This week's jazz releases reviewed

JOHN HOLLENBECK

Eternal Interlude Sunnyside *****

This new CD by drummer John Hollenbeck's Large Ensemble suggests he may be arguably the most original composer on the contemporary jazz scene. Its orchestral colours are more striking than his Grammy-nominated A Blessingand, with almost all that great band here again, it's just as well executed. Despite an even stronger authorial presence, it inhabits a space neither wholly classical nor fully jazz. There is room for soloists and some (relatively) free improvisation in Foreign One(a radical recasting of Monk's Four in One), Guaranaand Perseverance, but Hollenbeck's vision remains the key, unifying factor. It's even more pronounced in Eternal Interludeand The Cloud, both through-composed, where he seeks to express matters spiritual in a very personal way. Thanks to the clarity with which Hollenbeck handles the material, they're also remarkably accessible and singularly beautiful. www.sunnyside records.com

A Modern Art Linn ****

Singer Claire Martin has such class and authority that sometimes she shows scarcely a hint of vulnerability. Does it matter? On this superb album she deals brilliantly with the wit and sophistication of Colin Lazzerini's mordant So Twentieth Centuryand Totally, her own and electric bassist Laurence Cottle's Edge Ways, and the 1970s Broadway hit, Everybody Is Turning On. But the contrasting moods of love songs, such as the late Esbjorn Svensson's gospel-flavoured Love Is Real, saxophonist Joshua Redman's Lowercase, and Rebekka Bakken's ambivalent Love of Anotherare handled with equal poise. It's typically outside-the-box repertoire for Martin, with arrangements (by Cottle) stunningly played by an exceptional band including Gareth Williams (piano/Hammond organ), Nigel Hitchcock (alto), Mark Nightingale (trombone) and Phil Robson (guitar). www.linnrecords. com

RODITI-IGNATZEK-RASSINFOSSE

Beyond Question Nagel Heyer ***

Claudio Roditi (trumpet/flugelhorn/ piccolo trumpet), Klaus Ignatzek (piano) and Jean-Louis Rassinfosse (bass) have successfully pursued their brand of chamber jazz for many years, and it shows in this typically polished album. With nods to Roditi’s native Brazil and even Bach, the language is mainstream/ bop, with the ensemble generating a light but impeccable rhythmic drive in the absence of drums. Ignatzek, who wrote almost all the material, is adept and at ease in this setting and both he and Roditi have the same appreciation of what chamber jazz requires. Arguably, the restraint suits Roditi, who emerges as the strongest, most lyrical and most logical soloist. It’s all beautifully done and completely successful on its own terms, but the comfort zone seems uncomfortably close, and there is much more to Roditi, in particular, than this trio demands. www.propernote.co.uk