Barry Guy / London Jazz Composers Orchestra - Three Pieces for Orchestra

1997 CD release.

Departing from a tradition of releases containing single, long compositions, Barry Guy presents three separate works here, one featuring pianist Marilyn Crispell and one free vocalist Maggie Nicols, though he argues in the liner notes that they all could be considered part of a single "concerto grosso." The first track, "Owed to J.S.," is a punning homage to John Stevens, founder of the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, several members of which resided in the LJCO. It's a strong, jagged work with staccato horn passages and rumbling rhythms interspersed with numerous freely improvised sections, the musicians grouped, as is Guy's wont, into mini-ensembles within the orchestra. Of the three works on this disc, it's the closest in character and spirit to other LJCO albums.

"Sleeping Furiously," featuring Crispell, is a quieter, bleaker affair. Her own playing is strong, but there's a slight sense of disjointedness -- unusual for Guy -- that, except for some of the concluding section, doesn't allow his underlying romantic nature to come through as often as one might wish. Appreciation of the concluding composition will depend entirely upon one's toleration for the avant-garde vocal stylings of Maggie Nicols. Interpreting poems of Crispell, she twitters, shrieks, putters, and screeches, in general utilizing the "traditional" free vocalist arsenal. The orchestral accompaniment largely matches Nicols' approach with scattershot blasts and squiggles. Not nearly up to the heights of LJCO gems such as Theoria or Harmos, Three Pieces for Orchestra has certain rewards and is worth owning for "Owed to J.S." alone.

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