Dazzling third ECM album by Poland’s Wasilewski Trio, which perfectly captures the group’s blend of energy and lyricism. There is space here for both the outgoing and the reflective, for profound composition and in-the-moment creativity. The wide-ranging repertoire on “Faithful” (named after the Ornette Coleman title track) includes five new tunes from the pen of Marcin Wasilewski and timeless pieces by Paul Bley and Hermeto Pascoal. From the standard repertory, the trio plays “The Ballad of the Sad Young Men”. Reaching beyond jazz, the players also find a new approach to Hanns Eisler’s “An den kleinen Radioapparat”.
Faithful
Marcin Wasilewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz, Michal Miskiewicz
- 1An den kleinen Radioapparat
04:30 - 2Night Train To You
10:41 - 3Faithful
07:16 - 4Mosaic
10:34 - 5Ballad Of The Sad Young Men
05:29 - 6Oz Guizos
06:32 - 7Song For Swirek
08:14 - 8Woke Up In The Desert
05:32 - 9Big Foot
06:21 - 10Lugano Lake
06:33
In the entire history of Polish jazz we’ve never had a band like this one. They just keep getting better and better.
Tomasz Stanko
Eisler’s “An Den Kleinen Radioapparat” offers a perfect introduction to the trio, with Miskiewicz’s distant thundering of drums, Wasilewski’s harp-like right-handed figures over dark left-handed basslines in tandem with Kurkiewicz, like a reading of romantic poetry set to a classical etude. Ornette Coleman’s gorgeous title track is given songful, assertive accents from Miskiewciz while bass chords fill wide spaces, Kurkiewicz and Wasilweski moving back and forth over the drummer’s rumbles.
Andrea Canter, Jazzpolice
Doch bei alldem bleibt „Faithful“ den alten Qualitäten treu: der Ruhe und Ausgewogenheit, der Abenteuerlust und Dynamik, der Wachsamkeit in der Kommunikation und dem Einfallsreichtum. Ein kleines polnisches Jazzwunder.
Neue Zürcher Zeitung
As an acoustic trio, pianist Marcin Wasilewski, bassist Slawomit Kurkiewicz and drummer Michal Miskiewicz choose harmony over conflict, cultivating endless possibilities as they improvise their way through lyrical passages and peaceful interludes. The group doesn’t abandon the atmospherics or the indelible rapport for which they are acclaimed, and the title track (written by Ornette Coleman) sums up what the MW Trio does best, which is to coerce sophisticated improvisations out of the subdest of melodies, sometimes a note at a time.
Nick Bewsey, Icon Magazine
Klanglandschaften. Immer wieder sind es Klanglandschaften, die Marcin Wasilewski (Piano), Stawomir Kurkiewicz (Bass) und Michal Miskiewicz (Drums) beim Hörer entstehen lassen. Auch auf „Faithful“ reisen wir durch Zeiten und Räume, die mit poetischer Intuition erkundet werden wollen. Das Besondere an diesem Trio: das Melos, die Kantabilität, das Streben nach perfekter Harmonie. Es ist ein fortwährendes Schweben und Fließen. Bewegungen, die sich wie von selbst ergeben. Figuren, die, von einem kleinen Akkord oder einer rhythmischen Irritation ausgehend, lebendig werden. Nicht der Überschwang oder die befremdende Abstraktion ist vorherrschend, sondern die pure Präsenz und Schönheit im musikalischen Schöpfungsprozess.
Mannheimer Morgen
The diversity of Faithful may finally send the Marcn Wasilewski Trio into the next lebel of recognition. This is a brilliant piece of work from a group that gets better and better with every outing. Deep. Personal. Reflective. And Highly Recommended.
Vern, Jazzwrap
Doch es ist vor allem das in subtilem, wie traumverlorenem Verstehen begründete Reagieren aufeinander, das alles an die Leine eines unverwechselbaren Gruppenklangs legt. Das hat hohe Raffinesse, schwebt leicht und wie selbstverständlich ineinander […] Dieses Trio dreht und wendet seine Stoffe, entwickelt seine Storys und steigert sie mitunter zu hymnischer Kraft.
Ulrich Steinmetzger, Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung
La finesse du jeu de la batterie, l’osmose avec la contrebasse, tour concourt à la grâce de cet univers sonore chatoyant. Souple et chantante, étoffée de climats apaisés et de graciles cantilènes, la musique du trio de Marcin Wasilewski séduit d’emblée comme l’une des voix les plus poétiques de ce temps.
Pianiste
Ein großräumiges Denken prägt sie, und zudem unterscheidet sie von anderen Pianotrios die Fähigkeit, ihre Musik eher in Klangwolken zu organisieren als in festen, beatgesteuerten Tonketten, die zwar auf rhythmischen Grundideen basieren, deren aktuelle Ausprägungen sich jedoch permanent verändern. […] Dass es bei diesem Prozess weder Begleiter noch Solisten gibt, versteht sich von selbst – aber genau das macht das Album so spannend.
Werner Stiefele, Rondo Magazin
“Faithful” is the trio’s best yet, with everyone at the abolutely top of their game, with a program that, as ever, combines music from external sources with Wasilewski’s increasingly confident originals. Wasilewski may be the titular leader, and contribute all the original material, but Faithufl clearly relies entirely on the strength of a collective for whom lyricism is paramount, regardless of the context – dircet and driven or implicit and suggestive, but always placing the whole as the pbjective beyond its individual contributing voices.
John Kelman, All about jazz
Turn it up loud or turn it down low; either way, it’s one of the best piano-trio recordings you’ll hear this year.
Brent Burton, Jazztimes
Das Piano-Trio mag das abgenudeltste aller Jazzformate sein. Aber dann so was! […] Wieder ist es besser als alles, was sie zuvor gespielt haben. Wieder fällt es schwer, auszumachen, woran das liegt. Wasilewski und Co. Erfinden nicht den Jazz neu, und doch haben sie innerhalb von scheinbar ausgereizten Konventionen einen unverwechselbar eigenen Klang gefunden. Mit ganz unangestrengter Intensität bewegen sie sich in einem Innenraum von glühender Poesie.
[…]
Das Nonplusultra in dieser Hinsicht eröffnet die CD, eine Interpretation von Hanns Eislers 1942 im Hollywood-Exil entstandenem „An den kleinen Radioapparat“. Es ist von einer so haarsträubenden Delikatesse, dass sich der Meister seine absehbare Bemerkung über solch spätromantisches „Durch Nacht zum Licht“ verbissen hätte.
Peter Rüedi, Die Weltwoche
Le troisième album pour ECM de ce trio télépathique témoigne de la même connivence inspirée que les précédents, dans une musique qui allie la densité du wing à la concentration de l’épure. [...] dix pièces intenses, irradiées d’un lyrisme permanent.
La Liberté
Das zu einer einzigen Klangquelle geformte Trio zelebriert mit minimalen Mitteln den Augenblick, verdichtet ihn in fliessende Klänge. Es ist unerheblich, ob es mit Fremdkompositionen unterschiedlicher Herkunft, vom Jazzstandard über Kunstlied bis zum Popsong, geschieht oder mit Originalen aus des Pianisten Feder. Das Wasilewski Trio mischt alles intensiv zu einem harmonischen Ganzen, stilistische Grenzen treten hinter das Persönliche zurück. Unter den nach wie vor hart grassierenden Pianotrios nehmen die drei Polen eine einzigartige Stellung ein.
Jazz ‚N’ More
Auch auf “Faithful” reisen wir durch Zeiten und Räume, die mit poetischer Intuition erkundet werden wollen. Das Besondere an diesem Trio: das Melos, die Kantabilität, das Streben nach perfekter Harmonie. Es ist ein fortwährendes Schweben und Fließen. Bewegungen, die sich wie von selbst ergeben. Figuren, die, von einem kleinen Akkord oder einer rhythmischen Irritation ausgehend, lebendig werden. Nicht der Überschwang oder die befremdende Abstraktion ist vorherrschend, sondern die pure Präsenz und Schönheit im musikalischen Schöpfungsprozess.
Mannheimer Morgen
„Faithful“ is a masterpiece of time and space. Musical imagery that transcends cultural boundaries. […] Simply listen.
Brent Logan Black, Digital jazz news
Die 10 gespielten Titel zeigen auf exemplarische Art Breite, Grazie, Eleganz und die empathische Tiefe, zu welchen ein eingespieltes und sich blind vertrauendes Ensemble fähig ist. Resultat sind zwanglose, aber intensiv geführte Unterhaltungen zu dritt, zu denen der aufmerksame Hörer quasi als Zaungast eingeladen ist.
Jürg Sommer, Basellandschaftliche Zeitung
Pianist Marcin Wasilewski, Kontrabassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz und Drummer Michal Miskiewicz spielen seit mehr als 20 Jahren im Trio. Kein Wunder also, dass hier alles absolut perfekt – ohne steril zu wirken – und homogen klingt, denn diese Herren können mittlerweile wirklich blind miteinander kommunizieren und müssen sich auch nicht permanent neu erfinden. […] Höchst unterschiedliche Genres und Komponistenpersönlichkeiten, aber egal, am Ende fügt sich ohnehin alles nahtlos in den wohlklingenden musikalischen Kosmos des Wasilewski Trios ein. Marcin Wasilewski ist ein grandioser Pianist, keine Frage, aber mindestens ebenso verblüffend ist die Rhythmusarbeit von Michal Miskiewicz, der sich nie in den Vordergrund trommelt, wenn man sich aber auf ihn konzentriert, kommt man drauf, dass er 71 Minuten und 46 Sekunden Dauersolo spielt – unglaublich.
Zeitschrift für Kultur und Gesellschaft
Wasilewski & Co. erfinden nicht den Jazz neu, und doch haben sie innerhalb von scheinbar ausgereizten Konventionen einen unverwechselbar eigenen Klang gefunden. Mit ganz unangestrengter Intensität bewegen sie sich in einem Innenraum von glühender Poesie.
Weltwoche
For its latest endeavor, the Wasilewski Trio has made one of its most significant statements thus far. It’s a tribute to this band’s longevity and familial fortitude. Each knows where the other is going and each leads and follows in equal measure. It is one of the more musical piano trios currently operating, serving up a bevy of interesting originals and unusual covers, in a style that is all its own. […] Faithful is, by definition, being true to one’s word. Nothing could describe this trio’s musical mission better. “Faithul” certainly restores my faith in the jazz piano trio. Marcin Wasilewski, Slawomir Kurkiewicz and Michal Miskiewicz have a synergy that is fresh and contagious, occasionally brushing past touch points of the familiar on the way to something new. The Marcin Wasilewski Trio represents a breathtaking fusion that “Faithful” makes worth hearing and exploring time and again.
Doug Payne, All about jazz
Was besonders besticht, ist die sehr präzise und disziplinierte Rhythmusarbeit in Verbindung mit der melodisch-harmonischen Klasse des Bandleaders Marcin Wasilewski. Das hebt die drei Polen aus der Flut der Jazz-Piano-Trios. […] Und sie verstehen sich in der Kunst der Reduktion auf wichtige Aussagen. Intuition im Umgang mit schönen Klängen ist das Ergebnis von anhaltender Arbeit.
Ludwig Jurgeit, Jazzpodium
“Marcin Wasilewski does not think like other jazz pianists, His improvisational underpinning, his sense of musical space and his aural imagery are so fresh they are initially mysterious, then get more so. The same can be said of his trio as a whole with bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michal Miskiewicz…It takes nerve for a young trio to create music of such stillness, such patience. The fact that the three have played together since they were teenagers is audible in the way they trust the epiphanies they collectively come upon.”
Thomas Conrad, JazzTimes
Continuing directions sketched on 2007’s “January”, and the earlier album called just “Trio” (2004), “Faithful” is the third ECM album by Poland’s Wasilewski Trio. Their ECM discography also includes a further three albums as members of the Tomasz Stanko Quartet: “Soul of Things”, “Suspended Night” and “Lontano”, recorded between 2001 and 2005. Furthermore, pianist Marcin Wasilewski and bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz are featured on Manu Katché’s “Neighbourhood” and “Playground” albums of 2004 and 2007. Nonetheless, it is to the trio that the listener must turn for the most comprehensive account of the players’ capabilities and inspirations. And “Faithful” may be the most comprehensive album yet from this group, capturing the trio’s admixture of energy, lyricism and ideas.
The album opens strikingly with Hanns Eisler’s “An den kleinen Radioapparat”, a song written (in 1942) from the perspective of a German exile still pursued and haunted by the voices of his persecutors through the medium of the radio. The tune’s had a latter-day revival under the title “The Secret Marriage”, but the Wasilewski Trio reach for a feeling closer to the piece’s original intention.
“Night Train To You” is the first of five new Wasilewski tunes here, described by the composer as “a motoric piece, a process.” At the outset three chords set up a pattern, “like a loop.” Time signatures progress from 6/8 to 11/8. A “very simple melody” takes us to a solo sequence for piano and drums, before the piece slows like a locomotive approaching a station, leading to a final section with improvisations around the chords heard in the open moments.
“Faithful” takes its name from its title track, a tune originally from Ornette Coleman’s 1966 album “The Empty Foxhole”, long a reference at ECM for the clarity of its melodic line and the purity, the innocence, of its improvisation. In an indirect way, it can be related to the history of Wasilewski, Kurkiewicz and Miskiewicz, players who found their shared musical identity when just schoolchildren. Their trio has been in existence since the mid 1990s, and the three musicians have made their discoveries in jazz together.
Marcin’s tune “Mosaic” is patterned like its title, a musical mosaic, with moving and fragmented chords painting a larger picture.
“Ballad of the Sad Young Men”, now a jazz standard was written by Tommy Wolf and Fran Landesmann for the Beat Generation musical “The Nervous Set” in 1959.
Hermeto Pascoal’s “Oz Guizos” (The Bells) was brought to the session by bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz who counts Brazilian music amongst his inspirations. “Slawomir brought a bunch of Pascoal tunes to rehearsal and we ran them through. This one seemed to speak most clearly to the character of our group.”
“Song for Swirek” is a tribute to the trio’s close friend Marek Swierkowski.
The dreamlike “Woke up in the Desert” was named by Marcin’s friend, Polish rock singer/songwriter Edyta Bartosiewcz. “Every time we have a new recording session I go over to her place and I like to listen to the music with her. I respect her opinion very much and she’s great at finding titles. This title still makes me laugh, but it also works on the imagination. It seems to suggest all kinds of associations.” (Henri Rousseau’s “Sleeping Gypsy” might come to mind, perhaps.) Marcin points out, furthermore, the snakelike movement and sonorities of Michael Miskiewicz’s cymbals and snare.
Paul Bley’s ”Big Foot” (a.k.a. “Figfoot”) was heard one of the very first of ECM’s releases, “Paul Bley With Gary Peacock”, issued in 1970. In the present version its dryly witty twists and turns are more characteristically Bley-like than its romping energy.
Finally there’s “Lugano Lake”, named for the site of the recording, made with producer Manfred Eicher at Lugano’s Auditorium SRI. “It’s a fond memory of a beautiful town, with the lake and the mountain, and sums up for me, the feeling of being there, in a recording.”
Thomas Conrad, JazzTimes
Continuing directions sketched on 2007’s “January”, and the earlier album called just “Trio” (2004), “Faithful” is the third ECM album by Poland’s Wasilewski Trio. Their ECM discography also includes a further three albums as members of the Tomasz Stanko Quartet: “Soul of Things”, “Suspended Night” and “Lontano”, recorded between 2001 and 2005. Furthermore, pianist Marcin Wasilewski and bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz are featured on Manu Katché’s “Neighbourhood” and “Playground” albums of 2004 and 2007. Nonetheless, it is to the trio that the listener must turn for the most comprehensive account of the players’ capabilities and inspirations. And “Faithful” may be the most comprehensive album yet from this group, capturing the trio’s admixture of energy, lyricism and ideas.
The album opens strikingly with Hanns Eisler’s “An den kleinen Radioapparat”, a song written (in 1942) from the perspective of a German exile still pursued and haunted by the voices of his persecutors through the medium of the radio. The tune’s had a latter-day revival under the title “The Secret Marriage”, but the Wasilewski Trio reach for a feeling closer to the piece’s original intention.
“Night Train To You” is the first of five new Wasilewski tunes here, described by the composer as “a motoric piece, a process.” At the outset three chords set up a pattern, “like a loop.” Time signatures progress from 6/8 to 11/8. A “very simple melody” takes us to a solo sequence for piano and drums, before the piece slows like a locomotive approaching a station, leading to a final section with improvisations around the chords heard in the open moments.
“Faithful” takes its name from its title track, a tune originally from Ornette Coleman’s 1966 album “The Empty Foxhole”, long a reference at ECM for the clarity of its melodic line and the purity, the innocence, of its improvisation. In an indirect way, it can be related to the history of Wasilewski, Kurkiewicz and Miskiewicz, players who found their shared musical identity when just schoolchildren. Their trio has been in existence since the mid 1990s, and the three musicians have made their discoveries in jazz together.
Marcin’s tune “Mosaic” is patterned like its title, a musical mosaic, with moving and fragmented chords painting a larger picture.
“Ballad of the Sad Young Men”, now a jazz standard was written by Tommy Wolf and Fran Landesmann for the Beat Generation musical “The Nervous Set” in 1959.
Hermeto Pascoal’s “Oz Guizos” (The Bells) was brought to the session by bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz who counts Brazilian music amongst his inspirations. “Slawomir brought a bunch of Pascoal tunes to rehearsal and we ran them through. This one seemed to speak most clearly to the character of our group.”
“Song for Swirek” is a tribute to the trio’s close friend Marek Swierkowski.
The dreamlike “Woke up in the Desert” was named by Marcin’s friend, Polish rock singer/songwriter Edyta Bartosiewcz. “Every time we have a new recording session I go over to her place and I like to listen to the music with her. I respect her opinion very much and she’s great at finding titles. This title still makes me laugh, but it also works on the imagination. It seems to suggest all kinds of associations.” (Henri Rousseau’s “Sleeping Gypsy” might come to mind, perhaps.) Marcin points out, furthermore, the snakelike movement and sonorities of Michael Miskiewicz’s cymbals and snare.
Paul Bley’s ”Big Foot” (a.k.a. “Figfoot”) was heard one of the very first of ECM’s releases, “Paul Bley With Gary Peacock”, issued in 1970. In the present version its dryly witty twists and turns are more characteristically Bley-like than its romping energy.
Finally there’s “Lugano Lake”, named for the site of the recording, made with producer Manfred Eicher at Lugano’s Auditorium SRI. “It’s a fond memory of a beautiful town, with the lake and the mountain, and sums up for me, the feeling of being there, in a recording.”
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