COMPOSERS: Joachim Kühn,Majid Bekkas
LABELS: ACT
ALBUM TITLE: Joachim Kühn
PERFORMER: Joachim Kühn (piano, sax), Majid Bekkas (guembri, oud, kalimba, vocals), Ramon Lopez (drums)
CATALOGUE NO: ACT 9456-2
Despite his conventional classical training and immersion in the tepid bath of Eurojazz, Joachim Kühn’s projects are rarely predictable. This CD is the only recording of Berber-influenced jazz played by an East German, a Spaniard and a Moroccan in my collection!
What prevents it from being one too many is the avoidance of the soup-like homogeneity that often befalls ethno-jazz. There’s no dilution of any of the traditions involved; rather, their compatible elements are knitted with a sense of timing that makes the whole highly listenable.
The combination of the usual ACT sonic standards with the production skills of? Walter Quintus produces an immaculate listening experience. It loses a star here and there, however, for being slightly too mannered in both directions; refer to percussionist Trilok Gurtu’s classic Kathak?for an edgier take on a comparable theme. Roger Thomas