Bert Joris: Octet Sessions, Vol. 3

For the Octet Sessions, Vol. 3 in Brussels-based Jazz Master Tracks' series of accessible apps, the renowned Belgian trumpeter/composer Bert Joris was tasked with rearranging eight of his splendid compositions written for big bands, symphonic orchestras and other large ensembles for an octet comprised of some of western Europe's leading jazz musicians. Joris chose to do so by employing a six-horn front line with no piano or other chordal instrument in the rhythm section, only bassist Jos Machtel and drummer Joost Van Schaik.

One result is the best of two possible worlds, with the horns lending a proximate big-band sound when called for while Machtel and Van Schaik eliminate the need for a piano or guitar. Joris' admirable themes are harmonically and rhythmically modern yet firmly grounded in jazz custom, reminiscent at times of the best work of Gerry Mulligan, Tadd Dameron, Gil Evans and others during the fabled Birth of the Cool era in the 1940s and '50s. He even nods impishly to trad jazz with the high-flying "Struttin' with Some Struttin,'" an undisguised take-off on Lil Hardin Armstrong's early masterwork, "Struttin' with Some Barbecue."

"Struttin'" follows the well-grooved opener, "Triple," on which Joris and soprano saxophonist Stephane Guillaume design the first of the album's many bright and resourceful solos. Trumpeter Jean-Paul Estiévenart and Guillaume (on bass clarinet) share solo space on "Struttin,'" which precedes the meditative "Connections," on which trombonist Bart van Lier and tenor Gideon Tazelaar are out front for the first time. The buoyant "Magic Box," one of Joris' best-known works, showcases his agile trumpet and the burnished alto saxophone of Rob Banken.

Guillaume's radiant flute leads the way on the jazz waltz "Anna," ushering in sharp ad libs by Machtel and Tazelaar. The good-humored "Mr. Dodo," on which Van Lier, Estievanart and Joris share the spotlight, includes a brace of smartly written soli for the horns, yet another of the album's many highlights. "Sundown" is a breezy samba with incisive asides by Van Lier and Guillaume (again on bass clarinet), while "King Combo" is a dynamic windup whose decisive closing statements are delivered with panache by Joris, Van Schaik and Tazelaar.

This is an ensemble wherein everyone pulls his weight and then some. While Joris' music is not an easy read, one would never know that when listening to the Octet Sessions, as everyone is clearly a master of his instrument (in some cases, more than one). What is perhaps more important, everyone knows how to take notes from paper and make them swing. In doing so, they have helped make the Octet Sessions, Vol. 3 a near-classic album, and certainly one of the finest small-group jazz recordings of 2023, from Europe or anywhere else.

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