Wolfgang Muthspiel and his working trio with Scott Colley on bass and Brian Blade on drums reach a new creative peak on Dance of the Elders.

The album is the group’s follow-up to the much-lauded Angular Blues, which The Times called a “quietly impressive album” that highlights “Muthspiel’s fluidly melodic playing style.”

Here Muthspiel’s successful stride continues, with his unique compositional signature on the one hand and particularly vibrant exchanges with his trio colleagues on the other. The guitarist’s own writing and approach to jazz is heavily folk-induced but equally inspired by classical music – both aspects are presented clearly throughout the album.

Blade’s floating percussive injections and Colley’s nimble counterpoint on bass complement the guitarist’s acoustic and electric playing in fluid interplay over intricate polyrhythms and adventurous harmonic landscapes.

1. Invocation
2. Prelude to Bach
3. Dance of the Elders
4. Liebeslied
5. Folksong
6. Cantus Bradus
7. Amelia

The album opens on the almost crystalline two-part, ten minute composition Invocation and the cohesive, Latin-hued guitar work within Prelude to Bach (which itself ends with a solo guitar rendition of Bach’s chorale O Sacred Head, Now Wounded), and then seamlessly follows those up with the animated titular Dance of the Elders.

Along next is the low slung, jazz-blues of Kurt Weil’s Liebeslied and the apathetic Folksong (on which Muthspiel drew inspiration from Keith Jarrett) and they are in turn backed by the resolute Cantus Bradus(which was written with Brad Mehldau in mind), the album closing on a smoothly dutiful rendition of Joni Mitchell’s Amelia.

“Whatever the technique or the instrument, Muthspiel’s deep love for and expert command of jazz shines through on both the originals and standards (…), as does his chemistry with Blade and Colley,” JazzTimes wrote in 2021, to which Muthspiel answered: “We have developed an enormous trust in each other.”

His musical familiarity with partners Colley and Blade has only increased since – Dance of the Elders was recorded after extensive touring throughout Europe, the US and Japan, in February 2022.

And the guitarist’s opinion in regard to his bandmates hasn’t changed: “I’m constantly learning from Brian and Scott. It’s always exciting to bring new music to them and see how they approach it, because it’s never what I’d expect. The remembrance of their sound while I compose is an inspiration for the music I end up coming up with.”

Dance of the Elders was mixed and completed at Studios La Buissonne in March 2023 by Manfred Eicher with Wolfgang Muthspiel and Gérard de Haro.

www.wolfgangmuthspiel.com

Wolfgang Muthspiel @ Facebook