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Jazz Articles about Nik Bärtsch
Jazz Crescendos Galore!
by Ludovico Granvassu
When creating a radio playlist one always has to make sure to sequence songs in a meaningful way. The dynamics of their interaction is critical. There should be not too many fast pieces played back to back, nor too many ballads one after the other. Fast and slow, soft and loud should be sequenced in a logical manner. Ideally, leading to a climax through one or more crescendos of songs. This week we have decided to create ...
Continue ReadingNik Bärtsch's Ronin At The Bop Stop
by Matt Hooke
Nik Bartsch's Ronin Bop Stop Cleveland, Ohio October 28, 2018 The way Nik Bärtsch dresses reveals a lot about his music. He steps up to the piano wearing a Samue, the traditional dress of Zen Buddhist monks, and sneakers. One represents a spiritual tradition thousands of years old, requiring the utmost discipline and training to master. The later represents modern casual fun. His Samue reflects the time he spent in a Japanese monastery, the sneakers ...
Continue ReadingNik Bartsch's Ronin at Dazzle
by Geoff Anderson
Nik Bärtsch's Ronin Dazzle Denver, CO October 24, 2018 “Zen Funk." That's how Nik Bärtsch describes his music. “Zen:" the seeking of true enlightenment, often through meditation. “Funk:" a highly rhythmic, syncopated form of music. Zen Funk, yeah, that's it. The funk ranges from subtle to structural to urgent. The repetitive nature of the funk lines can be trance-inducing, leading to a meditative state which, of course, leads to true enlightenment. ...
Continue ReadingSzun Waves, other new releases and some archive cuts
by Bob Osborne
Blurring the boundaries between jazz, ambience and electronica, the sophomore album from Szun Waves New Hymn to Freedom, is the album of the week on the show. This new release is a document of six entirely live improvisations with “no edits or overdubs." The album title is apt, it is jazz, but it also bedded in the British electronic tradition, creating a refreshing new sound. The show also focuses on Guillermo McGill and Marion Brown with two tracks ...
Continue ReadingNik Bärtsch: Awase
by Hrayr Attarian
The exquisite Awase is Swiss pianist Nik Bärtsch's eighth release with his band Ronin. Although the ensemble has had a few personnel changes, the album maintains the creative energy and the spirit of its previous work. The title refers to a principle of martial arts that translates to coming together and an appropriately dynamic synergy marks all six tracks. The cinematic “Module 34," for instance, consists of atmospheric and expansive refrains that resonate against Bärtsch's cascading piano. The ...
Continue ReadingNik Bartsch's Ronin at Constellation in Chicago
by Hrayr Attarian
Nik Bärtsch's Ronin Constellation Chicago, IL May 10, 2018 On May 10th 2018, Swiss pianist Nik Bärtsch brought his quartet, Ronin to Chicago's Constellation. In the venue's intimate studio B the ensemble stretched out on material from its latest album to date, the sublime Awase (ECM, 2018). It kept the close to 200-member audience captivated with their collective performance. Bärtsch opened the concert with tolling notes from the piano strings. Multireed player Sha ...
Continue ReadingNik Bärtsch's Ronin at World Cafe Live
by Geno Thackara
Nik Bärtsch's Ronin World Cafe Live Philadelphia, PA May 8, 2018 Of the oddest sights Philadelphia's art scene might offer on any given Tuesday night, a stern-faced figure in samurai hatama whacking a piano with a mallet should probably be in the top five. (Unless there's something like the Fringe Festival going on, in which case, maybe the top twenty.) To the unfamiliar, the music of Nik Bärtsch's Ronin may seem similarly odd and yet ...
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