Chamber Music: Melos

Melos
By Vassilis Tsabropoulos, Anja Lechner, and U.T. Gandhi
ECM Records 2048

What is chamber music? Most definitions speak of small ensembles playing intimate music, with only one instrument per part (as opposed to section play in symphony orchestras or big bands). Stylistically, it is frequently, but not exclusively associated with classical idioms. Given the classical backgrounds and improvisational facility of Greek pianist Vassilis Tsabropoulos and German cellist Anja Lechner, chamber music is an appropriate rubric for consideration of their latest collaboration, Melos.

Melos ventures deepest into jazz terrain when Tsabropoulos and Lechner are joined by Italian jazz drummer U.T. Gandhi (originally Umberto Trombetta), whose jazz credits include work with Lee Konitz and Enrico Rava. His shimmering cymbals work propels selections like “Vocalese,” which features the closest example to a traditional improvised jazz piano solo from the composer.

Other times, when Tsabropoulos and Lechner play as a duo, Melos fits more easily into a classical chamber bag, though it is a hauntingly elegant one. The pianist’s opening title composition is one such case. As are his concluding “Evocation” and “In Memory.” Darkly hued, but performed and recorded with eerie clarity, they have an austere beauty.

While the majority of the program consists of Tsabropoulos’s originals, the musicians do interpret three compositions by the controversial Armenian spiritualist G.I. Gurdjieff (arranged by Lechner and Tsabropoulos, based on piano transcriptions by Thomas de Hartmann), which lend an exotic vibe to the session. “Tibetan Dance” and “Sayyid Dance” have a more pronounced rhythmic drive thanks to Gandhi’s cymbal work, whereas as on “Readings from a Sacred Book,” he adds subtle color to the evocative tone poem.

While Melos might blur genres, the music is not at all abstract or diffuse. The melodies are strong, even catchy at times, like the insistent “Reflections and Shadows,” or the rhapsodic “Gift of Dreams.” With similar backgrounds (like Tsabropoulis and Lechner’s classical training, and Lechner and Gandhi’s experience playing jazz-influenced tango with Dino Saluzzi) the three musicians clearly share a high degree of rapport, resulting in music that is sophisticated, but also deeply resonate.

Duo: Saluzzi & Lechner

The Americas Society makes its home in a stately McKim, Mead & White building that once housed the Soviet delegation to the UN. If the previous landlords left behind any listening devices, they heard some incredible music from Dino Saluzzi and Anja Lechner in the Society’s Simón Bolivar Room Saturday night.

The Americas Society and ECM Records were celebrating the launch of Dino Saluzzi and Anja Lechner’s American tour, supporting their new release Ojos Negros. Saluzzi hails from Argentina and his instrument is the bandoneón. As one might expect, the tango is a pronounced influence on his work, but there are substantial measures of classical, folk and jazz as well. His bandoneón merges with German Anja Lechner’s violoncello to form a striking blend of chamber music.

In an interview segment preceding the performance, the host asked Saluzzi to categorize his music, to which Saluzzi first replied, simply: “it’s music.” To the same question, Lechner’s clever and diplomatic response was: “it’s Dino’s music.”

The music they made was indeed quite beautiful—romantic but also stark in its intimacy. While Saluzzi and Lechner may not improvise in a jazz sense during their duets, no two performances are the same. There are indeed subtle changes in phrasing and dynamics, which makes it fascinating to watch and listen to them as they play.

As dramatic as their music is, seeing them in performance makes clear how much they enjoy playing together, with Saluzzi even breaking into laughter before their second selection. It is moments like that which can really shed insight into a musician’s work that one only receives by attending live performances.

Fortunately, there will be ample opportunity to hear Saluzzi and Lechner live. The tour officially begins on the West Coast the 18th. They will be back in the City performing at Merkin on the 24th (Miami on the 25th, etc.). Touring these international musicians must take quite some coordinating, so take advantage of the opportunity if they are in your town.