DAMON SHORT
Go Figure
NWCD0231
Tracks: Permutation/ Go Figure/ Old School/ Anesthesiology/ Flag Day/Gardens of Perception/Anthem
Time: 73:05
Personnel: Damon Short (drums, vibes), Paul Scea (soprano, alto & tenor saxophones, bass clarinet), Paul Smoker (trumpet), Ryan Shultz (bass trumpet), Jim Yanda (guitar), Larry Kohut (bass), Chuck Burdelik (alto, tenor & baritone saxophones)
Recording: November, 1997; engineer: David Baker

CHRISTOPHER ADLER TRIO
Transcontinental
NWCD0262
Tracks: Aloft/Akash/Transcontinental
Personnel: Christopher Adler (piano), Alan Lechusza (woodwinds), Vikas Srivastava (drums)
Time: 61:08
Recording: January, 2001; engineer: Christopher Adler

KEN FILIANO
Subvenire
NWCD0223
Tracks: Water Down Stone/Breathingdreaming/Relay/Lucerne/Non Seequitir/Tangram/Without Words/Crucible-Woman/ Dancing Shadows
Time: 58:44
Personnel: Ken Filiano (bass, bells)
Recording: January, 2002; engineer: Wayne Peet

VINNY GOLIA
Feeding Frenzy - Music for Woodwinds and String Quartet
NWCD0229
Tracks: Title Sequence/She's Joan Raymond/Things The Dobsons Could Have Taught Us/Biograph/Did I Forget To Mention That?/Death of The Tremelo/Bare-Handed Cricket Catch/Oil For The Burning Fires/Subtrafuge/When Elephants Then Come Waltzing Throught Your Living Room Time: 77:53
Personnel: Vinny Golia (woodwinds), Harry Scorzo (violin), Ludvig Girldand (violin), Jonas Tauber (cello), Ken Filiano (bass)
Recording: January, 2002; engineer: Wayne Peet

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over a quarter century ago multi-woodwind artist Vinny Golia, a New Yorker transplanted to Los Angeles, began 9 Winds records as a method of increasing the public awareness of not only his own music, but that of a small group of west coast compatriots. With kindred spirits such as Roberto Miguel Miranda, Eric von Essen, Wayne Peet, Nels and Alex Cline, Steve Adams, Rich Halley and Michael Pierre Vlatkovich, the label began a steady and prodigious documentation of a scene as vibrant and active as it was unheralded. Golia's original intention was to release his own original music, but the label soon expanded to feature stellar releases by many in his orbit, most of which may have gone unheard or had a much longer route to being released to the public.

After 125 releases the project has by now grown considerably past Golia's initial vision, and we're all the richer for it. Of the latest crop the reunion recording of Damon Short's "national sextet" was produced indepedently by the composer/drummer, who had been searching in vain for a label expressing interest, and pianist Christopher Adler recorded and released "Transcontinental" as a very limited edition CD-R on his own Black Phone label. Bassist Ken Filiano's long-awaited solo recording and Golia's setting of his own woodwinds against a unique string quartet were projects conceived exclusively for the 9 Winds label.

Composers who also happen to be drummers often have a hard time gaining recognition for the "composer" part of their job title. When New Yorker Bobby Previte, who is every bit as much composer as drummer/leader, was once asked in an interview to give a rundown of his equipment he refused to talk about which drums or cymbals he used, but said he would be glad to tell what brands of staff paper and pencils he uses, a wonderfully wise-assed summation of the struggle.

Chicago's Damon Short is made of the same stuff as Previte's comment - not only an agile trapsman and technically voracious vibraharpist, he's also one who strives to have his composing and band-leading talents taken seriously. Over the course of the
past fifteen years he's recorded a dozen or so of his own releases, both for his own Depth Perception and for the Chicago-based SouthPort label, that show off his writing, band-leading and improvising to good effect.

"Go Figure" is a reunion of sorts for the band Short terms his "national sextet." This group has been around, with occasional personnel changes, for the better part of a decade, and Short is mighty proud of the talent assembled for these projects, and rightly so. This is an actual working group, not one assembled for a one-off, and it shows in their chemistry and deft handling of the leader’s often-tricky compositions. The bustling front line of Smoker's trumpet (muted as often as not), Shultz' bass trumpet and Scea's winds mesh wonderfully throughout. Some of the best improvising of the disc occurs when they are soloing together, as duos or trios. On "Old School" there's a wonderfully busy duo section for Scea's flute and Smoker's muted trumpet, and the trumpeter and Ryan Shultz tear it up in tandem on "Anesthesiology". Reedsman Chuck Burdelik, who has often worked with Short, joins on this track on baritone sax, expanding an already full horn section.

The disc is a combination of tunes from the band's book of the last several years, joined with the centerpiece of the disc, the 25 minute "Gardens of Perception," written for this recording. "Gardens" develops slowly, but never ponderously, and follows several courses. Beginning with a few minutes of Short's quiet solo vibraharp, the horns introduce a two note motif that brings to mind some of Cecil Taylor's writing, capping the first section with some fine Smoker, first accompanied by the vibes, and finally solo.

The second section brings on a bumping figure for Burdelik's baritone and Scea's bass clarinet that leads to a fine improvised horn collective. Short, having switched to the drums, fires things up considerably under an uncredited alto solo by Burdelik that provides some of the most exciting moments of the date. A responsive Smoker/Shultz duo gives way to the slower third section, which leads off with an introspective pairing of Scea's flute and Jim Yanda's acoustic guitar. Yanda is used rather sparingly throughout the date but the textures of his acoustic guitar are welcomed in such a horn-laden context and he gets off a few swinging solos of his own, as well. The final section, also ushered in by another collective for the horns, features Ryan Shultz' bass trumpet. Shultz is a fulltime bass trumpeter and is out to have the instrument taken seriously on its own terms, not just as an extension of the trumpet or valve trombone. With a timbre that's a little brighter than the valve trombone and with a facility that would make most trumpeters envious, he succeeds.

"Go Figure" does so many things so well and excels on so many different levels it's almost hard to believe that it had to wait five years for release - perhaps the title is a reaction to just that. Regardless of when it was recorded it stands as one of the strongest group statements of the year, from a swinging, intelligent, witty ensemble that should continue to work and record for another decade to come.

San Diego-based pianist Christopher Adler first joined forces with multi-reedist Alan Lechusza as a free improvising duo. "Pleistocene," their duo recording, had been released on Adler's own Black Phone label. It's currently out of print, but slated to be re-released sometime in the near future. "Transcontinental", a recording of Adler's trio with the addition of drummer Vikas Srivastava, was also recorded by the pianist himself at a concert at Los Angeles Harbor College. The initial run of 100 Black Phone CD-Rs having run its course, it's thankfully been picked up by 9 Winds for release, it would have been a shame for it to have gone by the wayside so quickly.

The hour long concert presents three collective improvisations by the trio, and they are truly collective. Althought most of "Akash" is a duo for Adler's piano and Lechusza's flute, during the other pieces very little time passes that all three aren't actively playing together. The 26 minute "Aloft" is divided into two sections, split evenly between Lechusza's appearance on soprano and tenor.

The first half floats soprano and piano on a bed of Srivastava's cymbals. Srivastava loves cymbals and for the first thirteen minutes or so plays nothing but and his fanning hi-hat is prominent throughout the concert. The second section is given over to a passionate statement from Lechusza's tenor. Truth be told, Lechusza may be the most dominant voice of the trio and this recording is a fine showcase for his intense and involved playing on soprano, tenor, baritone and flute. The reedist works with many in the 9 Winds stable and is a member of Vinny Golia's Large Ensemble. His playing on this recording is a revelation. Playing almost continuously throughout, moments such as the later portion of his soprano playing on the first track and the estimable passion of his tenor on the same elevate this concert to something truly special.

Adler's piano keeps up a roiling steady soundscape under the woodwinds throughout. Although the music is freely improvised, it often hovers around one or two tonal centers, possibly an influence of the pianist's studies of Thai and Laotian musics. Adler is very active in these studies and often performs on the khaen, a northeast Thai mouth organ and ranaat ek, the Thai classical xylophone.

Drummer Vikas Srivastava can range from impressionistic cymbal washes to kicking beats, as evidenced on the title track. With his sister Preet, Srivastava helps manage the family-owned Galoka, a San Diego vegetarian restaurant/art gallery/performance space. Galoka has been important to Adler's trio in that it provides a space for them to perform regularly. It's paid off, too - often these free improvisations are so closely knit between the trio's voices that they give the impression of having sprung from compositions. "Transcontinental" is a rewarding release from a strong improvising trio that includes some truly bright moments.

It seems that every time a solo bass recording appears the public treats the idea as a novelty. Despite many masterful solo recordings by bassists as diverse as William Parker, Michael Formanek, Leon Francioli, Dave Holland, Bertram Turetzky and Lyn Seaton, many still act like they've never considered the idea of the bassist as soloist.

The prolific Ken Filiano, a onetime left coaster now transplanted to New York, had been wanting to wax his own solo recital for a long time. Just ask Vinny Golia - he and the bassist had talked about it many times but it hadn't materialized. Finally Golia got tired of talking about it and booked the studio time for the date with a day leftover from his own string quartet recording. Damned good thing he did, too, for "Subvenire" is a towering statement - wide ranging, personal and heartfelt.

One of the first things you'll notice is the sound of the recording, which is nothing short of gorgeous. Engineer Wayne Peet has so fully captured Filiano's huge sound and wide range of timbres that it feels as if the bassist is playing in the same room as the listener. Keep your hand near the equalizer, for the opening tones of "Water Down Stone" are so impossibly deep they might vibrate your subwoofer clear across the living room. Throughout the mic picks up every nuance - Filiano's fingers, bow and breathing.

Filiano is a master of technique - his facility throughout is nothing short of amazing - but music this uniquely personal could never be considered as technical grandstanding. The bassist really does sound as if he's been preparing for years for this single hour. Now that the solo spot has arrived an amazing amount of music pours out, quickly and forcefully. Over the course of the date Filiano wrings just about every sound imaginable from the bass. "Crucible", his own short preamble to Bobby Bradford's piece "Woman" is like a voracious quest to get as much music as possible through the instrument, a contrast to his soulful reading of Bradford's tune, which does indeed seem imbued by Ornette Coleman's "Lonely Woman".

It's tempting to choose the two shortest pieces, the plaintive and droning "Water Down Stone" and the intense "Tangram," both under four minutes, as highlights of the program. The entire set is of a piece, however, and one would be hard put to choose favorites. "Relay" sets up some fast jazz playing, an almost dizzying display, while "Lucerne" contains some beautiful arco ballad playing set over a discreetly overdubbed background. Filiano's work with the bow is beautiful - his intonation spot on with an appealing, woody sound that never comes off as scratchy.

Listening to "Subvenire" it's easy to see why Ken Filiano has been the bassist of choice for so many leaders for over twenty-five years. All the sideman work, however, has been leading up to this one single hour. "Subvenire" is a profoundly personal and moving statement that will leave you drained and reaching for the repeat button.

The label boss has his own turn with "Feeding Frenzy," a densely packed recording that pits Golia's woodwinds against a string quartet, both playing his compositions and improvising. There's plenty of music here - in the vinyl era these 78 minutes would have filled a double LP. Golia's documentation of his own music has always been exhaustive, in settings from solo to ensembles of 35 players. Exhaustive, yes, but never irrelevant or over-indulgent. Grab any four of his recordings, say, his award-winning solo disc, a jazz quartet with Bobby Bradford, Filiano and Alex Cline, a duo with harpist Susan Allen and this disc with strings, and you've barely scratched the surface of his varied output.

For this date Golia "limits" himself to the clarinet and flute families. For him that means bringing only a dozen instruments to the gig. His improvisational fire certainly isn't limited, he plays with the usual mind-boggling technique and ferociousness that has become his trademark. And improvising is clearly his role in this group. For all the complicated writing involved for the strings, Golia's own playing on the date is almost purely improvisation, there are only a few passages in which he is playing parts of the compositions alongside the strings.

The quartet isn't there just to function as a backdrop for the leader - this isn't "Vinny With Strings" - they do their own share of improvising, mostly as a collective but sometimes breaking down into smaller units such as the Scorzo/Filiano duet that begins "Things The Dobsons Could Have Taught Us." As always, Golia is all over all of his instruments, even the piccolo of "Bare-Handed Cricket Catch," and the strings have no problem keeping up as equals. There is so much music on "Feeding Frenzy," so complex and passionate that it practically defies description. This disc is yet another fascinating document of Vinny Golia's wide-ranging and varied output.

For twenty-five years 9 Winds has defied fads and trends to present an exciting array of creative music. Their catalog has quietly grown in stature to significantly document a cross-section of music that may have otherwise gone unheard. With these four exciting releases we can only hope for another twenty-five years.