Search - Kenny Wheeler :: Other People

A Work of Stunning Beauty

Brian Whistler | Forestville, CA United States | 10/29/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Kenny Wheeler has had an amazingly long and productive career. His work has always possessed a very high level of creativity, craftmanship and passion that has distinguished both his distinctive flugelhorn sound and his elegant compositions. In recent years Kenny has pared down his sound. omitting drums in order to create a more intimate chamber sound and to better hear the subtleties of the music. The next logical step would seem to be this fine addition to the Wheeler catalog, in which we find Mr Wheeler writing for string quartet. And not just any string quartet. The Hugo Wolf String Quartet is emerging as one of Europe's finest. I had the opportunity to hear them just a week ago and they blew me away. Passionate and brilliantly precise. the Hugo Wolf Quartet is the perfect instrument for Mr Wheeler's stunning string writing.



Anyone familiar with Kenny's compositions will recognize the melancholic meandering melodies, the ambiguous harmonies the always hopeful cadences forever falling back into ardent yearning-these are the earmarks of his oeuvre. But this album is special; it seems to probe deeper than any of his prior work. Recorded around his 75 birthday, this is a mature flowering of a highly original jazz voice. It should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with his work that Wheeler can develop his compositions to the degree found here. Interestingly enough, the centerpiece of the CD is through composed piece written just for string quartet. Clocking in at nearly 14 minutes, Wheeler's 1st String Quartet is a supple and masterful work to be savored for years to come. This is no 3rd stream jazz composition straining to sound authentically classical-it is a full blown major work, worthy of the master who penned it.



Special mention must be made of pianist John Taylor, who makes a guest appearance on several pieces. Taylor has to be one of the most disciplined pianists around-he makes bobbing and weaving through these thorny compositions look easy. He is a perfect foil for Wheeler's plangent flugelhorn, possessing a gorgeous tone and drawing from a seemingly infinite well of ideas. He understands Wheeler's unique harmonic sensibility and revels in it's aching purity. Wheeler at 75 still has all of his chops and as always, while possessing a refined musical intellect, plays first and foremost from the heart.



One of the best albums of 2008, Other People is a major contribution by one of the most under rated player/composers working today."