Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Yaron Herman Trio: Muse

528

Yaron Herman Trio: Muse

By

Sign in to view read count
Yaron Herman Trio: Muse
Muse is Yaron Herman's fourth album and with it the Israeli-born/French-based pianist continues his steady progress towards a mature post-Keith Jarrett, post-Brad Mehldau style and the certainty of world ranking. Still in his late twenties, Herman set out his stall with the piano/drums duo album Takes 2 To Know 1 (Sketch, 2005), which was followed by a solo set, Variations (Laborie Records, 2006), and most recently a trio plus electronica album, A Time For Everything (Laborie Records, 2007). The new album, another trio outing, has the same personnel as its predecessor—Herman, bassist Matt Brewer and drummer Gerald Cleaver—but without an electronicist.



On the evidence of Muse, Herman's time can't be long in coming, if indeed it isn't immediately around the very next corner. The influence of Jarrett and Mehldau can still be heard, but is now more diffuse. To it can be added another resonance, Esbjorn Svensson. For along with his intense, emotionally nuanced lyricism, Herman can turn out phrases and motifs as emphatic and percussive as the late pianist's. And he does so on Muse, unaided by the electronic boosters used by the Swede. There are moments on the more passionate and fiery tracks, which make up about half of the set, when it could almost be Svensson playing, unplugged. But there's a difference. Svensson's powerfully emotional performances seemed at times to be pre-scripted, turned on and off with deliberation. Herman's passion is unlike that; it feels more organic, more in-the-moment.



In contrast to A Time For Everything, with its dollop of covers from Björk, Sting, Leonard Cohen, Britney Spears and the American songbook, Muse focuses on Herman and Brewer's writing. There are just two familiar covers, Dizzy Gillespie's "Con Alma" and Björk's "Isobel," plus one lesser-known tune each from songwriters Alexander Argov and Naomi Shemer. Argov's Middle East-inflected "Lamidbar" and Herman's "Vertigo," which are grouped one after the other, are among the highpoints of the album—urgent, visceral and giddifying.



Herman includes a string quartet on three tracks to rewarding effect. At just over three minutes, the opening title track is a brief but substantial classical piece; rhapsodic and suggesting something eventful to come. The strings are assertive and foregrounded. They are less so on "Isobel," where Cleaver's "tribal" drumbeats, reiterated throughout, provide the engine. On the haunting "Rina Balle," which closes, they morph winningly between background and foreground.



Not to be missed.

Track Listing

Muse; Con Alma; Vertigo; Lamidbar; Perpetua; Isobel; Joya; Lu Yehi; Twins; And The Rain; Rina Balle.

Personnel

Yaron Herman: piano; Matt Brewer: bass (1-7, 9-11); Gerald Cleaver: drums (2-7, 9-11); Quatuor Ebene String Quartet (1, 6, 11).

Album information

Title: Muse | Year Released: 2009 | Record Label: Sunnyside Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of 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 create 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.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve 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

Sensual
Rachel Z
Over and Over
Tony Monaco Trio
Love Is Passing Thru
Roberto Magris

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

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