Vivian Buczek: Le Grand Michel

The title of this album, Le Grand Michel, refers to French composer, pianist and arranger, Michel Legrand. In a glittering career, he wrote hundreds of film and television scores. He won three Oscars (from 13 nominations) with "The Windmills of Your Mind," featured in The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), perhaps his best- known work. This song had English lyrics written by Marilyn Bergman and Alan Bergman, the couple formed a long-lasting songwriting relationship with Legrand, also winning three Oscars.

The daughter of Polish musicians, Swedish singer Vivian Buczek has released a string of albums since 2003. Here she celebrates the work of Legrand here and reinterprets his songs with well-chosen collaborators. Swedish pianist and arranger Martin Sjöstedt makes a major contribution with some superb arrangements. Danish bassist Jesper Bodilsen and Swedish drummer Zoltan Csörsz make up the rhythm section. They are joined on some tracks by the Danish harmonica player Mathias Heise and the Swedish trumpeter Peter Asplund. Asplund also composed one track.

The album opens with "The Windmills of Your Mind." It quickly becomes apparent why Buczek deserves a seat at the top table of European jazz singers. Her clarity, phrasing and timing are all top-class. There is nothing showy or overly stylized and she receives terrific support from Heise's harmonica in Sjöstedt's fresh arrangement of the song. "The Way He Makes Me Feel" from the film Yentl (1983) features another masterful arrangement by Sjöstedt that slowly builds, creating a pent-up air of mystery that bursts out with solos from Bodilsen and Sjöstedt.

Buczek is equally adept in the slowly phrased "His Eyes, Her Eyes" as in the fast-moving diction of "Summer Me, Winter Me." Heise's harmonica is a welcome feature in both. Asplund adds smart trumpet interjections into the bluesy "Love Makes the Changes." Heise and Sjöstedt provide excellent accompaniment, as Buczek's vocals beautifully convey romance and melancholy in "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life." Her voice then swoops and flies through the light swing of "Where's The Love."

The album could easily end successfully at this point, but Buczek adds further variety, showing another facet of her voice, this time weaving wordless vocals around Asplund's soaring trumpet in his otherwise instrumental composition, "Le Grand Michel." Buczek then rings the changes again as she closes the album with "You Must Believe in Spring" with just Bodilsen's lyrical bass for accompaniment.

Everything works well here; Bodilsen and Csörsz provide a solid platform and add spirited rhythmic texture, Heise and Asplund make key contributions, Sjöstedt's piano is expressive, and his arrangements breathe new life into the familiar. Buczek's vibrant vocals find the storytelling nuances of the material, which should make this a rewarding listening experience for those who appreciate vocal jazz.

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