Tomek Sowinski and The Collective Improvisation Group - Synergy

Tomek Sowinski and The Collective Improvisation Group
Synergy

Label: Multikulti Project, 2010
Catalogue No: MPI008
Format: CD

The second record of Tomek Sowinski & The Collective Improvisation Group was released by Multikulti Project. It is a follow-up of the recording realized 3 years ago for NotTwo label .  Tomek Sowinski, a Tri-City (Gdansk-Gdynia-Sopot located at the Polish Baltic coast) drummer and composer seems to be fascinated by the big band jazz tradition as well as by different kinds of ethnic music, especially connected with jazz idiom directly originating from Africa and Latin America. His second record with The Collective Improvisation Group reflects this fascinations. There is no quest for ritual sounds he is rather focused on the beauty of life and folk music and the possibilities of interaction between this music and swinging sounds. There is a lot of subtle free jazz influences: he gives priority to collective sounds and the joy of cooperation over individual mastery and fury.  Although there is a lot space given for individual solo work and the group can gather unbelievable speed (Very Wicked Customs) the rather formal time-frames put the solo fragments in more synthetic structures. Collective Improvisation Group is a group of musicians thinking and feeling music in a similar fashion. Best cases in point are their collective improvisations, which seem not to differ much from compositions with their descriptive, illustrative character. Most important is the beauty and joy of playing together. More important than the pain of existence is the taste of bread and wine. Is this not the best recommendation of this music?

Tracks:

1. Initiation to Synergy
2. Very Wicked Customs
3. Staggering
4. Sleeping, smoking, Talking
5. Lemon Incident
6. Chix
7. Clumsiest People
8. Have We lost Our Dream?
9. CV Joint
10. Idle

total time - 61:11

Line-up:

Darek Herbasz - tenor saxophone
Jerzy Malek - trumpet, flugelhorn, corn
Piotr Mania - piano
Piotr Pawlak - guitar & additional sounds
Adam Zuchowski - bass
Lukasz Ruszkowsk - percussion
Tomek Sowinski - drums

Review:

Goddamn Polish Jazz so motherfucker strong! exclaimed one of my American colleagues upon hearing this recording. And indeed it is extremely funky although names of musicians involved in this project may be totally unknown and impossible to spell for foreign listeners. Nonetheless they are all creme de creme of Polish young jazz players and they really do hit the roof with this music!

Groove is strong in this music as once force in Luke Skywalker. Recently in one of my texts I cried over the fact that we lack in Poland of drummers of calibre of Jack DeJohnette, Jim Black or Jeff "Tain" Watts. But this record headed by young Polish drummer Tomasz Sowinski proves that I was completely wrong. His work on both drums and Lukasz Ruszkowski's on percussion is so creative and forward-thinking that I simply find no words to express my admiration for them. Everything rustles, bounces and leaps in this music! Rhythm is omnipresent as Holy Ghost in hearts of true (jazz) believers.

In file with such other jazz orchestras as Pawel Kaczmarczyk AudioFeeling Bandor Jerzy Malek Group Tomasz Sowinski and his The Collective Improvisation Group lead Polish jazz audience towards Promised Land of long forgotten jazz big bands. Darek Herbasz (tenor sax), Jerzy Malek (trumpet, flugelhorn, cornet), Piotr Mania (piano), Piotr Pawlak guitar&additional sounds), Żuchowski Adam (bass) and Ruszkowski Lukasz (percussion) plus leader, seven jazz musicians, the magnificent seven, the seven samurai who cut through ten consecutive tunes like damasacen steel through all doubts that modern jazz can be both avant garde and sexy.

Finally let me underline the role played in this recording by Piotr Mania. His presence on the piano reminds me very much of Kenny Drew style. Like Drew Mania remains low profile, subtle and vigilant to slightest changes in complicated rhythms of music but he never fails to support, nurture and expand it.

(review courtesy of Marcin Nowotny and polish-jazz.blogspot.com)