- Michael Musillami - guitar
- Joe Fonda - double bass
- George Schuller - drums
- Jade Welcoming
- Beijing
- Dazu
- Swedish Fish
- Fragile Forms
- Op-Ed
- Mogao
- Icons
- Pivot
- The Present
- Caterpillar
| Discography of Joe Fonda | 2002 |
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Lineup
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Recorded December 12, 2002.
Released May 27, 2003 by Playscape Recordings [PSR#J121802]
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CD Reviews
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September 1, 2003 by Ken Waxman for Jazzword Quietly, while many people have been distracted by flashier and/or better promoted guitarists, journeyman Michael Musillami has gone his own way and become a distinctive, exemplary stylist. He proves it once again on this 11-track recital by stripping down his accompaniment to that of the classic guitar trio with bass and drums. Of course it helps that the bassist is Joe Fonda, who has worked with everyone from composer Anthony Braxton to guzhengist Xu Fengxia, and the drummer George Schuller, whose list of musical associates range from saxophonist Joe Lovano to bassist Mark Helias. Musillami, whose own playing partners have included basist Mario Pavone and the late multi-woodwind player Thomas Chapin — both of whom are represented by compositions here — is also building up a book. Each one of BEIJING's compositions has been recorded at least once before by the guitarist, usually in a very different setting. Take the title tune, first recorded in 1990, and which celebrates the 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations in that city's Tinanmen Square. Built on a repetitive note patterns and elongated, reverberating lines, Musillami's solo starts andante, then twists itself into a quicker tempo in response to Fonda's rhythmic countermelody and the merest hint of cymbal pressure from Schuller. Soon the guitarist is articulating single-string runs and multi-faceted harmonies, making the strings ring with a sharp, blusy funkiness. Moving from almost literal bell ringing produced by his strings, Fonda then occupies himself with the axe's lowest quadrant, somehow hinting at "Nature Boy" in his solo. Using digital delay to give himself a fuller tone, Musillami relies on a series of diminishing chords to end the piece andante. "Pivot", on the other hand, begins with a frenetic drum solo and wide, resonating guitar overtones until Musillami forces the sounds into silence, then cuts the tempo to a more manageable, loping beat. Fonda and the guitarist toss phrases back-and-forth from their lightest gauge strings, until the plectrumist produces some sliding rock music-like effects and reprises the theme. Fonda's kalimba and Schuller's shaker and bells come into play on "Dazu" and "Swedish Fish" which run right into one another. The unusual instruments are used to expand the color field, rather than novelty however, and are soon put aside. The latter tune's thematic line is spun out with such dexterity by Musillami that during this serpentine piece he practically provides his own accompaniment. Still, his sliding flat-picking is on show without braggadocio, merely to advance the composition, as does Fonda's adagio double-stopping and Schuller's ratascues. Despite the traditional guitar trio setting, for the most part the three avoid the standard round robin of solos. Plus, even if they exhibit prodigious technique on the standard compositions and the few out-and-out pure improvisations, they aren't afraid to swing. Musillami, for instance, may pour many staccato notes into a bar, but thematic development and reprises are always part of his game plan. This way BEIJING should appeal to those who figure Joe Pass's trio efforts were the be-all and end-all of jazz guitar as much as improv fans that appreciate how the trio members can stretch the patterns with minimal distortion, yet still create extraordinary sounds. Reprinted with kind permission of the author. Copyright © 2006 Jazzword and Ken Waxman. All reviews written by Ken Waxman:
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June 25, 2003 by Nils Jacobson for All About Jazz As jazz musicians get older, they tend to get wiser. They also tend to lose a bit of spark, but there's nothing wrong about mellowing with age. (Usually their audience undergoes the very same transitions, which explains quite a bit about the music's demographics, but that's another matter...) In over a decade on wax, Michael Musillami has undergone his share of changes, but nobody will accuse him of going soft. The guitarist has shifted his emphasis away from blazing technique and bop phrasing toward tone and angularity as tools for emotive expression. Less constrained by harmony or the groove, Musillami has entered a realm of abstraction which fuels the fire in an entirely different way. Beijing unites Musillami with bassist Joe Fonda and drummer George Schuller, two familiar musicians who aptly straddle the gap between free improv and standard composition. Of the eleven tunes on the record, the shortest five represent fully improvised material and the rest are originals by Musillami, Mario Pavone, and/or Thomas Chapin (interestingly, all previously recorded). The reduced size of a trio offers greater freedom to step around the usual boundaries, an opportunity eagerly pursued by all three players. Not to slight Schuller's contributions, but Joe Fonda is the catalyst that makes Beijing work. During improvisation, he intuitively nestles into open spaces. When "Swedish Fish" gradually drifts away from its bunchy, angular theme, the bassist takes liberties extending melodic lines, ducking between Musillami's thrusts to provide surprise counterpoint, and working the harmonic crannies the (vertically-minded) guitarist leaves. Maybe it's only a trend of two, but between Mario Pavone and Joe Fonda, Musillami has done his best work. "Op-Ed" (originally from the record of the same name) draws upon Schuller's ability to understate swing. He provides a neural net through which Musillami fires off some of his fleeter shots, stopping and starting around bar lines, twisting along serpentine melodies. The "rhythm section" (such as it is) unites more as a common unit here than elsewhere, reinforcing structure so that the guitarist can run rampant through it. The five sections of free improv on the record don't really draw much attention, since they tend to serve roles as connecting units for the rest, which lies far enough outside convention as it is. They're more color than anything else. But the record as a whole flows remarkably well; while the trio has its pensive moments, these players obviously prefer action. Just as well. Reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2006 All About Jazz and Nils Jacobson. All reviews written by Nils Jacobson: |
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June 25, 2003 by Frank Rubolino for All About Jazz On the highflying Beijing, Michael Musillami sets up shop with a swinging team of sprightly improvisers in bassist Joe Fonda and drummer George Schuller. Musillami gets into an adventuresome mode on this set, and the others enlist for the fun-loving trip. They play mostly original compositions by Musillami or by band members collectively. The music cooks in a stream of relaxed waves. Musillami's delivery has lyrical leanings, but his improvising leaves convention behind to seek haven in more exotic realms. His output peaks with clear sound devoid of electronic fuzziness. Musillami sends out an unadulterated message that is very palatable while maintaining a challenging environment. He excels on the title cut with long, ringing choruses that dance in the air as flickering filaments of light. Fonda and Schuller run with him on this very fast track. They open the set with a short percussive display of freeform interaction and then glide unerringly into their group role. Fonda gets into a consistently motivating groove with a solid, throbbing message; yet he also deviates off course with atypical contributions, particularly in the arco mode. Schuller similarly stirs the pot with a range of rhythmic cadence that maintains a degree of balance countered by off-balance, arrhythmic spurts to push the music in unpredictable directions. For most of this charged session, it appears these musicians are having fun on this joy ride. They jab and poke at each other with playful teasing on "Pivot" and generally exude a sense of delight on most of the spirited tunes. The one exception is the haunting Thomas Chapin piece "The Present," where the mood changes to pensive and the tempo to ballad pace. It offers the chance for Musillami to become an eloquent improviser with tender phraseology and softened interpretations. Moodiness aside, the session sustains the perception of three artists cutting loose with invigorating songs that permit a large dose of self-expression to emerge from the tight group activity. It is a vehicle for improvisers to kick things into a higher gear with enthusiastic, interconnected playing. Musillami, Fonda, and Schuller do just that on this performance that dares you to remain still while the disc is spinning. Reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2006 All About Jazz and Frank Rubolino. All reviews written by Frank Rubolino:
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June 28, 2006 by Cosimo Parisi for Musicboom Il chitarrista Michael Musillami ha una decina di album a proprio nome, per lo più su Playscape, la label che ha deciso di fondare per incidere senza condizionamenti la musica che più gli piace e su cui ha ripubblicato alcune importanti opere che ha inciso in passato insieme al sassofonista Thomas Chapin. Attualmente lavora in trio con il contrabbassista Joe Fonda ed il batterista George Schuller: un gruppo di alto livello che ha firmato un disco - Beijing - cui non mancano le qualità per restare nel tempo. La prima cosa che salta agli occhi è che le composizioni di Musillami (c´è anche la preziosa ballad "The Present" di Chapin e cinque improvvisazioni estemporanee) sono state già incise su altri dischi e con altre formazioni. Qui regna la libertà più assoluta, in quanto si è deciso di togliere le indicazioni di tempo e così di reinventare i temi alla ricerca di strade nuove. I tre sono capaci di praticare con inventiva il linguaggio della tradizione, di suonare su ogni armonia e ogni tonalità, ma anche di scegliere delle vie più innovative per esprimersi, senza frammentare il proprio linguaggio con suoni macerati. Musillami adotta un suono chiaramente elettro-acustico, memore di colleghi e di opere risalenti agli anni sessanta, pensiamo al periodo più creativo di Larry Coryell e John McLaughlin. Joe Fonda, uno dei contrabbassisti più efficaci ed anche simpatici, per chi ha avuto modo di seguirlo dal vivo, del jazz contemporaneo, e George Schuller lo sostengono con precisione ed empatia. Non suscitano mai l´impressione che la materia musicale, per quanto imprevedibile e libera, gli possa sfuggire di mano. Riescono a integrare innovazione e tradizione con grande competenza, grazie alla pratica che hanno su entrambe. Il risultato, ispirato solo nei titoli alla Cina, è un viaggio nei territori di un jazz i cui confini sono dati solo dall´ispirazione del momento. Reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2006 Musicboom and Cosimo Parisi. All reviews written by Cosimo Parisi:
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