Lucerne

Both a reunion and in some ways a resurrection, Lucerne not only reunites three out of the four members of Switzerland’s OM band, but was one of the first concerts soprano saxophonist Urs Leingruber was featured six months after his successful lung transplant. At the same time the four live improvisations aren’t an exercise in OM nostalgia. That quartet featuring Leingruber, guitarist Christy Doran, bassist Bobby Burri and percussionist Fredy Studer (1948-2022) was Switzerland’s most prominent jazz-rock band during its initial iteration from 1972-1982.

However all three have become more invested in improvised music since them, the saxophonist most prominently solo and with Barre Phillips and Jacques Demierre; the bassist with the likes of Tim Berne and solo; and the guitarist with John Wolf Brennan and Steve Argülles. Adding to this CD’s emphasis on adroit extemporaneous sounds are two other Swiss innovators: drummer Fritz Hauser, who partnered with the likes of Sergio Armaroli and Joëlle Léandre; and accordionist Tizia Zimmerman, who has worked with, among others, Burkhard Beins and Lucas Niggli.

Using so-called devices Doran’s and Burri’s timbral characteristics have also evolved to append buzzes, burbles and pressures, which suggest brief, processed synthesizer and keyboard interludes and hook up with the accordionist’s wavering reverberations and unexpected stops. As well Hauser usually avoids solid blowing, instead extending emphasis via press rolls, indirect shuffles and single cymbal pops.

Now not guitar focused the four improvisations’ direction mostly depend on Leimgruber’s biting reed squeaks, twitters and flutters as well as Zimmerman’s wailing shudders, keyboard slides and slippery tremors. This is most  obvious on the first part of the protracted “#4” where shrill saxophone split tones are involved in a duet with low-pitched accordion wavers  as the exposition moves from andante to presto, culminating with Leimburger’s turn to lyricism backed by Zimmerman’s pulsating solid sheets of sound.

Meanwhile arco buzzes and percussive strums and guitar flanges periodically combine to confirm that this turn from fusion doesn’t lead to fragility. Similarly Doran sporadically mates his string twangs with drum rustles and/or accordion bellows stretches to intensify the narratives with group projections.

Attaining a climax in the set’s penultimate minutes, the quintet manages to extend its reach to prove that drama and dynamics can be projected skillfully with measured group improv without resorting to overt sonic aggression.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. #1 2.  #2  3.  #3  4.  #4.

Personnel: Urs Leimgruber (soprano saxophone); Tizia Zimmerman (accordion); Christy Doran (guitar and devices); Bobby Burri (bass and devices) and Fritz Hauser (drums and percussion)