Ned Rothenberg: Looms & Legends

Solo recordings, at least when they feature instruments other than piano or guitar, can be a challenge even for the most committed jazz listeners. The excitement generated by the dialogue of multiple instrumentalists is, of course, missing, and even the most talented artists can have trouble sustaining one's interest for an entire album. Such releases can be rather rewarding, however, when the musician in question has either astonishing technique or compelling emotional substance—or both, as is evident on multi-instrumentalist Ned Rothenberg's Looms and Legends, his first solo recording since 2012's World of Odd Harmonics (Tzadik). The album can certainly be appreciated for its technical brilliance—no surprise to anyone who has followed Rothenberg's long and accomplished career. But some moments approach something deeper than just instrumental wizardry, allowing Rothenberg to offer music that, as he puts it in the album's liner notes, can be an "aural refuge for mind and body."

Rothenberg has an extensive catalog of recordings, and while he is a superlative group leader—see 2023's Crossings Four (Clean Feed), with Mary Halvorson, Sylvie Courvoisier, and Tomas Fujiwara for just one example—he has always had a fondness for demanding solo work which allows him to cultivate his distinctive improvisational logic. One of his earliest releases, Trials of the Argo (Lumina, 1981), utilized a complex layering of overdubbed instruments to create something akin to a one-man orchestra. Here, the approach is much simpler, with one horn at a time, as Rothenberg performs on alto saxophone, B-flat and A clarinets, and shakuhachi, a Japanese wind instrument on which Rothenberg has become quite fluent. Conspicuously absent is bass clarinet, one of Rothenberg's favorite go-to options (as on Crossings Four, for instance), but he more than makes up for it with the other choices available here.

A master of circular breathing and overtones, Rothenberg uses clarinet-based pieces like "Dance Above," the album's opener, to generate rhythmic momentum and a trance-like fervor. Although impressive in its own right, Rothenberg's circular breathing is intrinsic to the piece's structure, sustaining its intensity and heightening its power to pull the listener into its orbit. "Urgency" has a similar propulsive quality, with Rothenberg's stamina allowing him to meet the demands of its eight-plus minutes. "Fra Gile" has a more tenuous aspect, with multiphonics creating fascinating harmonic possibilities that are truly remarkable. Rothenberg's mastery of the clarinet is undeniable, and these tracks are brilliant studies worthy of repeated investigations.

Rothenberg's work on the alto sax is no less vital, although on these tracks we can hear a more sensitive, emotionally resonant aspect of his playing. "Resistance Anthem" has the defiant spirit one might expect, as its tuneful poignancy echoes proudly, while "Flurry" possesses a soulful quality amidst its quicksilver flourishes. And then there is Thelonious Monk's "'Round Midnight," the one track in which Rothenberg plays the shakuhachi, to close the album. The emphasis here is squarely on the piece's intrinsic beauty, and Rothenberg's technical facility is fully harnessed to give the airy instrument its chance to illuminate the tune's essence with grace and refinement.

In times of turmoil and uncertainty, there is something to be said for music that strips away all pretension and artifice, allowing something pure and direct to emerge. Thankfully, Looms and Legends does just that.

Comments