Noah Preminger: Ballads

Balladry becomes Noah Preminger. And that may come as a surprise to some. Over the past seventeen years and about as many releases, this critically-acclaimed tenor saxophonist has often made his mark going the opposite way—in myriad bold-and-beyond settings where he's thrown haymakers with precision, explored duo dynamism with bassist Kim Cass, pushed the envelope through the demanding music of Steve Lampert, or investigated the gravity of the delta blues with a probing mindset. Yet there's something about his softer side that, when occasionally revealed, has proven just as compelling as those boundary-stretching pursuits. That truth was made evident on airy offerings like the classic title track from his Some Other Time (Newvelle, Records, 2016); it came into central view with Whispers and Cries (Red Piano Records, 2018), a spellbinding standards date with pianist Frank Carlberg; and it's abundantly clear on this lovely, unhurried affair.

Working with Cass, pianist Julian Shore and drummer Allan Mednard, Preminger highlights the virtues of moderation while offering a sonic swaddling for the ears and soul. Opening with "Stan's Mood," this leader puts his stamp on Getz-ian cool; and closing with "Someone to Watch Over Me," he luxuriates in the opportunity to caress the melody of a timeless tale. That pair of standards offerings typifies the tone of this project while bracketing beautiful music drawn from or in the present moment.

The inclusion of Sun Kil Moon's "Carry Me Ohio"—a nod to its regular playlist presence when Preminger's now two-year-old was in the womb—brings post-millennial singer-songwriter aesthetics into the instrumental sphere and serves as a soothing earworm. And four of the leader's originals follow that second-slotted winner to complete this profile in quietude. "Unfair World" teeters on the balance point of despair and hope. "In Our 20s," underscored by Mednard's steady-handed groove(s), brings both pleasant memory and forward motion into the equation. "Democracy," with soul-bearing saxophone confession at its core, plays on gossamer graces and Strayhorn-esque woolgathering. And "PNEU" ponders in cyclical fashion. Following in the footsteps of his tenor idols and forebears who brilliantly took to the ballad album format, Preminger has now carved out his own firm place in this subtlest of settings.