Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Satoko Fujii Orchestra New York: Entity

10

Satoko Fujii Orchestra New York: Entity

By

Sign in to view read count
Satoko Fujii Orchestra New York: Entity
As she did in 2019, pianist/composer Satoko Fujii—an artist at home in many formations—opens the new decade with an orchestra recording. Entity, from Fujii's Orchestra New York, is the eleventh release from the ensemble that has remained largely intact for almost twenty-three years. It is an all-star collective that includes saxophonists Oscar Noriega, Ellery Eskelin and Tony Malaby, trumpeters Natsuki Tamura and Herb Robertson, guitarist Nels Cline and drummer Ches Smith.

Entity has its moments of tranquility but it is—overall—a contentious collection. Tamura, Fujii's husband—often a primary source of alien trumpet noises—here shares that function with Cline and the reed section. Despite frequent brushes with anarchy, there is a buoyant and fervent feel to the music. Each of the five tracks run to double-digit lengths, time enough for innumerable plot twists. Consider the opening title track. It begins with a percussion solo, then a swell of horns. Cline seems to sneak his way in quietly but then unleashes full-blown pyrotechnics. Abruptly, the brass takes the piece back and restores calm before a slow build-up to another frenzied state. To suggest that the other pieces on Entity implement a similar approach implies there is a pattern to Fujii's work here. That's not the case. The composer/improviser simply works within an orderly/disordered world of her own making, maintaining just enough control to avoid excess.

Not all the compositions on Entity are as arduous as the opening or "Elementary Particle." "Gounkaiku" and "Everlasting" play out like a hybrid of Gil Evans, steampunk and noise. As a big band tactician, Fuji continues to composes like nobody else. It is impossible to turn away knowing that something extraordinary is coming. Often, many such things in a single extended orchestra work. The author Toni Morrison wrote, "chaos contains information that can lead to knowledge—even wisdom." We learn something meaningful with each new work from Fujii and Entity is no exception.

Track Listing

Entity; Flashback; Gounkaiku; Elementary Particle; Everlasting.

Personnel

Briggan Krauss
saxophone
Ellery Eskelin
saxophone, tenor
Tony Malaby
saxophone, tenor
Andy Laster
saxophone, baritone
Dave Ballou
trumpet
Joe Fiedler
trombone
Nels Cline
guitar, electric

Oscar Noriega: alto saxophone.

Album information

Title: Entity | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Libra Records

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.