GORDON GRDINA'S THE MARROW NOT PLAYING SAME OUD SONG
In the Middle East, Africa and Asia, the oud is an instrumental fixture. The lute-type instrument with 11 or 13 strings is pretty rare in jazz. Vancouver musician Gordon Grdina is doing a lot to change that.
Over 15 years of studies into the instrument and its extensive repertoire have enabled Grdina to put his oud playing front and centre in world music projects such as the large ensemble Haram, Sangha and Qalandar as well as into jazzier realms with his trio and now with The Marrow. This new project combines Middle Eastern music with avant-garde jazz and dropped its debut album Ejdeha June 22 on Songlines.
Here are five things to know about the album:
1. International names: Featuring New York aces Mark Helias ( bass) and cellist Hank Roberts, The Marrow began as a trio put together for an annual oud summit in New York. But the band became a quartet after Vancouver-based Persian percussionist Hamin Honari was brought into the band. It’s hard to imagine what compositions such as the album opener Telesm would sound like without Honari’s reverberating frame drum. A member of a celebrated musical family, Hamin has played with Grdina for over a decade in multiple different projects.
2. Hank Roberts: First seen here as a member of guitarist Bill Frisell’s fantastic quartet, this cellist coaxes so much variation out of his instrument on this album that you could be forgiven for thinking there was a viola player or violinist in on the session as well as more than one bass. Where Helias is a pulsing timekeeper with an impeccable resume, having played with everyone from composer Anthony Braxton to Regina Carter and so many more, Roberts is more of a textural player, bringing in elements of modern classical, folk and even outside rock to his playing.
3. Dense rhythmic structures: Just check out the layers of dense rhythmic counterpoint in Idiolect to appreciate how groovy this group is. The amount of ebb and flow between the players and how they trade off lead roles while never sacrificing any of the sinuous beat is impressive. It’s hard to believe that this is a new unit because they play like they’ve been doing this together for ages. Grdina is on record stating that the communication among the original three was so instant and rewarding that it was a no-brainer to pursue the group. Honari was a pretty easy fit, as he is steeped in the tradition.
4. It’s hypnotic: The oud, at least the way Grdina plays it, becomes a driving force in all of the album tracks. But where his guitar playing can often be characterized by frantic and furious shards of noise, he never goes past the point of control playing oud. Every note rings so clear and fluid that it’s positively hypnotic. Even though this is most certainly an outside-thenorms jazz album it will certainly appeal to a very wide range of listeners because of this clarity in execution.
5. See Grdina live: You can’t see The Marrow at the 2018 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. But you can see Grdina playing with N.Y. all-stars Matt Maneri (violin/viola), Shahzad Ismaily ( bass) and German drummer/percussionist Christian Lillinger on June 27 at Ironworks. He also appears with Gordon Grdina’s Square Peg featuring Honari and sweet guitarist Itamar Erez at the Innovation Series at the China Cloud on June 28 after 11 p.m.
ALSO LISTENING TO THIS WEEK:
Arp — Zebra (Mexican Summer):
If you’ve been wanting a haunting, orchestral electronic workout for summer listening, you really need to give this 11 track album a spin. From multi-instrumentalist/producer Alexis Georgopoulos, better known for his EDM output, Arp is like a missing link in those classic Jon Hassell/Brian Eno Fourth World: Possible Musics experiment. There hasn’t been as slinky or cool a synth workout as Nzuku for a long time. This could be perfect in a Bond film as he wanders into the bar, and you’ll feel every bit as calm and collected cranking this and sipping a negroni.
Ann Manson, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Evelyn Glennie — Mirage? Concertos for Percussion (MCO Records): Grammy Awardwinning percussionist Glennie has never failed to impress with her profoundly sensitive playing. Being deaf means that she relates to the resonance and forces associated with playing her vibraphone and marimba, and it has made her one of the finest classical percussionists out there. This six track recording begins with a joyous float through Antonio Vivaldi’s Piccolo Concerto in C Major. Glennie just flies over the marimba in the opening allegro movement displaying incredible volume control at breakneck speed. The title composition by Christos Hatzis is likely the standout of the recording and also a complete opposite of the Vivaldi. This is dark, brooding and moody music with plenty of open space and some truly beautiful string section passages played off against big chiming vibraphone. Arcangelo Corelli’s Sonata in D Minor, Op. 5, No. 12 — La Folia and Michael Oesterie’s Kalluza Klein round out the recording. Highly recommended.