Rating:
Genre:
Jazz
Release Date: 10/24/2006
Run Time: 60:09
Depending on who you talk to, the
third stream movement of the '50s was either an absolute blessing or an absolute curse. There are racial separatists who claim that
third stream was an assault on African-American culture because it tried to "whiten"
jazz, and there are equally silly individuals who insist that
Beethoven and
Mozart were
jazz musicians but that
Chick Corea,
Michael Brecker and
Pat Metheny are not. Discussions of
third stream tend to inspire moronic comments from both pro-
third stream and anti-
third stream people, but the bottom line is that
third stream has had both its ups and downs creatively (more ups than downs). Not everything that French pianist
Jacques Loussier (one of Europe's leading
third stream proponents) has recorded is great -- some of his
jazz/Euro-
classical experiments have worked well, some not so well -- but his risk-taking spirit clearly serves him well on
Bach: The Brandenburgs. This 2006 recording finds
Loussier's trio (which also includes bassist
Benoit Dunoyer de Segonzac and drummer
André Arpino) interpreting the six
Brandenburg concertos that
Johann Sebastian Bach (b. 1685, d. 1750) composed between 1708 and 1720, and interpret is definitely the operative word. Unlike a musician who plays Euro-
classical music exclusively,
Loussier does not play
Bach's material note for note; he improvises, offering personal and introspective performances.
Loussier is quite tasteful, and he makes
Bach's compositions sound perfectly natural in a
jazz setting.
Bach: The Brandenburgs is not recommended to
classical purists; this is an album for
jazz piano enthusiasts who also happen to appreciate
Bach's legacy, and those who fit that description will find
Bach: The Brandenburgs to be one of
Loussier's more lucid and artistically successful offerings.
~Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
;)
Listen
