Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Ondrej Stveracek: Calm

8

Ondrej Stveracek: Calm

By

Sign in to view read count
Ondrej Stveracek: Calm
Veteran Chech-Republic hard-bop saxophonist Ondrej Stveracek, has been a mainstay of the European jazz scene and remains one of the finest proponents of the bop sound, now delivers another outstanding musical statement with the misleadingly titled Calm, since the meat of this date, is far more explosive and fiery than calm in texture. The album's repertoire—all originals (five from the leader, two from the bassist and one from Amsterdam saxophonist Emiel Wienholts)—can be more accurately described as sizzling modern bop with a flair.

The recording features Philadelphia-born and New York-based drummer Gene Jackson, former member of the Herbie Hancock bands and now an educator when not performing or on tour. The quartet also includes long -time band mate and fellow countrymen, bassist Tomas Baros with Slovakian pianist Klaudius Kovac rounding out the foursome. This musical assemblage of talent turns out to be one of the pleasant surprises here as this quartet is tight and produces one heck of a powerful sound.

The album starts out with a hard-bop-tinged original from the leader highlighted by forceful tenor voicings, strong pounding stick work on solo moments from Jackson and delightful key work from the pianist making the tune "Spanish," an excellent beginning to excellent recording. While the overwhelming music here is certainly, of the hard boppish style, there is one beautiful soft spot here and that goes to the Baros composition "Red in Brown" where the saxophonist is warm and gentle and the pianist, sublime.

Stveracek's original "Jin-Fizz" and the title track returns the music to its main theme with more modern pieces like "E.N.T." and "D1" —all percolating with a decidedly hard-bop flair featuring the saxophonist on some of his best solo spots. One of the highlights here, has to be the group's version of the Wienholts composition "King of Saxophone," not entirely a hard-bop piece, this one has a terrific melody that's a tad more mellow but still, features a whaling saxophonist on great flame throwing solos.

The finale piece has a familiar title with "Meditation," but should not be confused with the more, oft-recorded composition from Antonio Carlos Jobim as this "Meditation," has no Brazilian connection and is all Stveracek's resembling the music on this date. This Ondrej Stveracek Quartet comes out swinging with one blistering burner after another showing little respect for the album's misguided title Calm nevertheless, this is truly one compelling session of jazz sure to stir up some excitement. With outstanding musicianship and an energized selection of music worth repeated spins, saxophonist Stveracek has another winner of a recording on his hands, certain to get serious attention.

Track Listing

Spanish; Red in Brown; Jin-Fizz; Calm; E.N.T.; King of Saxophone; D 1; Meditation.

Personnel

Ondrej Stveracek
saxophone, tenor

Ondrej Stveracek: tenor saxophone; Gene Jackson: drums; Klaudius Kovac: piano; Tomas Baros: acoustic bass.

Album information

Title: Calm | Year Released: 2016 | Record Label: Self Produced

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Love Is Passing Thru
Roberto Magris
Candid
Sunny Five
Inside Colours Live
Julie Sassoon

Popular

Eagle's Point
Chris Potter
Light Streams
John Donegan - The Irish Sextet

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.