Liebman/Hart/Rudolph

Making a virtue out of novelty rather than noise, this live set finds a trio of veteran improvisers adroitly melding percussion variables with a saxophone’s strong melodic undercurrent. Refined noises come into play though because two of the three players are percussionists. Billy Hart sticks to the standard kit, while Adam Rudolph’s idiophone arsenal encompasses hand drums, congas, djembe, tarija, dakha de bello, thumb piano and gongs as well as piano, keyboards plus, electronic and processing. Meanwhile linear development come from Dave Liebman soprano saxophone and wood flute mastery.

Novelty is present because while Hart and Rudolph have individually played with Liebman, Beingness is the first time both have worked together in any configuration. Rudolph is known for leading the Go: Organic Orchestra, while Liebman and Hart have since the 1970s led their own bands as well as collaborating with jazz avatars such as Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock. The disc highlights further creativity since on the saxophonist’s urging Rudolph added more electronic processing in post-production.

Midpoint connected “Intent” and “Pathways” demonstrate how comprehensively the organic and oscillations blend. Blunt hand drumming which emphasizes skin and plastic-like surfaces intersect with measured bass drum smacks and gentling reed flutters throughout. As the processing doubles saxophone output, its timbres connect to idiophone punches and then hard cymbal crashes. A penultimate shift to percussion splashes and ruffs is eventually cut off by a banshee-like reed cry, an interlude which marks how the rhythmic architecture eventually can give way to quieter continuous palm pressure.

These aren’t isolated instances either for throughout the disc acoustic interaction expressed by simple motions such as single triangle pings or steel drum-like echoes are strengthened not only by full kit cadences and rolls, but also given added impetus when slides and pumps are inflated with electronic oscillations. Meanwhile Liebman’s reed smears, squeaks and slurs are given a wider sonic canvas for subtle story-telling, confirmed on “Transparence to Transcendence” as Rudolph’s piano chords accompany an instance of the saxophonist’s balladic interpretation.

Never undermining with voltage the inspiration and mastery that go into uniting these practiced acoustic timbres for the first time, subtle post production adds another dimension to the program. Distinctively this makes Beingness stand out from many of the other projects that have featured the three players in different combinations.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. Unfolding 2. Transmutation 3. Intent 4. Pathways 5. Beingness 6. Refractions 7. Transparence to Transcendence 8. Remembering the Future 9. Mystique 5:21

Personnel: Dave Liebman (soprano saxophone, wood flutes); Billy Hart (drum) and Adam Rudolph (hand drum set – kongos, djembe, tarija, piano, thumb pianos, keyboards, gongs, dakha de bello, live electronic processing, percussion.