Superb Compositions & Performances
Daniel E. Ursini | Chicago, IL (USA) | 02/16/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Ambition, and taste, adventurousness and self-awareness, rarely occur all at once within the mind of any given artist - much less within three musicians, each formidably accomplished and gifted. Yet that is the case with,"Scatter," by Manring, Kassin, Darter (MKD), a live album of a dozen originals recorded live in San Francisco. Each of the trio has an enviable reputation as an instrumentalist: Michael Manring is arguably the finest bass guitarist of his generation; Tom Darter is one of contemporary piano's most resourceful thinkers; flutist Larry Kassin is profoundly skilled at assaying the full range of sounds available to his instrument. Yet on this CD, MKD focuses on playing which best serves the compositions; one of which Manring authored; the others are divided between Kassin and Darter. They are as tight a group as any active today; the supple cohesiveness of their playing is sometimes breathtaking. The result is music that challenges while remaining intoxicatingly listenable.
Empathy is central to MKD; that is clarified by the virtuosic ensemble playing; and by the compositions, many of which which regard the natural world with both spiritual dignity and sly humor. Of course, the soloes are memorable; thoughout the CD, each musician takes off on his own beautifully. Michael Manring performs a number of unaccompanied soloes that showcase a style which profoundly refresh the possibilities of the bass guitar. He bring to his instrument the sensibilities of the pocket symphonist. Larry Kassin conveys a gorgeous sense of melody through his flute playing. He betrays an exceptionally open mind. In his playing you can hear traces, truly, of most every culture where the flute is played. The same is true for his songs which comfortably nest allusions to many kinds of world music, especially that of Eastern Asia. Tom Darter plays the piano with the confidence and concision of a musician fully in control of his powers. His compositions are startling. He exemplifies the paradox of the truly brilliant thinker who makes use of obvious possibilities that nobody else hears. Many of Darter's compositional ideas focus on the truthful representation of centrifugal energies; those unwinding rhythms so central to nature like the scattering breeze depicted in the title song. As with Kassin's compositions, those by Darter are developed with a completeness more often found in suites. There is a terrific sense of psychic journeying in all of his songs - especially,"Eubie Blake on Mars." Darter is an exponent of America's proud tradition of musical mavericks- reaching back to Thelonius Monk; and to Charles Ives."
Best of the best solo artists
Paul A. Jones | Livermore, Ca USA | 10/28/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I had no idea what to expect from a trio like Manring, Kassin and Darter. I know that their solo work and musical backgrounds are very different. So, when I saw them live at the Noe Valley Ministry, in SF where they performed the Scatter soundtrack, I was blown away. As a fellow bass player, Michael Manring, is as good as it gets. The guy is amazing: part Jaco, part Stanley, part Hendrix, but truly unique. The scary thing is that Larry and Tom keep up and exceed in their own ways with songs like "Chicago Picasso". The recording is live but has great audio quality.So, if you want to hear something very different than the typical modern jazz CD, take a listen to this! It gets better everytime I play it."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1