NativeDSD Blog
Harmen Fraanje is a pianist-composer who, in recent years, has become more widely known outside of the Netherlands through his festival appearances and recordings on the ECM label with Norwegian composer- bassist Mats Eilertsen. Fraanjeโs earlier dates for Challenge Jazz, both as a leader (โSonatalaโ) and sideman (Eric Vloeimansโ โBoom Petitโ), set the stage for a new recording under his leadership, โFirst Meetingโ.
Jazz musicians forge a personal style first by imitation, then by elimination. Harmen Fraanjeโs style, shaped by his studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, reflects an interest in extending back through the traditions of jazz and classical music, and forward into new directions. In Fraanjeโs compositions, jazz phrasing and rhythm are refracted through the prism of a modern melodic sensibility. Now in his early 40s, Fraanje has a sound of his own, and you wonโt mistake him for his keyboard contemporaries.
One of the virtues of โFirst Meetingโ is the careful sequencing which connects the first six tracks of the album; the effect is of a coherent musical suite. The intensity of the opening track โSeveralโ is balanced by bassist Clemens van der Feenโs meditative piece for trio and clarinet โBread of Lifeโ, which flows seamlessly into Fraanjeโs deceptively tranquil โPiโ for unaccompanied piano. Fraanjeโs arrangement of Carla Bleyโs composition, โIda Lupinoโ is followed by a โFadeโ, a short interlude that bridges into the pastoral โA Small Ray of Lightโ.
In the second half of the album, the music takes on a harder edge and a darker emotional hue. American drummer Tristan Renfrow is the featured soloist on โXYZโ, a showpiece for subtle execution of intricate polyrhythms. Saxophonist Fredrik Ljunkvistโs composition โPHโ recalls the post-bop of Ornette Coleman and Eric Dolphy. Ljunkvist takes his solo โoutโ into multiphonics on Fraanjeโs free excursion โEpiโ. The final two tracks, โSafeโ and โGoodbyeโ, as their titles suggest, return to a calm, if somber, emotional ground.
Jared Sacks, known to SACD and DSD music collectors as the chief engineer for Channel Classics, is a long-time proponent of DSD recording. Sacks recorded the Harmen Fraanje group in the legendary spacious soundstage of MCO, Hilversum. The original DSD 256 recording captures every nuance of the pianistโs touch and phrasing, the depth of the standup bass, the โairโ around the drums and cymbals, and the wide spectrum of saxophone tones.
Producer Jonas Sacks writes: โRecording engineer Jared Sacks created the balance on the spot by moving musicians closer or further from the micsโฆ no post-production, mixing or editing is done.โ
The mix indeed sounds exactly like the positions of the musicians as shown in the session photos included in the liner notes booklet. That speaks to a commitment by Jonas and Jared Sacks to represent the musical performance exactly as it occurred in the studio.
Play โFirst Meetingโ, and youโll find that you just listen.
Mark Werlin
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