ZBIGNIEW
NAMYSLOWSKI QUINTET
"Kuyaviak Goes Funky"
One
of the best, though short-lived groups led by Namyslowski was the
1974-76 Quintet with Karolak, Szukalski, Jarzebski and Bartkowski. These
excellent jazzmen were lucky to record, in March 1975, rather unusual
music by Namyslowski: the highly original pieces that sparked again the
touchy problem of Polish folklore presence in jazz. Namyslowski had
already earlier intrigued sensitive listeners with his probably
unconscious infusing into his music some characteristics of the Polish
Mountainers' folklore ("Siodmawka","Piatawka"),but
only now this side of his creative imagination showed itself so
strongly. The centerpiece of this record is the three-movement title
composition in 15/8 meter. Here we can enjoy contrasting tempos and
moods, mediations and chantings, bass ostinatos, obstinate shifting of
two chords, and, in the last section, rock-like repetitive
rhythm-patterns, moving back into pensive, melancholy chants that
finally fade away to end the piece. But even here the folk colouring
stems not form any methodical background studies or intentions.
Namyslowski simply allows his musical nature to pronounce itself freely,
and exactly such a spontaneity is what makes it precious from the jazz
standpoint. In "Sad Little Johnny", the first pastoral section
is followed by the busy funk rhythms and free sax improvisations. Also
in the "Quiet Afternoon" the prolongued and beautiful
immersion in poetic meditation finds its momentary contrast in the
ragged alto solo, backed by electric piano and drums, after which the
music returns to the dreamy mood. "Little Lamb Lost" strayed
obviously somewhere in the Polish Tatra Mountains, for in spite of rock
rhythms (even with their help) the motifs and scales of Podhale region
are very much evident.
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