Ivo Perelman: What A Year In Music

There is an adage in the music world that one is damned to be a completist. Ever since performances have been captured on cylinders, records, and now digitally, music devotees have endeavored to collect entire catalogs of their favorite musicians or ensembles. Think about the obsessive hunters of 78 rpm blues records from backwoods artists of the 1920s and '30s, Dean Benedetti's obsessive capture of Charlie Parker solos and Phil Schaap's dedication to every bit of Bird's minutia. There are the John Coltrane obsessives and the Miles Davis devotees; both groups search out radio broadcasts and concert bootlegs. Finally, two groups stand out among the obsessive collectors, they are Deadheads and Sun Ra zealots. Their obsession with hundreds, let us call it more like a thousand recordings is a lifetime of work for the completist.

Along the same lines, one is damned to be an Ivo Perelman completist. Some say cursed; others would say damned lucky. Since 2014, while the tenor saxophonist has made just a handful of public performances, he has released, on average a half dozen studio recordings per year. This year, 2024, there are twelve new titles. Likened to your favorite podcast or maybe Major League Baseball team with its 162 games, Perelman always has something new for the ears. Here is an overview of his 2024 offerings.

A sampling of the saxophonist's work would not be complete without a Matthew Shipp duo recording. Of the nearly 50 sessions the pair have recorded, almost half have been in a duo setting. Magical Incantation (Soul City Sounds) continues what seems like an ongoing dialogue between the Perelman and Shipp—one as confident and spontaneous as only two old friends can have. The pair expand their explorations with bassist Mark Helias and drummer Tom Rainey, opening new worlds with Water Music (Rogueart).

The trilateral approach to music is explored with the legendary UK bassist Barry Guy and Spanish drummer Ramón López on Interaction (Ibeji). There are also two other trio's; a return of López, plus Cuban-born, New York resident pianist Aruán Ortiz on Ephemeral Shapes (Fundacja Sluchaj) and Truth Seeker (Fundacja Sluchaj) with Mark Helias and Tom Rainey.

Of special note, Perelman adds vocalists with two releases, Vox Popoli Vox Dei (Mahakala) and Messa di Voce (Mahakala). The former matches the saxophonist with Czech violinist and vocalist Iva Bittova plus bassist Michael Bisio and on Messa di Voce Perelman is joined by Joe Morris on bass, drummer Ramon López, and the elegant voice of Fay Victor. The addition of vocalists is a perfect fit for the sound of Perelman's saxophone language, which can best be described as one that mimics speech patterns.

The saxophonist invited two jazz legends, bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille to join with fellow saxophonist Chad Fowler for Embracing the Unknown (Mahakala Music) . As Troy Dostert writes, "(this release) brings a smile to one's face, especially after experiencing the many fine moments of collective music-making on this excellent release."

Finally, there are the duo performances in which the saxophonist and his guest create magic from seemingly nothing. Duologues 1 Turning Point (Ibeji) with Tom Rainey, Duologues 2-Joy (Ibeji) with violinist Gabby Fluke-Mogul, Duologues 3-"Crystal Clear" (Ibeji) with fellow saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, and Polarity 3 (Burning Ambulance) Pereleman's next installment with trumpeter Nate Wooley.

The magic here is the exploration of sound and the creation of music as alchemy. Perelman and his guests, without a score or discussion before entering the recording space, create beauty out of thin air.

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