Simple Acoustic Trio
Trio

THE REVIEW

Imagine an evening, dining at a friend's place. She is skilled in the kitchen; her hands dance deftly over the stove between a soup and a dish. And at a certain point, bam! She slips a CD into the player, foreign to the musical knowledge of the guest, who quickly asks: "what is it?" A Polish trio, that's what it is, contemporary jazz, stuff for refined tastes.

Let's make sure to correctly write the names of the musicians, with the kappa and double w in the right place: Marcin Wasilewski on piano, Slawomir Kurkiewicz on double bass, Michal Miskiewicz on drums. "Trio," the spartan but fitting title of the album, recorded in 2004 in Oslo and released the following year by the renowned ECM of Manfred Eicher.

First international release for a group that, in their homeland, with local labels, had already recorded five albums. German music critics, upon its release, quickly awarded it the Quarterly Prize. They are called Simple Acoustic Trio, but from the next album ("January," 2007) they changed their name to Marcin Wasilewski Trio.

Okay, with the clarifications out of the way, what music is heard in "Trio"? It must be said right away that there is a great sound homogeneity throughout the 63 minutes of the album. The tones are calm; at certain moments, the rhythm and dynamics become more determined but never "raise their voice." In short, the sound pleasantness is the most evident characteristic of this album.

Thirteen tracks, mostly original compositions (with four exceptions) signed by the group leader, pianist Marcin Wasilewski, or jointly by the three. The exceptions are enticing: ranging from a reinterpretation of a piece by trumpeter Tomasz Stanko, "Green Sky," to tributes to Wayne Shorter with "Plaza Real" and to classic composer Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937) with "Roxana's Song," up to a rendition, no less, of Björk's "Hyperballad."

Great sensitivity on the keyboard by Marcin Wasilewski, born in 1975, excellent work on the cymbals more than on the drums by the drummer, and the double bassist's presence is as discreet as it is effective. Thus, the acoustic pleasantness is the strength of "Trio," which can be appreciated even by those who are not fans of the genre.