bass clarinet solo by Angster.

After that it's Reijseger's turn to solo. He starts like a guitar with a lot of chords, then continues with the bow. After his solo they start the most beautiful folky melody to lead to a bass clarinet solo by Sclavis with Reijseger playing drums on his cello in the background. This solo is one of the best bass clarinet solos I've ever heard. They finish the track with a very rythmic part and a doublebass solo.



Cold Water Music by Mark Feldman, has a basic jewish melody throughout the track and everything is based on it. After a short while the entire ensemble goes wild to a very energetic climax. The next part has an ostinato bass clarinet line, everyone else slowly joins him, until a violin solo emerges. After the violin solo the strings play one long note, and Angster has a bass clarinet solo over it. It's an excellent and beautiful solo. After this solo the melody comes back and climax all the way to the end.



Clic!!! by Jacques Di Donato is a heavenly folky piece. The melody is pentatonic and most of the track is a clarinet solo by Donato. His playing is amazing and there is really nothing more to say about this track except absolutely beautiful. Just because I'm not writing much about this one doesn't mean it's any less impressive than the others.



Bosnia by Mark Dresser starts with about 3 minutes of ambient. A lot of air sounds and contrabass clarinet played by Angster. He uses a lot of overtones and on such a low instruments they sound very interesting. After that the clarinet and violin screaming start. They go higher and higher until the bass line starts, then the melody, and then a contrabass clarinet solo which is mainly using the special and unique sounds and overtones he can produce. Later the clarinet solo is by Donato. In the middle of his solo they start a fast groove and he really starts screaming (like we already know he can from Clic!!!).



Muhu by Ernst Reijseger starts with a clarinet part by Sclavis. There isn't much I can say about this track, except it's very unpredicted. You just have to listen to it.



The last track, the folky Suite Domestique by Armand Angster starts with the clarinets growling. The cello then starts his solo which is very folk-guitar-like. After the cello solo it moves to a lovely rythmic part, like a conversation between the violin and a clarinet. It's slowly fading to a mellow bass clarinet solo played by Sclavis. At the end of the track there is a funny rythmic part.



To finish this review, I have to say that I wasn't able to listen to everything on this CD at first. I didn't listen to some parts on the tracks, and even avoided Bosnia and Muhu altogether. Only after a I made myself listen to them I realized the mistake I have made. After about two times I listened to the entire CD I realized there isn't even one moment on it that I don't like."