Jazz and Improvised

YUL
Alex Lefaivre Quartet
Multiple Chord Music (alexlefaivre.com)

YUL, a new release from bassist/bandleader Alex Lefaivre, is a modern jazz album whose compositions take inspiration from the “dreamy, hazy summer vibes” and “gritty, metropolitan edge” of Montreal, the city in which Lefaivre is based. For those unfamiliar with Lefaivre, he has been an active member of the Canadian music scene for well over a decade, both as part of the award-winning Parc X Trio, and as a founding member of the independent jazz label Multiple Chord Music.

Joining Lefaivre on YUL are Erik Hove, alto saxophone, Nicolas Ferron, electric guitar, and Mark Nelson, drums (Lefaivre plays electric bass throughout). It speaks both to the open quality of Lefaivre’s compositions and to the group’s instrumentation that there is ample room for each player’s individual voice to come through clearly, and, consequently, for a compelling group dynamic to emerge. This is certainly the case on the album’s first track, the medium-slow 3/4 time The Righteous, which features dynamic solos from Ferron and Hove, set atop patient, supportive comping from Lefaivre and Nelson. Even during YUL’s most bombastic moments – such as the breakbeat-heavy song The Juggernaut – there is considerable attention to balance and to dynamic detail. The album closes with the title track, a 5/4, straight-eighths song that contains some of the most exciting moments of the outing from all four band members, including a short, memorable drum solo from Nelson. YUL is a cumulative success – reflecting Lefaivre’s mature, cohesive musical vision.

À travers le temps…
Chantal De Villiers; Burt De Villiers; François Bourassa; Taurey Butler
Independent CDV042018 (chantaldevilliers.com)

With the deeply meditative and profoundly beautiful quality of her playing on À travers le temps…, saxophonist Chantal De Villiers displays courage and maturity way beyond her years. Courage, because it is an enormous leap of faith for an emerging soloist to expose her musicality in the intimacy of a series of duets with pianists several years her senior. Her instrument’s voice has an elegant sensibility. And her maturity is suggested by the elevated sense of gravitas and erudition of her playing; the stretching out to explore ideas with melodic and harmonic invention that many – even established players – might find challenging.

Her reinvention of the traditional pop song-turned-standard Dear Old Stockholm – almost always associated with Stan Getz and his iconic version – is quite breathtaking. Here De Villiers explores – through gorgeous forays into the song’s choruses with Taurey Butler – playful, elegant and ingenious harmonic exchanges that elevate the warmth of her saxophone playing to new levels. In I Loves You Porgy, De Villiers engages François Bourassa with intense, elementally seductive balladry. Of the tracks she shares with her father, Burt De Villiers, the poignant Canadian Sunset is truly alluring, one in which saxophonist and pianist provide a perfectly judged musical context for a song with many heart-on-the-sleeve moments.

All in all, À travers le temps… reflects De Villiers’ determination to never play a note or phrase that does not have songful significance; hers is already a unique, expressive voice.

Got A Light?
Jeremy Ledbetter
Alma Records ACD61582 (jeremyledbetter.com)

Got a Light?, released internationally in July by Toronto-based Alma Records, is the debut album from the Jeremy Ledbetter Trio, which includes electric bassist Rich Brown and drummer Larnell Lewis, in addition to pianist/bandleader Ledbetter. If it is somewhat surprising to read the phrase “debut album” in relation to this group of musicians, attribute the feeling to each trio member’s ubiquity on the local (and international) jazz scene; Ledbetter, Brown and Lewis all perform frequently in a variety of popular creative projects, both individually and together.

Musically, the group shares some DNA with the Michel Petrucciani Trio and the Michel Camilo Trio; similarities can be found in the Ledbetter Trio’s technical firepower, use of electric bass and, especially in the case of the Camilo trio, a propensity for Latin jazz grooves. Moreover, as demonstrated on the title track of Got a Light?, it is the trio’s highly developed sense of dynamic control that provides an effective counterpoint to bouts of high-speed improvisational flurries. This sense of contrast works on a larger scale, too: Got a Light? is paced well, as gentle, contemplative pieces like Her New Wings (with vocalists Eliana Cuevas and Leila Ledbetter) and Suspirito (with batá drummer Reimundo Sosa) are balanced against the up-tempo 7/8 About Climbing Mountains, and The Pepper Drinker, the album’s burning penultimate song. A bold, exciting album, Got a Light? feels less like a debut than a coherent artistic statement from an experienced band.

Listen to 'Got A Light?' Now in the Listening Room

20
Toronto Jazz Orchestra
Independent TJO004 (thetjo.com)

One of the more exhilarating jazz listening experiences is the sound of a well-rehearsed big band firing on all cylinders and this is what we get with the Toronto Jazz Orchestra album 20. The recording and production is impeccable, so we hear the full aural effect of the dynamics from a tight rhythm section with clear bass, drums and piano fills, to full brass and saxophone harmonies. The album title refers to the band’s 20-year history, and where previous releases included several live recordings and used different Canadian composers, 20 was recorded completely in the studio and features the compositions and arrangements of artistic director Josh Grossman. An album highlight is 4 PN, a tribute to jazz icon Phil Nimmons on his 90th birthday. This piece’s four movements encompass several moods, from straight ahead swing, to an introspective third movement (Birdsong) and a very funky final section (Flat 10 Strikes Again). The first movement, The Land of 2 and 4, contains an excellent bop trumpet solo by James Rhodes that has a touch of Jack Sheldon to it. Ben Ball’s drum solo navigates us to the second movement, Under a Treeful, which contains a wonderful and idiosyncratic clarinet solo from Paul Metcalfe that I believe Nimmons would appreciate. Overall, 20 is full of catchy melodies and arrangements that leverage the big band pallette of sounds; the ensemble and solo musicianship is excellent. We can hope there are at least another 20 years in this band’s future.