Pete Malinverni: The Tempest (2004)

Dan McClenaghan

Senior Contributor since 2002

A lover of sounds, and the way they fit together.

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Published: May 13, 2004

Pete Malinverni's previous disc on Reservoir Music, Autumn in New York , drew me into a world I'd hestitated to explore: the piano trio. The bop-inflected set featured some of Maliverni's distinctive originals beside his fresh takes on some of the time-honored classics, with the pianist joined by two very in sync accompanists, bassist Dennis Irwin and drummer Leroy Williams.

Maliverni offers up more of the same on The Tempest. The opening cut/title tune, an original, churns with a controlled turbulence, bringing the great bop pianist Bud Powell to mind. It's joyous and energetic turbulence, a sound that could have come out of a late forties bop session.

The spiritual side slips in with "Let the Sea Roar," another original. The song is a meditation on King David's Psalm 98. Malinverni, in addition to being a first rate musician/composer, is the minister of music at the Devoe St. Baptist Church in Brooklyn, NY, where he directs the choir and writes suites for church choir and jazz ensemble; and there's got to be a recording there sometime in the future.

"Twelve," inspired by Malinverni's son's longing for that lofty age of maturity, rises and falls between the feelings of joy and wistful melancholy, leading into the classic "Get Happy," taken at something of a breakneck pace, making me think Dizzy Gillespie would sound great blowing in here. Malinverni and crew give a fresh twist to on "My Ideal," and the pianist goes solo on two meditative takes on "Alone Together."

The Tempest presents a piano trio set that fits in with the best of them out there right now, the recent Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau discs, in spite of Pete Malinverni's lower profile.

Visit Reservoir music at www.reservoirmusic.com and Pete Malinverni at www.petemalinverni.com .

Track Listing: The Tempest, My Heart Stood Still, Let the Sea Roar, Alone Together, Twelve, Get Happy, My Ideal, From this Moment On, Alone Together, It Could Happen to You

Personnel: Pete Malinverni--piano; Dennis Irwin--bass; Leroy Williams--drums

Record Label: Reservoir Music
Style: Straight-ahead/Mainstream