Label: Luaka Bop, 2021
Personnel - Sam Shepherd: piano, harpsichord, celesta, Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, Oberheim 4 voice, Oberheim OB-Xa, Solina String Ensemble, Therevox ET-4.3, EMS Synthi, ARP 2600, Buchla 200e, string writing, string arrangments; Pharoah Sanders: tenor saxophone, voice; London Symphony Orchestra: strings.
The legendary tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, an icon of the free jazz and an advocate of spiritual communion in music, works with the British electronic musician/producer Floating Points (Sam Shepherd) and the notable century-old London Symphony Orchestra on Promises, which signals his first release in more than a decade. This 46-minute nine-movement suite reveals a quiet nature and an irresistible sense of longing and veneration for the heavenliness.
The first movement sets the tone with a beautiful sequence of sparse chords timely arpeggiated with harpsichord, piano and synth. We recognize some ethnic influence that drowns us into the immensity of a luminous, intimate and transcendental stasis. This soft texture becomes a template throughout the record, where shifting layers of orchestration and incredibly apt electronics drape it, providing a different feel for each movement. There’s something hypnotizing in this minimalistic yet constantly deepening procedure that brings Philip Glass to mind.
Clearly enjoying the ambiance, Sanders contributes tenor pleas expressed with calmness, gratitude and empathic spirituality. The tapestries under his feet become thicker with instrumentation, and if there’s a slight dissonant charisma building up tension on “Movement II”, then the following tracks are intelligently embroidered with strings, synth, organ, vocals, and lovely electronic hooks.
Now, no movement reaches the heights of “Movement VI”, a fascinating journey graced with a hair-raising orchestration whose emotional response can easily bring tears to our eyes. In an opposing manner, “Movement VII” accommodates a larger quantity of insistent drones and keyboard patterns, leading Sanders to blow his tenor with the ecstatic circularity and fervent intensity, hallmarks of his style. Here, he has a myriad of electronic elements fluttering around him.
Although less possessed by the giant saxophonist’s improvisational flair, Promises is easier to consume than his free jazz romps of other times. It’s a beautiful work, fruit of an inter-generational collaboration that should be welcomed by each and every jazz, classical and ambient music fan.
Grade A-
Favorite Tracks:
05 - Movement 5 ► 06 - Movement 6 ► 07 - Movement 7