Joelle Leandre & Ryoji Hojito: Sapporo Duets

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

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Published: September 1, 2001

Joelle Leandre & Ryoji Hojito: Sapporo Duets

Here, Ms. Joelle Leandre displays her consummate artistry alongside the very impressive pianist, Ryoji Hojito for a series of somewhat playful duets, featuring the artists' verbose musical dialogue and ornate textures. Through it all, the duo institutes an abundance of sub plots as Ms Leandre's resonantly wooden tone provides radiant contrast to the pianist's percussive block chords and flailing arpeggios. However, Hojito artfully toggles between working within the prepared piano style format and more conventional methodologies amid these ten untitled pieces. Additionally, the musicians meld semi-austere style classicism with jazz-based rhythmic developments, discordant musings, and penetrating call and response type exchanges. With track '6,' the duo implements a burgeoning ostinato motif in concert with clipped themes and expansive frameworks atop alternating statements, consisting of sonorous melodies.

Ms. Leandre exhibits enviable discipline and control via her altogether stunningly precise staccato arco-bass lines, and articulate single note patterns while Hojito surges onward with power and resolve, during these intricately devised and often dazzling performances, recorded live in Sapporo, Japan. Recommended.

Track Listing: Tracks 1-10 (Untitled)

Personnel: Joelle Leandre; acoustic bass: Ryoji Hojito; acoustic piano

Record Label: Jazz Halo
Style: Modern Jazz