Michael Robinson: Jeweled Saddle

Multi-instrumentalist, composer and inventor Michael Robinson is an idiosyncratic artist whose prolific output is split between piano improvisations and performances on his own invention, the electronic keyboard, the meruvina. Over his career, Robinson has been heavily influenced by Indian traditional music as well as the stylings of such luminaries as alto saxophonist Lee Konitz and clarinetist Benny Goodman, among others.

His 2024 Jeweled Saddle draws on these diverse sources of inspiration. It contains a single 50-minute meruvina piece with an infectious and haunting rhythm. The percussive refrains of the cadence are reminiscent of the South Asian raga, albeit one with hints of disco. Over this Robinson weaves a clarinet melody that wavers between a swinging ebullience and a laid-back, cool, swaggers. Throughout this charming opus Robinson sometimes sprinkles the resonant percolating beats with sparse, bittersweet, short phrases while at others he makes the clarinet sing through fluid, densely structured lines. This endows the music with a delightfully angular unpredictability.

In this Jeweled Saddle demonstrates a logical evolution, both conceptually and in style, of some of his previous work, like the Jasmine Perfume (Azure Miles, 2022) and Jetvana Self Produced, 2022). Although the 2022 albums utilized more of an electric piano sound and had more of a zen serenity and East Asian motifs, the way each of the three recordings follows a circular, poetic narrative is very similar.

After hundreds of records Robinson always finds a novel way to express himself. Jeweled Saddle is no exception. Its densely woven backdrop and sensual lyricism is in keeping with its title's origins, the writings of 9th-century Chinese poet Li Shang-Yin. Hence Robinson has brought together elements from several cultures and fused them into a composition that is meditative and moving. It is the perfect recipe to calm the mind in an age of pervasive angst.