Alfred's Group Piano

Art Tatum - The Complete Pablo Group Masterpieces (1990) {6CD Set Pablo Records 6PACD-4401-2 rec 1954-1956}
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© 1954-56, 1990 Pablo Records | 6PACD-4401-2
Jazz / Mainstream Jazz / Swing / Stride / Boogie-Woogie / Piano

Tatum spent most of his career as a solo pianist; in fact, it was often said that he was such an unpredictable virtuoso that it would be difficult for other musicians to play with him. Producer Norman Granz sought to prove that the theory was false, so between 1954 and 1956 he extensively recorded Tatum with a variety of other classic jazzmen, resulting originally in nine LPs of material that is now available separately as eight CDs and on this very full six-CD box set.

Michel de Villers - Low Reed - Complete Small Group Sessions 1946-1956 (2018) {Fresh Sound FSR-CD 951}
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© 1946-56, 2018 Fresh Sound Records | FSR-CD 951
Jazz / Bebop / Swing / Saxophone

Michel de Villers (1926-1992) was one of the most influential French reed players in modern jazz, known by most of his fellow musicians by his nickname: “Low reed.” From a very young age, de Villers excelled on alto sax and clarinet. After gaining the attention of fans and musicians as an amateur, he was hired by Django in 1946. Shortly afterwards he began recording as a leader, improvising with cohesive drive and swinging passion, with a clear tone and vocabulary straight from the leading swing alto players—Benny Carter, Willie Smith and Johnny Hodges.

Emma Kirkby, doyenne of the Early Music scene, here shows that she's just as comfortable in music of a more recent vintage. Amy Beach was a woman ahead of her time, performing as solo pianist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra by the age of 18. The same year (1885), she married Henry Beach and, no longer able to perform publicly (it would have gone against her social status), she instead settled down to composing. And delightful stuff it is, too, as Kirkby and friends demonstrate in this charming recital. A number of the songs add violin, cello, or both to the piano and voice combination. "Ecstasy," for instance, has a most effective violin part that is an ideal foil to the purity of Kirkby's voice. Other highlights include the Schumannesque Browning Songs and the amiable Shakespeare Songs (the last of which, "Fairy Lullaby," is irresistible). The final item here, "Elle et moi," is an upbeat little number that suits Kirkby's lithe soprano to perfection. Occasionally, in some of the more lushly textured songs, such as "A Mirage" and "Stella Viatoris," perhaps a fuller voice would have been preferable, but then sample "Chanson d'amour" (written when Beach was only 21 and with a wonderful cello part in addition to the piano) and try to imagine it being better sung. The purely instrumental items are played with unfailing sensitivity and elegance. The Romance is straight out of the salon, while the much later Piano Trio (though actually based on early material) packs plenty of emotion and variety into its 14 minutes. The recording is exemplary, as are the concise notes and texts and translations.

An American-British fortepianist, a Transylvanian violinist, and an Italian-British cellist join together into a trio with a Spanish name and produce a historical-instrument recording of a group of late Haydn trios that may well set the standard. Perhaps you can chalk it up to the increasingly international quality of the historical performance movement. Whatever the case, this recording showcases the strengths of historical instruments in Haydn and is just beautifully thought out in every detail.