Jazz Articles about Colin Vallon

About Colin Vallon

Album Review

There is a special kind of intimacy that can arise when a trio dispenses with the obvious rhythmic anchor of drums. In the right hands, that absence makes every gesture structurally important. On Atlas, guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel, trumpeter Mario Rom, and pianist Colin Vallon make precisely that kind of space. Their music is chamber-like in its balance and jazz-rooted in its freedom, with several traditions moving easily through the frame. The album's title is apt not because these pieces try to ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon: Samares

Read "Samares" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic

by Mike Jurkovic
November 18, 2024

One does not so much come upon the astute athletics at play within the soundscapes of pianist Colin Vallon as much as get lured, baited, then intrigued by them. Vallon who, for whatever reason, has not been on the new release radar since the ancient precepts he brought to light on 2017's tranquilly vibrant Danse (ECM) and, before that and also on ECM, 2014's deftly defiant Le Vent and 2011's densely poetic Rruga. Taken together and disregarding time, ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon: Danse

Read "Danse" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi

by Angelo Leonardi
September 14, 2017

In questa terza incisione per l'ECM il trio di Colin Vallon prosegue e amplifica quant'aveva evidenziato in Le Vent, inciso nel 2014 con gli stessi partner e caratterizzato da un cambio di direzione rispetto al precedente Rruga (2011), con Samuel Rohrer alla batteria. Se in quest'ultimo lavoro l'interplay improvvisato restava un elemento centrale, combinandosi con tempi elusivi, lunghe iterazioni e riferimenti al camerismo classico e al folklore caucasico, da qualche anno le scelte del pianista privilegiano la composizione orientata verso ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon / Patrice Moret / Julian Sartorius: Danse

by Karl Ackermann
January 7, 2017

Pianist Colin Vallon seems on the verge of a creative breakthrough with his new trio album Danse. With his third ECM trio release Vallon has cemented a personal approach to his music; it is one that has taken time to unfold much like many of his compositions. In his writing, as well as group interplay, the pianist has made a science of exploring open spaces and filling them with nuanced textures or opting for minimalism. Vallon's influences include ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon Trio: Le Vent

Read "Le Vent" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian

by Hrayr Attarian
March 21, 2015

Swiss pianist Colin Vallon's fourth release as a leader, Le Vent is a truly collaborative effort that eschews individual solos in favor of a haunting, collective sound. The results are atmospheric and exquisitely formalistic. This is not to suggest that, because of its ambient nature, the album is without substance. On the contrary, its structure becomes its essence. The title track, for instance, recreates the phenomenon of its name with supreme lyricism. Vallon's resonant, tranquil bars sing the ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon Trio: Le Vent

Read "Le Vent" reviewed by Neri Pollastri

by Neri Pollastri
June 10, 2014

Dopo il debutto con l'apprezzato Rruga, il trio svizzero di Colin Vallon torna a registrare, parzialmente rinnovato nell'organico--Julian Sartorius sostituisce il peraltro ottimo Samuel Rohrer--ma costante nelle atmosfere e nei temi, qui quasi interamente della penna del pianista e leader. La musica del trio si basa su una narrazione lirica aperta e non tradizionale, nella quale hanno estrema importanza la delicatezza dei suoni, a tratti quasi romantici, e soprattutto il sapiente ed equilibrato contrasto tra pieni e ...

Album Review

Colin Vallon Trio: Le Vent

by John Kelman
March 16, 2014

When Bill Evans emerged in the 1950s, he represented a paradigm shift for the jazz piano trio. No longer a lead instrument supported by a rhythm section, Evans' more egalitarian approach to music-making allowed delineated soloists to engage in a more fully conversational context, with any instrument capable of pushing the music in a new direction at any moment. Half a century later, Evans' influence can still be felt, but there's been further development, stripping away individual virtuosity and leaving ...