Verve
2005
Improvisie
About This Album
Recorded in 1971 for the French America Recording label, Improvisie captures pianist Paul Bley, Annette Peacock, and master percussionist Han Bennink in concert in Rotterdam. Bley plays electric piano and synthesizer here, with Peacock playing both electric and acoustic piano, synthesizer, and electric bass as well as singing. There are two pieces on the set, the elegiac title cut, which is nearly 14 minutes in length, and the much more adventurous "Touching," which is nearly 24. On "Improvisie," elements of jazz phrasing and harmony usher in the piece haltingly, purposefully, almost reverently. A melody asserts itself from the ether, decorated by Bennink's hushed use of multiple percussion instruments and Peacock's accents on the theme itself. Tones and harmonic fragments whisper their way into the mix, governed by a crystalline use of spatial dynamics. Even as Bennink ups the ante with his instruments, Bley and Peacock dance very slowly through their interaction. It isn't until the six-and-a-half-minute mark where things begin to get atonal and angular, but even here, space is the key to expression. The unhurried procession of tones and colors makes the piece, no matter how strange and ethereal it gets, feel purposeful and accessible in its exploration.
Track List (try track 1)

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