Ken Waxman hat sich die außerordentliche Mühe gemacht und drei CDs besprochen, auf denen insgesamt neun (!) Posaunisten am Werk sind - und sonst niemand! Hier der Ausschnitt, bei dem es um das "Posaunenglanzterzett" geht. Der gesamte Artikel ist auf www.jazzword.com nachzulesen.
"Any one of these CDs could easily answer the question: “how many
trombonists does it take to change a light bulb?” Substitute “improvise
impressively” for the action and the answer becomes: “as many as
needed”. At the same time, the four Americans, three Germans and two
Italians represented on these sessions demonstrate that brass ‘bone
creativity can be doubled and/or tripled.
...
Many of these same brass strategies are exhibited, often at
breakneck pace, in the Bauer-Müller-Thewes capillary meeting. Each
player too has extensive experience Müller with bands featuring the
likes of guitarist Olaf Rupp and trumpeter Nils Ostendorf; Thewes with
bands including pianists Ulrich Gumpert and Uwe Oberg; and Bauer with
everyone from saxophonist Evan Parker to drummer Roger Turner.
There are points here at which it seems that the combo from a
rickety-tick minstrel show has suddenly decided to try out some of Vinko
Globokar tougher trombone exercises. That’s because some tunes balance
on a swinging beat created by a slide ostinato, as soloists compete to
see who can blow the loudest and strongest. Renal growls, staccatissimo
jitters, triple-tonguing smears, whinnies and staccato bites are all
heard. Affiliated, but not in unison, the resulting textures can be half
fire engine siren and half euphonious whine, before finally reaching a
point where singular smears collide. Elsewhere the collective bass notes
are such that subterranean tones are lower pitched than anything pulled
from the tubas on the other CDs; other times long-lined puffs stack up
into brassy bugle-like fanfares.
Passing the narrative among all three trombonists, the session’s
layered tour-de-force is the aptly named “Quintessence”. Taken at a
breakneck pace, the oscillations and multiphonics frequently meld into a
dense mass. But despite the solid mass, individual timbres are still
audible. As the intermezzo intensifies, combinations of trios, duos and
solos are tried out, as are a nuanced collection of extended techniques.
For instance two ‘bonemen harmonize as the third develops a solo out of
air bubbled through the horn’s body tube without slide or valve
motions. Multiphonics take the form of unattributed clicking sounds,
animal-like yelps, drum stick approximating rattles or old-timey
tailgate-styled slurs. Bravura in execution, nephritic buzzes are heard
along with split-tone variations on the theme which become more staccato
as it develops. Finally the three join in mellow, good-humored
tessitura which extends without rigidity into a powerful finale.
If trombone sounds pull your slide, than you should be in brass
heaven with any or all of these CDs. At the same time each confirms that
the right players can create an enthralling recital with only the
timbres available from multiple brass instruments."
--Ken Waxman
