Evan Blaker

David Benoit had a slight departure with this 1992 release, performing two previously unheard Bill Evans compositions ("Letter to Evan" and "Knit for Mary F."), Dave Brubeck's "Kathy's Waltz" and a mixture of standards and originals. Most of the tunes are played with small groups (duets to quartets) and such fine players as bassist John Patitucci, drummer Peter Erskine and guitarists Larry Carlton and Peter Sprague make strong contributions. The melodic and mostly straight-ahead music is pleasing, pretty and sometimes swinging, if not all particularly innovative. Worth checking out by jazz listeners.

Founded in 1992, Evan Parker's Electro-Acoustic Ensemble is a highly sophisticated grouping, which for this recording conceptually pairs three acoustic musicians with electronic tone manipulators. What keeps it so interesting is the different approaches to electronics, with Walter Prati transforming Parker's sounds, Marco Vecchi reformulating Paul Lytton's percussion, and violinist Philipp Wachsmann processing his own acoustic sounds and those of bassist Barry Guy. It is all fascinating stuff, and if it does not swing or fit into any easy definitions of "jazz," it takes the concept of improvisation to a new level. There is sometimes an aimlessness to it all that can be off-putting, but concentrated listening can produce wonderful rewards for the patient consumer. Parker's role seems less that of a leader than an instigator. He does, nonetheless, afford himself the opportunity to press his revolutionary technique to action.

Various configurations of four jazz titans recorded live one evening during Cafe Oto’s early years.

A live duo performance by musicians of this extraordinarily high caliber occasionally results in something incredible but perhaps more often describes a battle of egos with neither side giving in. In this case, the participants appeared willing to compromise and to some extent lay aside their commitment to the vast and idiosyncratic musical structures that they had developed over the year. If the recording still fails to live up to impossibly high expectations, it is nonetheless a fine album on its own merits. The session consists of five improvisations of varying moods, textures, and intensities. Much of the time is spent in areas of surprising lyricism and restraint, as on "ParkBrax #3," a lush, contemplative piece. But even when things become somewhat frenetic, as on the second and fourth tracks, the absolute control of these masters over their instruments is clear…