Sara Serpa & Ran Blake Kitano Noir (2015)

Trumpeter Enrico Rava has proven himself adept at virtually every style of jazz, from bop through the avant-garde. For this short recording, he teams up with third-stream pianist Ran Blake in a series of 12 emotionally drenched tunes emphasizing the kind of dark, foreboding atmosphere for which Blake is well-known.

Pianist, educator, improviser, and composer Ran Blake has made 39 albums since 1961. He has recorded in many settings from solo to big band, and like any true jazz musician worth his salt, he has embraced the entire historical lineage of the music from New Orleans through bebop to the avant-garde and beyond, creating a very personal signature in his playing and in his recordings. Blake has recorded for over a dozen labels in his long career, and his most recent tenure with New York's tiny Tompkins Square imprint - better known for its recordings of acoustic guitarists and obscure folk and country musicians - has yielded astonishing results, as evidenced by 2006's All That Is Tied. Driftwoods is his second offering for the label, and stands both in sharp contrast to the previous offering and as a logical extension of it…

The unique pianist Ran Blake is heard on this album performing brief versions (all but one of the fourteen songs are under four minutes) of a colorful variety of standards and originals. Blake's emotional playing (which emphasizes the contrast between silence and explosive sounds) is both witty and unpredictable. Among the many short sketches are versions of "You Stepped Out of a Dream," "If Dreams Come True," "Drop Me Off in Harlem," "All About Ronnie," "Tea for Two" and even "Spinning Wheel." Intriguing music.