Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Dick de Graaf: Moving Target

114

Dick de Graaf: Moving Target

By

View read count
Dick de Graaf: Moving Target
Possessing a tight sound that cuts through the rest of the band, saxophonist Dick de Graaf spins lines and ideas with abandon on Moving Target. If an album can be thought of as a calling card that gives an idea of how the band would sound live, then this album should produce plenty of gigs.

Crackling with energy and fine band interplay from beginning to end, Moving Target contains ten originals, of which "Deka Deka" and the title tune are rearrangements of compositions from earlier times. Five tunes are from a commission by Radio Magyar that uses the music of Bela Bartok as inspiration.

De Graaf is most certainly eclectic in his influences and inspirations, which include such rock icons as Jimi Hendrix and The Who, as well as classical composers Franz Schubert and Ludwig van Beethoven. It shows in the range of styles on display here.

The Bartok set of pieces makes for interesting listening, as the strength of the connection to the composer varies widely. Bartok is justly famous for intense classical compositions with strong rhythmic, melodic, scalar and phrase relationships to Hungarian folk music within a distinctly modern style. His lines, which contain biting dissonances created by seeming accidental counterpoint and enormous forward energy, remain his trademarks.

Each tune ("A Touch Of Bela," "Stolen Dream," "Why Birds Always Sing," "Handiclap" and "Somsok Orkin Saleb II") shows its Bartokian connection in a different way and with differing clarity. De Graaf is never overt about what he is doing, and implies Bartok with much subtlety and wit. However, a listener familiar with the composer should easily be able to hear the stylistic references, despite how deeply they are fused with straight-ahead jazz.

Taken together, the ten tracks display de Graaf's compositional gift as well as his improvisational prowess. The band (keyboardist Jeroen van Vliet, bassist Guus Bakker and drummer Pascal Vermeer) is more than anyone can ask for, playing with fire and extremely sharp musical reflexes, making Moving Target a winning mainstream record.

Track Listing

Cascade; A Touch of Bela; Deka Deka; Stolen Dream; Climate Change; Why Birds Always Sing; Moving Target; Handiclap; Somsok Orkim Saleb II; Demasque.

Personnel

Dick de Graaf: tenor and soprano sax; Jeroen van Vliet: piano, Fender Rhodes; Guus Bakker: acoustic and electric bass; Pascal Vermeer: drums.

Album information

Title: Moving Target | Year Released: 2008 | Record Label: Soundroots

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.