Yosi Levy: Acoustic Project II: The Duo

Yosi Levy was born in Israel and began playing guitar at the age of 12. After a mandatory stint in the IDF (Israel Defense Forces), he began working professionally in clubs around Israel. In the early 1980s, he decided to move to New York City and study classical guitar at the prestigious Mannes College of Music in New York. Toward the end of his 5+ year stint there, Levy established a connection with saxophonist Dave Liebman and with Liebman, recorded his first album The House on Lefferts Blvd which features Levy on electric guitar. The album was released in Israel in 1994 by MCI and received excellent reviews.

In 1987, Levy returned to Israel to create his own music based on the Israeli experience and his identity. After moving back home, Levy played at the first Red Sea Jazz Festival in 1987, where he hosted Liebman and together they performed Levy's original music. Over the years, Liebman and Levy have continued playing together when opportunities arise in Israel and abroad.

In 1990, Levy met the flutist Ilan Salem and during a duo tour across India, they met Bickram Ghosh, a renowned Indian tabla player who had played for many years with the legendary sitar player Ravi Shankar. That trio recorded the album The Yosi Levy Acoustic Project. Released in 2013, the album was released to great acclaim, including two five-star reviews by contributors here on AAJ.

Levy later met Itai Kriss, an Israeli flutist based in New York, and the two began a collaboration that has led to the current release, The Yosi Levy Acoustic Project II: The Duo, which contains six original compositions and two standards.

The opening track, "Ladders and Scales" is a portent of what's to come (see YouTube video below). Right away the breakneck speed pace of the nylon string guitar and flute in unison grabs your attention. Changing keys and time signatures propel the theme before sharply segueing into a soft, lovely melody. Levy accompanies Kriss while he plays wistfully above him. The two themes alternate during the track and each musician is given space to play off the other.

The album features a different take on "All The Things You Are." Levy mentions in his notes he likes to work on the "deconstruction and reconstruction" of familiar musical themes. Here he shows us what that means by stretching and deconstructing the original song, then breaking the structure in places before reassembling them. "All The Things You Are" in this case, has now been transformed into "All the Things You Are Not." The interplay and empathy between these two musicians here is breathtaking.

"There Will Never Be Another You" and "Norwegian Wood" are the two standards here. They also get deconstructed before becoming recognizable as the pop tunes they are. It is incredibly inventive. Listening to these two players make it all work is mesmerizing. This approach, of taking the music in unexpected ways, is a hallmark of the entire record. In fact, Levy was named winner of Israel's 2022 Prime Minister's Prize for Jazz Composers.

The album closes with "Joy," which is a joyous romp between flute and guitar. Levy is at his furious best. Between speed riffs and bluesy bending of the notes, he also hums along in a Keith Jarrett manner. This track is one of his showpieces. Kriss joins in the fun and shows himself to be as confident and skillful a player as Levy.

Each arrangement is meticulous. This allows them to approach the music in different ways. At times, they play in unison, but often they're playing counterpoint to each other. Somehow it all fits together. Levy, at times, plays with the speed and dexterity of John McLaughlin and is complemented by Kriss' virtuosity on the flute. The sound created is big and full even though it is a duo performance. The duo's musicianship, with Levy's composition and arrangement vision, makes this release a tour de force and a unique listening experience.

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