Theodosii Spassov Trio
The success of this music comes from Spassov's basic approach; he is more concerned with similarities than with differences; his interest and familiarity with a broad range of musical styles is always anchored to an insistance on its affinity with Balkan music. For example, on his impressive solo track "Tui-To!" he utilizes the vocalese associated with the playing of Indian tablas, but he is taking those exercises and applying them to the sound and rhythms of the tupan, the Balkan double headed drum. Thus, all the tracks have a link to Balkan music, but are played with the free, unaffected joy of master jazz improvisors. The playing of the trio is a delight, with Toskov and Yotsov both supplying extraordinary sensitivity and chops. Spassov's kaval is blown, sung through, processed, overblown, and played every which way but upside-down. His interest in sound as music is apparent from his solos, but also from the tracks of urban and rural soundscapes which intersperse the CD, from the bustle of a Sofia train station to evening rain falling on a small village. In all, this is an impressive American debut. Credit goes to Harold Hagopian of Traditional Crossroads for taking a chance with this, and one can only hope that it finds its way into the ears of the Jazz public. - Michal Shapiro
Audio ©2000 Traditional Crossroads, published T-Crossing |
Selim Sesler
The melismatic clarinet is king here, not the shriller double-reed timbre of the zurna, which was the preferred instrument in older times. A violin, kanun (Turkish zither), cumbus (a banjo-like instrument), and drums (davul and darbuka) round out the ensemble. In a real wedding, there would also be requests for more urban genres such as arabesk and fantazi, but here the focus is on the traditional Rom selections. The only minor gripe I have is that this is a studio recording, which misses out on the ambient noise of a field recording (laughter, clapping, a rooster crowing...) that really makes you feel like you are there in the midst of it all. -- John Cho
Audio ©2000 Traditional Crossroads, published T-Crossing |
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