Evgeny Masloboev & Anastasia Masloboeva: Russian Folk Songs in the Key of New Jazz

The latest entry of the Russian Folk Songs series for UK-based Leo Records find the father and daughter team, Evgeny Masloboeva and Anastasia performing with Moscow's prominent new jazz artists, resulting in this fascinating gem. It's an unclassifiable brew in the literal sense. Russian folk is predominately evident throughout many of the abstractions and jazz-tinged momentums. They explore dark, creaky corridors, free-form improvisation, and infuse melodically satisfying modalities and stark tonal contrasts, as the ensemble alternates roles on various tracks. Nonetheless, the program proffers a captivating rite of passage.

Anastasia's angelic voice casts sacred ground on the stunning piece, "Nora (dedicated to Evgeny's granddaughter)." She also performs on the Russian stringed-instrument cymbalo that sounds similar to a dulcimer. Firmly rooted in the folk spectrum, Anastasia's exquisite vocals cast notions of a sanctified aura and sparsely populated by Arkady Shilkloper's solemn Alpine horn lines, generating depth and a perception of distance that layers a broad aural experience into a tantalizing folk-ballad. And Evgeny Masloboeva's understated percussion implementations add a subliminal pace to the proceedings. He implicates a degree of regimentation, combined with an unobstructed view, enabling the piece to breath amid a sense of antiquity and reverence that shades the hallowed vibe. Indeed, a superlative listening experience on many musical fronts.