Jeremy Pelt: The Art of Intimacy, Vol. 2/His Muse

Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt's album, The Art of Intimacy, Vol. 2, is a hybrid: nearly one-half jazz quartet (quintet on one track), more than the other half quartet with strings. Strangely enough, the strings are nowhere listed on the album jacket, nor are Pelt's colleagues in his quartet. One has to read an accompanying press release from HighNote Records to learn that they are pianist Victor Gould, bassist Buster Williams and drummer Billy Hart (with guitarist Chico Pinheiro added on the last number), or that the string section (size and makeup unknown) is conducted by David O'Rourke.

Assuming there must have been a reason (no matter how unclear) for that, the obvious path forward is to bypass what is relatively unimportant and appraise the music on its own terms. As the album's title suggests, Pelt has chosen to perform a selection of smooth and sensuous ballads, modified solely by subtle changes in mood or tempo. Most are played open, one ("There'll Be Other Times") is muted. On the other hand, considering its placid point of view, the entire album could be deemed "muted" in its own way. That includes Henry Mancini's "Two for the Road," on which Pelt not only plays trumpet but sings (in a voice barely above a whisper) to close the album.

Within those parameters, Pelt plays quite well, as do Gould, Williams and Hart, as each one is a seasoned pro who always brings the best he has to any session, recorded or otherwise. As for the strings, they lend glossy window dressing to their five selections and are otherwise unobtrusive. Pelt's horn is most prominent, as it should be, while everyone else lends stalwart support. As most of the songs (including a pair by Pelt) are relatively unfamiliar, he avoids one pitfall, that of overworking themes his audience may have heard too many times before.

Besides "Two for the Road," songs that may jog the memory include Mancini's "Slow Hot Wind" and Leslie Bricusse's "If I Ruled the World." Pelt wrote the opener, ..."For Whom I Love So Much," and "Blues in Sophistication." If ballads are your thing, The Art of Intimacy should be agreeable and heartwarming. If you're a Pelt fan who prefers jazz that snaps and sizzles, you'll have to bide your time until he changes course.