This a fresh and refreshingly enjoyable album from Terence Collie successfully juxtaposing classical music, jazz and poetry and does so without resorting to cliché and avoiding the pitfalls that can blight such ambitious endeavours.
Available on LP, CD & Digital Download from tcollie.co.uk
Terence Collie – Piano, Composition, Poetry; Nick Lenner-Webster – Double bass; Ted Carrasco – Drums
Clare Kennington – Violin; Samuel Kennedy – Viola; Jocasta Mudge – Cello
Jim Trimmer – Reader
As a follow up to Collie’s solo piano album Reminiscent, this is quite a departure and a rather beautiful one at that. An ambitious work that combines strings, jazz trio and spoken word, Collie has juggled all three magnificently in a set that flows seamlessly throughout.
Taking his inspiration from Air, Earth, Fire and Water the music is as interesting and diverse as the Elements it draws from. There is a solid feel to the way in which the trio interact, and the writing for the string section always features something of interest.
The opening ‘Air’ sets the standard for how the music is to progress, firstly the strings followed by the trio, and then Collie’s poetry read by Jim Rimmer. The music has a lyrical flow and a gentle swing that is most engaging, and pianist continues this trait through ‘Earth’ and intense and the dynamic ‘Fire’ push hard and swing mightily. It is in this track that we really get to hear Collie stretch out with a fine solo that is wonderfully lyrical despite the tempo, and the power of the bass and drums nudging at his heels.
This increase in intensity comes at just the right moment and breaks the mould of the first two compositions. Collie is also present during Rimmer’s reading of the poetry providing a solo piano commentary that compliments the words perfectly.
Continuing to break up the music and avoid any sense of a formulaic process within the suite, ‘Water’ is the first composition to bring strings and jazz trio together. Whereas the opening two pieces followed the same structure of three separate entities with string trio, piano trio and then spoken word, here we find the two working together briefly that again brings a new texture and feeling to the writing. This is expanded on yet further in the closing movement ‘Elements’ that brings the jazz trio and strings together in a gloriously realised composition.
This a fresh and refreshingly enjoyable album from Terence Collie successfully juxtaposing classical music, jazz and poetry and does so without resorting to cliché and avoiding the pitfalls that can blight such ambitious endeavours.
