SLAMCD 2105
CD Title: MAHA SAMADHI
PAUL DUNMALL BRASS PROJECT
Paul Dunmall tenor saxophone
Olie Brice bass
Tony Bianco drums
Percy Pursglove trumpet
Aaron Diaz trumpet
Alex Astbury trumpet
Dave Sear trombone
Josh Tagg trombone
Josh Palmer tuba
Jo Sweet tuba
Ed Bennett conductor
1 Ecstatic, Unbearable Love 12:24
2 Temple of the Mother’s Presence 14:04
3 In the Cossipore Garden 12:36
4 Maha Samadhi 14:12
5 Infinite Cry 5:24
All compositions by Paul Dunmall
Recorded at the Birmingham Conservatoire 20th, 21st June 2016
Recorded, mixed, mastered by Simon Hall
Assistant engineers: Connor Yarrington and Will Brice
The Brass Project features a ten-piece ensemble with 3 trumpets, two trombones, two tubas plus Paul Dunmall on tenor sax, Olie Brice on bass and Tony Bianco on drums. After a deluge of discs (65 !) from his own LTD edition Duns label, UK sax master, Paul Dunmall, has had fewer discs coming out on the FMR and Slam labels. This seems to a good thing since Mr. Dunmall has slowed down and works on projects one at a time. Also, after dozens of discs as an improviser, Dunmall has organized an impressive brass-led tentet to play music that he composed. Aside from the regular rhythm team members, the only player here with whom I was previous familiar is trumpeter Percy Pursglove, who has appeared on a few older Dunmall sessions. For this disc, Mr. Dunmall, wrote a suite of pieces based on the life of Sri Ramakrishna, a 19th century Indian mystic and yogi. Although the opening theme seems simple and is uplifting, the the first trumpet solo by Pursglove and tenor solo by Dunmall are both quite explosive! While the solos erupt, the rest of the ensemble plays tightly around them, sounding like someone is conducting each wave. A composer named Ed Bennett is actually doing the conducting here. Each of the five parts of the suite is named after and inspired by an event in the life of Ramakrishna. Bassist Olie Brice, who we know from his work with Ingrid Laubrock, is featured at the beginning of "Temple of the Mother’s Presence" and sounds swell at the center of the ensemble before Dunmall soon steps yp to unleash another ferocious solo, the rest of the rhythm team burring around him. This disc was recorded at the Birmingham Conservatory at the City University in Birmingham, UK. So perhaps the rest of the brass members are students at that school. Each of the three trumpeters and both trombone players all get a chance to solo and stretch out and each one is strong. Another standout is the drumming of Tony Bianco, another longtime Dunmall & Dave Liebman collaborator. What stands out here is Mr. Dunmall’s writing for the large brass section, often with several tight lines crisscrossing and moving in interconnected layers. What this most reminds me of is the spirit, power and sound Keith Tippett from the ‘Dedicated to You…’ and the Centipede sessions. Mr. Dunmall was the the featured saxist for Keith Tippett’s Mujician quartet for more than a decade so it does make sense to see or hear that connection. Although Mr. Dunmall has long been inspired by the playing and spirituality of John Coltrane, he never did a Coltrane tribute until very recently. Dunmall’s fire-breathing playing and tone are at their most Trane-like on the title track, burning brightly at the center of the feisty tentet. Now that Mr. Dunmall’s releases have slowed down to just a handful per year, we can savor each one for a few months until the next chapter appears. Just say: Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm… - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
When discussing the many serious films – not sequels or knock-off copies – whose concept, setting or plot resembles classics from earlier decades, the perception should be how well the ensuing auteur handles the material. So it is with this suite created by Paul Dunmall. A rare foray into composition by the protean tenor saxophonist, the starting point for this single reed-and-brass-choir enterprise is John Coltrane Africa Brass LP of 1961. An unabashed Trane follower, which several CD salutes to the revered saxophonist to his credit, Dunmall’s take on Brass Project is more like Quentin Tarantino’s recasting of action films than Brian DePalma’s Hitchcock-lite emulations. Consider the spiritual antecedents. Before the saxophone became known for his work with the Mujician quartet, Dunmall lived in an ashram for a time, playing in the One Love sect’s Divine Light Mission band, even once with Alice Coltrane. The libretto for Maha Samadhi though equally mystical, is closer to Coltrane’s late-life spiritual pursuits than Africa Brass’s secular swing. It’s based on the life of Sri Ramakrishna (1836-1886). Another important difference is while a variety of brass players participated in the many sessions for Africa Brass, this CD’s seven tracks feature the core band of trumpeters Percy Pursglove, Aaron Diaz and Alex Astbury, trombonists Dave Sear and Josh Tagg, and tubaists Josh Palmer and Jo Sweet, augmented by Dunmall, bassist Olie Brice and drummer Tony Bianco. Stripped of its transcendental back story, Maha Samadhi stands on its own as capably as any contemporary film noir amplifies the atmosphere of 1940s and 1950s classics. Although un-credited, arrangements for the tunes are often dazzling on their own. "Temple of the Mother’s Presence" for instance begins with beautiful pastel harmonies, while the title tune features rococo layers that add to theme description, rather than swaddling it in unneeded tonalities. Meanwhile "In the Cossipore Garden" allows the bassist’s strongman strums and the drummer’s engrossing kit exploration to be displayed like gems a jeweler’s widow, with muted and mellow low-pitched brass textures the cloth around them. Theme elaboration result from Brice foreshadowing and later accompanying of the horns’ cantilevered support. "In the Cossipore Garden" concludes with Tagg’s rigorously tonal solo challenged by Dunmall, who splinters his responses into sushi-sized bites and climaxes with jagged and juddering tones snaking against one another. Other brass players such as Pursglove, with his shrill staccato barks on "Ecstatic, Unbearable Love" make their presence felt, but the focus throughout is on the saxophonist’s erudite concept extension. His influences are a bit too obvious on that same track when he twice quotes from "A Love Supreme". However after constant glossolalia and split tones asides appear throughout, where every nuance of a tone is examined as if under an aural microscope, the concluding track is an appropriate coda to the exploration that precedes it. Wrapping foghorn-like, post-Trane saxophone drones, augmented by drum rat-tat-tats and double bass pumps into a package decorated with brassy grace notes, the session defines itself as both a salute to Coltrane and a gifted expansion of Trane’s vision, fuelled by 21st Century concepts.
—Ken Waxman http://www.jazzword.com/one-review/?id=129415
Surprising though it is to find Dunmall walking hand-in-hand with composition, it is not so surprising to find that what he has written is in some way a furtherance of his near-dedication to Coltrane, regularly heard in his playing and confirmed by his recent (2015) Homage to John Coltrane, SLAMCD 292. The Brass Project’s album, Maha Samadhi, takes its inspiration from occurrences in the life of a 19th century Indian mystic, Sri Ramakrishna, and it is in this that the saxophonist echoes Coltrane’s Africa/Brass, Impulse! 1961 (and possibly Birth of the Cool, Davis/Evans, Capitol Records 1956). Dunmall’s solo playing is quite vicious throughout and the wildly ferocious Percy Pursglove on trumpet renders the pair volcanic, as is heard in the opening track, Ecstatic, Unbearable Love. This piece is described as representing Ramakrishna’s dance with Krishna and the unbearable ecstasy this brought about. Paul Dunmall’s music generally and indeed his playing lean towards expressing a spirituality and this album is no exception. It draws to a close with echoes of New Orleans street brass, inspiring an emotive entreaty. Reviewed by Ken Cheetham http://www.jazzviews.net/paul-dunmall-brass-project---maha-samadhi.html
Tenor saxist Paul Dunmall leads a unique orchestra that features 3 trumpets (Percy Pursglov, Aaron Diaz & Alex Astbury), 2 trombones (Josh Tagg & Dave Sear) with 2 tubas (Josh Palmer & Jo Sweet) along with a rhythm team of Olie Brice/b and Tony Bianco/dr. Directed by Ed Bennett, the band mixes introductory thick themes with loosely swinging ensemble actions that are reminiscent of vintage Charles Mingus. Warm brass harmonies eventually delve into free form flying and squawks on pieces like "Temple of the Mother’s Presence" and the frenetic feeding frenzy of "In the Cossipore," but the shoes fit well. Brice and Bianco gets some solo time between the long lines on the title track, and Bianco has a way of keeping every jot and tittle together. A fun white knuckler! George Harris http://www.jazzweekly.com/2017/03/paul-dunmall-brass-project-maha-samadhi/
The most obvious precedent for the slabs, smears and flutters of brass on this brash and spirited recording are John Coltrane’s Africa Brass and Ascension albums, which were recorded in the mid-1960s. English brass band sonorities and tuba-heavy New Orleans dirges are also in the mix. But the initial inspiration is the Indian mystic Sri Ramakrishna who died in 1886, aged 50. The track titles are taken from incidents in his life as written in The Gospel of Ramakrishna. They are summarised in the sleeve notes, and it is their event-laden spirituality that infuses each track and gives the album its gloss. Dunmall, the dominant voice, is featured on every track. The opening ‘Ecstatic, Unbearable Love’ finds him rippling through scales and phonics at a furious pace, and sets something of the template for what is to come. He ruminates over strong counterpoint bass on ‘Temple of the Mother’s Presence’, delivers spiritual cries on ‘in the Cossipore Garden’ and is concise and climactic on ‘Infinite Cry’. Trumpeter Percy Pursglove’s microtonal and brittle trumpet solo on the opener is a standout, as is Ollie Brice’s confident supporting brass dialogue. But it is the brass which gives the album its oomph and the spice of an original slant.
Mike Hobart JazzWise February 2017.
Miles and Gil Evans probably started the ball
rolling with Birth of the Cool (Capitol, 1956), since when we’ve had
albums such as Coltrane’s Africa/Brass (Impulse!,1961) and John Surman and
John Warren’s Tales Of The Algonquin (Deram, 1971) and Brass Project (ECM, 1993) – large ensembles with
only brass instruments and a rhythm section (sometimes supplemented with
piano), no woodwind or other melody instruments. It’s a format for which Paul
Dunmall has been wanting to write for many years.
The line-up is Dunmall (tenor saxophone), Aaron
Diaz, Alex Astbury, Percy Pursglove (trumpets), Dave Sear, Josh Tagg
(trombones), Jo Sweet, Josh Palmer (tubas), Olie Brice (double bass) and Tony
Bianco (drums). The ensemble’s conducted by Ed Bennet and the compositions were
written by Dunmall. The title and names of the pieces are taken from episodes
in the life of Sri Ramakrishna (1836 – 1886) as documented in his The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.
With a focus on a family of instruments, there’s a
homogeneity that can highlight their distinctive timbre, so that the absence of
contrast becomes an advantage. With brass, it’s a richness in harmonic
overtones, and collectively, a fruity and dynamic sound which packs a punch, as
in the opening ‘Ecstatic, Unbearable Love’, a vivacious depiction of a dance
with Krishna. There’s a searing trumpet solo
from Pursglove, succeeded by Dunmall’s equally heated solo on tenor, each
punctuated by glowing bursts from the brass.
Brass also excels in soft, legato lines. In ‘Temple of the Mother's Presence’ the
instruments slowly appear and merge in a solemn procession of overlapping
entries. As if signifying the transmutation of a stone figure – the inspiration
for the piece – the elliptical theme is energised by solos for tenor, trumpet
(Diaz) and trombone (Sear). Long swells over drums seem to mark the transition
back to stone, save for one final glimmer of movement. ‘In the Cossipore Garden’ announces a weighty dirge on the
tubas, repeated by the whole ensemble over Bianco’s billowing drums. There are
solos for trombone (Tagg), followed by trumpet (Asbury), in both cases striking
sparks with the rest of the ensemble. The saxophone moves us to a different
level with refulgent variations on the theme, wrenching the funereal chorus
into acclamation.
There’s a pervasive spiritual and expressive core
to much of Dunmall’s music: the rival forces that riddle our lives and the
struggle for some kind of resolution, however transient; a quest that also
preoccupied Coltrane in his latter years. On the title track, there’s a tender
commentary on the brass melody from Dunmall’s tenor. He’s then enlivened by the
irregular syncopation of bass and drums and the saxophone quickens in mood and
speed, its mercurial flow counterpointed with block-like fragments from the
brass. After Brice’s solo, there’s reconciliation in a sonorous restatement of
the theme, combining Dunmall’s single voice with the many.
The album ends with ‘Infinite Cry’, a stirring
invocation of some higher plane, with all instruments raised in supplication,
in which we hear shades of another brass band tradition, that of New Orleans.
It’s unclear why Dunmall’s music doesn’t
receive more attention. He doesn’t fit into any neat category, a bar to those
who prefer to listen by labels. Perhaps it’s that the more albums you produce
the fewer get heard, however odd that might sound. He’s an unpretentious figure
who doesn’t claim revolutionary status, only to have built on and continued the
work of his predecessors. By so doing he has helped establish that free jazz is
an abundant resource for creative music. Hopefully, this week of reviews will
encourage more people to listen to one of the outstanding and most flexible
musicians of his generation. Colin Green http://www.freejazzblog.org/2017/02/paul-dunmall-brass-project-maha-samadhi.html
PAUL DUNMALL BRASS PROJECT With PERCY PURSGLOVE/OLIE BRICE /TONY BIANCO/ et al - "Maha Samadhi" (Slam 2105; UK) The Brass Project features a ten-piece ensemble with 3 trumpets, two trombones, two tubas plus Paul Dunmall on tenor sax, Olie Brice on bass and Tony Bianco on drums. After a deluge of discs (65+!) from his own LTD edition Duns label, UK sax master, Paul Dunmall, has had fewer discs coming out on the FMR and Slam labels. This seems to a good thing since Mr. Dunmall has slowed down and works on projects one at a time. Also, after dozens of discs as an improviser, Dunmall has organized an impressive brass-led tentet to play music that he composed. Aside from the regular rhythm team members, the only player here with whom I was previous familiar is trumpeter Percy Pursglove, who has appeared on a few older Dunmall sessions. For this disc, Mr. Dunmall, wrote a suite of pieces based on the life ofSri Ramakrishna, a 19th century Indian mystic and yogi. Although the opening theme seems simple and is uplifting, the the first trumpet solo by Pursglove and tenor solo by Dunmall are both quite explosive! While the solos erupt, the rest of the ensemble plays tightly around them, sounding like someone is conducting each wave. A composer named Ed Bennett is actually doing the conducting here. Each of the five parts of the suite is named after and inspired by an event in the life of Ramakrishna. Bassist Olie Brice, who we know from his work with Ingrid Laubrock, is featured at the beginning of "Temple of the Mother’s Presence" and sounds swell at the center of the ensemble before Dunmall soon steps up to unleash another ferocious solo, the rest of the rhythm team burring around him. This disc was recorded at the Birmingham Conservatory at the City University in Birmingham, UK. So perhaps the rest of the brass members are students at that school. Each of the three trumpeters and both trombone players all get a chance to solo and stretch out and each one is strong. Another standout is the drumming of Tony Bianco, another longtime Dunmall & Dave Liebman collaborator. What stands out here is Mr. Dunmall’s writing for the large brass section, often with several tight lines crisscrossing and moving in interconnected layers. What this most reminds me of is the spirit, power and sound Keith Tippett from the ‘Dedicated to You…’ and the Centipede sessions. Mr. Dunmall was the the featured saxist for Keith Tippett’s Mujician quartet for more than a decade so it does make sense to see or hear that connection. Although Mr. Dunmall has long been inspired by the playing and spirituality of John Coltrane, he never did a Coltrane tribute until very recently. Dunmall’s fire-breathing playing and tone are at their most Trane-like on the title track, burning brightly at the center of the feisty tentet. Now that Mr. Dunmall’s releases have slowed down to just a handful per year, we can savor each one for a few months until the next chapter appears. Just say: Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm… - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG.
Dopo le ultime incisioni dedicate alla musica di John Coltrane ed all’improvvisazione totale il sassofonista tenore inglese Paul Dunmall presenta ora una registrazione effettuata con l’aiuto del Consevatorio di Birmingham ed in cui l’aspetto compositivo è in primo piano. I titoli si riferiscono alla vita del mistico dell’India Sri Ramakrishna, ma la musica non impiega sitar o altri strumenti tipici di quel paese. Fin dall’inizio, con Ecstatic Unbearable Love si va verso una direzione jazzistica, con assoli travolgenti del leader al sax tenore e di Percy Pursglove alla tromba, supportati dagli ottoni e dalla ritmica di Olie Brice al contrabbasso e Tony Bianco alla batteria. Gli altri musicisti presenti sono Aaron Diaz e Alex Astbury alla tromba, Dave Sear e Josh Tagg al trombone, Josh Palmer e Jo Sweet alla tuba, Ed Bennett è il direttore. Nonostante la dedica al famoso mistico la musica mantiene l’aspetto delle ultime incisioni di Dunmall, e cioè movimentata, agitata, adrenalinica, energetica, anche se questa volta gli ottoni forniscono un ulteriore elemento che rende il tutto più compatto. Ecstatic Unbearable Love vuole rappresentare lo stato di estasi di Ramakrishna e ciò riesce senza ricorrere ad un free informale. Temple of the Mother’s Presence oltre al leader vede gli assoli di Aaron Diaz alla tromba (di stampo prettamente free) e di Dave Sear al trombone. Come sempre la ritmica tiene l’atmosfera vibrante, ricca di tensione. In the Cossipore Garden comincia con le tube che creano situazioni tranquille, poi arrivano gli assoli di Josh Tagg al trombone e Alex Astbury alla tromba e tutto cambia, grazie anche alla batteria di Tony Bianco, sempre concitata ed in fibrillazione. Il lungo Maha Samadhi è "illuminato" dall’assolo di Paul Dunmall, un solista di valore sullo sfondo degli ottoni, anche il contrabbassista Olie Brice riceve un lungo spazio che riempie con un assolo in cui emerge la sua maestria e padronanza tecnica allo strumento. Chiude Infinite City, ancora con un appassionato assolo del leader. Un’incisione riuscita e ricca di passione, in cui si mette insieme la forza dell’improvvisazione insieme alla partiture per gli ottoni.
Vittorio Lo Conte, http://www.musiczoom.it/?p=27223#.WHEeS_mLTct
After the latest recordings dedicated to the music of John Coltrane and improvisation total tenor saxophonist Paul Dunmall English now presents a recording made with the help of Consevatorio Birmingham and in which the compositional aspect is in the foreground. The titles refer to the life of the mystic India Sri Ramakrishna, but the music does not employ sitar and other instruments typical of that country. From the beginning, with Ecstatic Unbearable Love you go to a jazz direction, with the leaders sweeping solos on tenor sax and Percy Pursglove on trumpet, supported by the brass and rhythm of Olie Brice on bass and Tony White on drums. The other musicians are present Aaron Diaz and Alex Astbury on trumpet, Dave Sear Tagg and Josh on trombone, Josh Palmer and Jo Sweet tuba, Ed Bennett is the director. Despite the dedication to the famous mystic music it retains the form of the latest Dunmall incisions, namely turbulent, agitated, adrenaline, energy, although this time the brass provide an additional element that makes it more compact. Ecstatic Unbearable Love is meant to represent the Ramakrishna state of ecstasy and what can without resorting to a free informal. Temple of the Mother's Presence in addition to the leader sees Aaron Diaz's solos on trumpet (the purely free) mould and Dave Sear on trombone. As always the rhythm keeps the vibrant atmosphere full of tension. In the Cossipore Garden begins with the tubes that create quiet situations, then there's solos on trombone Josh Tagg and Alex Astbury on trumpet and everything changes, thanks to Tony White battery, always agitated and fibrillation. The long Maha Samadhi is "enlightened" dall'assolo Paul Dunmall, a value soloist on the background of the brass, also he bassist Olie Brice receives a long space that fills with a solo in which emerges his artistry and technical mastery of the instrument. Closes Infinite City, again with a solo leader's passionate. Incision successful and full of passion, which brings together the strength of improvisation along with the scores for the brass.
Vittorio Lo Conte, http://www.musiczoom.it/?p=27223#.WHEeS_mLTct
Suite in cinque movimenti, per lo più generosi (quattro superano i dodici minuti), dedicata al mistico indiano del diciannovesimo secolo Sri Ramakrishna e incisa al conservatorio di Birmingham nel giungo 2016, Maha Samadhi vede l'iperproduttivo Paul Dunmall alla testa di un ensemble al cui interno il suo trio si abbina a una brass section di sette elementi, riandando (dichiaratamente) ad analoghe esperienze di quel John Coltrane che il tenorista inglese ha ripetutamente omaggiato in questi ultimi anni (spesso in compagnia di Tony Bianco che siede qui una volta di più alla batteria), e diremmo più ancora Africa Brass che non Ascension, pur più prossima, per l'acceso espressionismo che l'attraversa, all'universo dunmalliano. La partenza del disco ha in effetti (abbastanza a sorpresa, dobbiamo dire) un impatto squisitamente orchestrale, con una sua fisionomia e una sua forma piuttosto puntuali, precise. Anche il solismo abitualmente straripante di Dunmall rientra assolutamente nei ranghi, dando via via spazio alla tromba di Percy Pursglove ("Ecstatic, Unbearable Love"), quindi a trombone e ancora tromba delle coppie Dave Sear/Aaron Diaz ("Temple Of The Mother's Presence," dominato da una rotonda quanto inusuale pacatezza) e Josh Tagg/Alex Astbury ("In The Cossipore Garden"), rispettivamente, per riprendersi la scena secondo le sue più consolidate abitudini nei due episodi conclusivi. Il che, per inciso, abbassa lievemente il livello della proposta, proprio in questo suo farsi più prevedibile e fin troppo procrastinata ("Maha Samadhi," inteso come singolo brano, dura pur sempre oltre quattordici minuti). Se volete procurarvi qualcosa di Paul Dunmall, sia quel che sia, questo è l'album che ci sentiremmo di consigliarvi. ALBERTO BAZZURRO February 22, 2017 https://www.allaboutjazz.com/maha-samadhi-paul-dunmall-slam-productions-review-by-alberto-bazzurro.php
Suite in five movements, mostly generous (four longer than twelve minutes), dedicated to the nineteenth century Indian mystic Sri Ramakrishna and recorded at Birmingham Conservatoire in June 2016, Maha Samadhi sees hyperproductive Paul Dunmall the head of an ensemble at in which his trio combines with a seven-piece brass section, by going back (openly) any similar experiences that John Coltrane on tenor English has repeatedly honored in recent years (often in the company of Tony Bianco sitting here once more on drums), and we would say even more so Africa Brass that no Ascension, although closer to the lit Expressionism running through it, the universe dunmalliano. The start of the disk has actually (surprisingly enough, we must say) a purely orchestral impact, with its own character and its own form rather timely, accurate. The soloist usually overflowing with Dunmall falls completely within the ranks, giving away up space on trumpet Percy Pursglove ( "Ecstatic, Unbearable Love"), then a trombone and even trumpet couples Dave Sear / Aaron Diaz ( "Temple Of The Mother's Presence , "dominated by a round and unusual calmness) and Josh Tagg / Alex Astbury (" In the Garden Cossipore "), respectively, to recover the scene according to his most well-established habits in the two final episodes. Which, incidentally, slightly lowers the level of the proposal, in this its becoming more predictable and too delayed ( "Maha Samadhi," understood as a single song, lasts still more than fourteen minutes).
Con umiltò, lovoro duro e oslinozione, il sossofonisto inglese Dunmoll ho letterolmente dedicolo lo proprio vitrr musicole ollo diffu sione del verbo coltroniono. ll froseggio incendiorio e totole dell'ultimo«Trone», do A love §upremeo Sun Shrpè oggettodi uno vero venerozione do Porte di Dunmoll, che ne so riprendere perentorietò d'ottocco, froseggio, timbro in modoquosi mimetico. Qui, col roddoppio secco di un ohro sox tenore, quellodi Howord Cottle, I'osticello è olzoto oncoro più in oho, o temperoture emotive squossonti e intensissime.
Guido Festinese Alias Magazine / Il Manifesto
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