Jazz Articles

Trilok Gurtu with Simon Phillips & the NDR Big Band: 21 Spices

by Ian Patterson
April 27, 2011

There's a certain logic underlying the union of percussionist/composer Trilok Gurtu and the NDR Big-band, as both have proved themselves open to musical exploration over the years. Gurtu, in particular, has consistently blurred the boundaries of music, and it is characteristic of his way of thinking to employ Simon Phillips--ostensibly a rock drummer-- with a jazz big band, to bring a different groove to the mix. Wolf Kerscheck's stirring arrangements of ten Gurtu compositions are both sympathetic to Gurtu's melting-pot ...