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Heiner Stadler
Jazz Alchemy(Labor Records)
Jazz sometimes bridged a gap between itself and the world of the classical avant-garde. It could straddle the two evenly, or move one side closer to the other. A decidedly jazz-heavier 'bridging' occurred in 1975 when composer Heiner Stadler released his suite titled Jazz Alchemy.
Stadler created two suites of music, "Jazz Alchemy" and "Three Problems," and interspersed the five movements from the latter with the six from "Alchemy," almost like a double helix. Beyond this methodology came his choice of instrumentation and its application. For "Alchemy" he used bass, drum and trumpet, itself a rarity in jazz trio history, and one made unique when trumpeter Charles McGhee brandished two horns at once. For "Problems" he alternated between solo piano and a jazz piano-bass duo, the latter featuring Marilyn Crispell and Reggie Workman in pieces attuned with the free jazz of Cecil Taylor but where structure was more readily discernible.
"Alchemy" especially grabs listeners with its varying rhythms, each of which—a walking bass of bebop, a 'rock' line, a double-tempo stride through the avant-garde, and some off the wall Latin—provide the foundation for skilled soloing and interplay among McGhee, bassist Richard Davis, and drummer Brian Brake. Each alchemical jazz work, in turn, is framed by the piano or piano-bass excursions of "Problems."
Musicianship, instrumentation, and the interweaving of European and jazz are the tools of Stadler's creativity. This reissue, marking the revival of "Labor Records," is proof that as a composer and visionary Stadler had few equals and that his music, made for deep listening and not a mere casual encounter, is compelling.
— Jules Epstein, Oct 2000
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last update 2 October 2000