Search - Modern Jazz Quartet :: Third Stream Music

Meeting of Divergent Minds

Robert Tavis | Highland Village, Texas USA | 02/28/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Third Stream Music is a foray into the crossover between jazz and classical music but done without creating an artificial or forced merger. If modern music has the connotation of being dissonant and cacophonous then there is none of that here. This album represents a unique musical statement that is very compelling and successful because of the talents of both the MJQ and particularly Gunther Schuller. Schuller is pre-eminently qualified to embark on a project like this because of his vast knowledge of musical history, his strong background as a horn player himself and his great respect and love of jazz.



The urge to meld jazz and classical music has a long tradition as the many composers of each both seek to explore new territory in a quest to keep the genres fresh by creating a new form that conflates the best of the two worlds. The differences between the two are basically that classical music has a long tradition of being frozen through notated scores and jazz being freer through heavy reliance on improvisation. Perhaps superficially one is cerebral and the other coming from the gut and more emotional. There are other distinctions as well in terms of technique, instrumentation and rhythmic structures but certainly not enough differences to make them incompatible if handled correctly as is done with these pieces.



To a musician and/or a composer both genres offer compelling reasons to blur the distinctions that may exist. Scott Joplin wanted Ragtime to be recognized as a classical form and Debussy was enamored by American jazz and did several compositions influenced by Ragtime music. George Gershwin was strongly influenced by jazz and its influence appears in many of his works. There are numerous examples also of jazz musicians who drew heavily from classical music mostly because many of them received their earliest musical training in classical music.



The two pieces on the album that represent this merger best are "Sketches" and "Conversation," combining the MJQ with the Beaux Arts Strng Quartet. In the classical music world all of the pieces would be considered chamber music. "Da Capo," and "Fine," combine the MJQ with the Jimmy Guiffre trio consisting of clarinet, guitar and double bass. These two pieces are probably the most improvised on the album and were both done in one take in the same recording session. It happens in music that the chemistry between the compositions, the players and the instruments is such that perfect little timeless jewels emerge. Oftentimes even the musician's themselves are surprised at what they have created. Such is the case with Third Stream Music.



So what does one come away with listening to these compositions? Certainly the improvisation is there as well as the structure of classical music. The instruments all complement each other and nothing seems out of place, forced or superfluous. Although only one composition is entitled "Conversation," I think that the whole album is a respectful conversation between two genres that manage to lay aside their differences and concentrate on what they have to offer each other through the skillful performances of the players. The integrity of the compositions is such that one does not feel that either genre is overpowering the other but instead work harmoniously together which is what music is fundamentally all about.



I first listened to this music when it was on vinyl back in the 1970's and hearing it again on CD it is still as fresh and as valid as it was when it first appeared. It has its place in any library of good music."