William Parker/Hugo Costa/Phillipp Ernsting

Having spent his career playing with musicians internationally including saxophonists such as Peter Brötzmann and David S Ware and drummers like Hamid Drake, it’s no surprise that New York bassist William Parker joined alto saxophonist Hugo Costa and drummer Philipp Ernsting, who usually work as a duo, to create this vibrant trio. Similarly, and not surprisingly, again his improvisational skills adhere impeccably to the musical qualities of this long-constituted twosome.

Both Rotterdam based, although Costa is Portuguese and Ernsting German, part of this clear amalgamation is that both operate in the same free jazz milieu as Parker. The drummer, who also recorded the session, has been part of the Kinematic Ensemble, while the saxophonist has recorded with fellow Lusitanians like Rodrigo Pinheiro.

In sync during three ever freer improvisations, with each track subsequent briefer than the preceding one, the trio mostly explores sequences that in part depend on Parker’s guitar-like facility with string throbs and power pumps. Added are Ernsting’s cymbal accents and percussion skills ranging from heavy backbeats to the equivalent of drum top tap dancing, plus Costa’s reed motifs including upwards smears, seemingly endless linear vibrations and harsh tongue stops.

Still, the concluding “Words Of Freedom” stands out even more because of Parker’s instrumental adaptability. Backed by the snaps, crackles and pops from the drummer, the saxophonist and Parker playing bamboo flute or shakuhachi create a closely breathed wind duet where light slide-whistle-like peeps slither around ever tauter and heavier saxophone strains and cries. The contrapuntal result evolves perfectly until it blends with Ernsting’s measured clip clops.

Stentorian thumps mark the bassist’s solid contributions throughout. Mostly concluding with horizontal reciprocity, the others pieces, especially the over 22½-minute title track leave enough space for note-bending pitch expressions, undulating squeals, squawks and stutters. Even as the exposition gets speedier, torqued by angled spiccato bass lines and thick press rolls, string strums and cymbal dings join with toneless reed breaths to smear the extemporizations back to a thematic conclusion.

Parker’s myriad commitments probably preclude extensive work in this trio. But on the evidence here it’s a configuration that deserves an encore.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. Pulsar 2.  Fogo em Escalada 3. Words Of Freedom

Personnel: Hugo Costa (alto saxophone); William Parker (bass and bamboo flutes or shakuhachi) and Philipp Ernsting (drums)