Charles Lloyd New Quartet at The National Concert Hall

Charles Lloyd New Quartet
National Concert Hall
Dublin, Ireland
November 18, 2014

At seventy six, saxophonist/flutist and composer Charles Lloyd could be forgiven for resting on his considerable laurels. Most musicians, however, are reluctant to trade the buzz of live performance for the free bus pass and Lloyd is no exception. Lloyd still performs in the major concert halls and at the most prestigious jazz festivals around the world to standing ovations and glowing reviews. At this point he could easily churn out crowd-pleasing material from a discography that stretches back to Discovery! (Columbia, 1964); instead, he continues to push himself to new creative heights.

This concert in Dublin's National Concert Hall featured the hour-long composition Wild Man Dance Suite commissioned by Jazztopad—in the Polish city of Wroclaw—where it premiered in 2013. Rumors have it that the Wild Man Dance Suite is scheduled for release sometime next year and with the announcement this past June that Lloyd is one of the recipients for the next round of National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Masters Fellowships, 2015 promises to be a banner year for the jazz legend.

First up, however, was German singer/pianist Olivia Trummer, who showcased songs from her new CD Fly Now (Contemplate Music, 2014). Although Trummer may be a new name to many she has five albums to her name. Trummer opened with the title track to Nobody Knows (Neuklang, 2010), demonstrating a refined, light touch on the keys and a fluidity that seduced without resorting to showboating.

The girl from Stuttgart may have started out as instrumental jazz artist on her first two albums but she possesses a fine, pure-toned voice, captivating on the atmospheric solo rendition of Fly Now and the trio number "Gotta Miss Someone"—an irresistible tune that could easily enjoy the sort of cross-over radio success—given the chance—that launched Norah Jones. Two of Ireland's most outstanding jazz musicians, bassist David Redmond and drummer Kevin Brady, provided sure-footed accompaniment throughout a short but engaging set.

Whether caressing a ballad ("Don't Ask Love"), leading her trio through lithe post-bop terrain ("ICE") or conjuring catchy pop-centric tunes ("Gotta Miss Someone") this concert underlined Trummer's credentials as a talent worthy of wider recognition.

Though Charles Lloyd's association with ECM dates back twenty five years, recent albums such as Rabo de Nuve (ECM, 2008), Mirror (ECM, 2010) and Athens Concert (ECM, 2012) have provided some of his best music in a six-decade career. In Jason Moran, Reuben Rogers and Eric Harland Lloyd seemed to have found the ideal vehicle for his musical vision.

That he should then go and form a new quartet in his seventy fifth year indicated that he's still walking the creative high wire. Lloyd, Gerald Clayton, Joe Sanders and Harland may only have been together a year but as they demonstrated on the NCH stage they've quickly cemented a deep understanding. Their intuitive interplay was especially evident during the epic Wild Man Dance Suite, all the more so given the extra space afforded them in the absence of lira player Socratis Sinopoulos and cimbalonist Miklos Lukacs.

Lloyd led from the front on tenor saxophone, carving out extended melodic lines. There was more collective sway than swagger in the early quartet dialog but Lloyd's lyrical narrative—sympathetically supported by Sanders' bowed bass—was nevertheless hypnotic. When Clayton soloed, Lloyd sat on a stool close to the piano, swaying in contented absorption. Long-standing Lloyd collaborator Harland was a constantly inventive presence, stirring rhythmic currents with brushes, ticking over when the Lloyd was at his most introspective and dealing in meatier rhythms when Sanders' bass lifted the quartet to post-bop charge. The drummer added punchy percussive bite to a segment of heady, spiritual blues incantation, with Clayton and then Lloyd sharing protagonism.

A plaintive piano-cum-sax duologue was lent gently buoyancy, first by Sanders and then by Harland's cymbals. Discernible shifts in mood signposted the half dozen or so chapters of the suite, overlapping in waves that ebbed and flowed. It was fully twenty five minutes before the quartet edged anywhere near free-jazz territory but even at the music's most ecstatic heights there was always a feeling of controlled direction. A blistering drum climax ushered in saxophone and piano as delicate as soft rain. The quartet reunited and led by Sanders walking bass, embarked on a lengthy straight-ahead passage.

As the intensity grew the rhythmic form gave way to a collective rumble. From the maelstrom emerged bowed bass and piano in mournful reverie that was lifted to a more overtly lyrical plain by Lloyd's measured intervention. Soon, however, the saxophonist was leading the quartet into freer territory, mounting a final collective hurrah. Harland nailed the quartet's colors to the mast with an electrifying, violent assault on the drum kit that threatened to involve the insurers. It was a spectacular way to sign off after a riveting hour-plus of totally absorbing quartet play.

The inevitable encores saw Lloyd take up tárogató then flute on the mellow yet grooving "Ramanujan." As Clayton soloed, Lloyd employed shaker under the piano's lid before reverting to flute once more. To the older fans' delight, Lloyd dusted off "Little Piece" and the rarely played "Forest Flower" from his very first album. The sunny visage of these tunes—fifty years old—contrasted starkly with the emotional intensity of the Wild Man Dance Suite and ended a hugely satisfying concert on an upbeat, cheery note.

Throughout the concert a star-spangled, midnight-blue curtain had provided a celestial backdrop to the unfolding musical drama—a sympathetic setting indeed for such heavenly music.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Dublin Jazz Photography/John Cronin