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Rob Clearfield: Wherever You're Starting From
ByThe almost clinical precision of Clearfield's playing on this record might lead some listeners to overlook the jazz sensibility that lies just below the surface. The recording process itself contributed to this quality to some degree, as it involved a careful editing of pieces that were originally much lengthier, resulting in music that is concentrated and attentive to minute detail, without a lot of overt chance-taking or jaunty excursions. When listening to Clearfield's reverential rendering of Brahms's "Intermezzo No. 2 in B-flat Minor," one can indeed appreciate the pianist's genuine engagement with the classical tradition. But "What Was Your Name Again?" allows for some strutting, with Clearfield's vigorous left hand anchoring a dynamic, motion-filled improvisation, and "Blues in C" does indeed offer a faint glimpse of a blues-centered disposition, albeit abstractly delivered. More frequently, though, it's the yearning beauty and crystalline clarity of Clearfield's music that stand out most transparently, with the gentle reverie "Alice" one of the album's highlights.
Perhaps the best illustration of Clearfield's distinctive melding of jazz and classical forms comes in the seven-minute version of Coltrane's "Giant Steps." In keeping with the spirit of the album, its jazz inflections are muted, with only the barest hints of the melody emerging fleetingly. But the rich creativity of Clearfield's treatment is striking, and it lends a dark emotional weight to the piece that is quite compelling. Maybe down the road we'll see an album's worth of Clearfield's engagement with jazz classics like this one, as it's evident that he has a unique perspective that could bring a great deal of originality to such an undertaking.
Track Listing
Prologue; Starchild; Intermezzo No. 2 In Bb Minor, Op. 117; What Was Your Name Again?; Wherever You're Starting From; Minor; Major; Giant Steps; The End; Blues In C; Alice; Epilogue.
Personnel
Rob Clearfield
pianoRob Clearfield: piano.
Album information
Title: Wherever You're Starting From | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Woolgathering Records