Borges In Memoriam - 100 years celebration - August 24, 1999

Borges no end: Marathon concert in commemoration of the Argentine writer’s 100-years birthday.
By Jakob Levinsen
The irony would not have been wasted on the main character: That a writer, who mostly got his world-fame from writing tight, little short stories, poetry and concentrated essays, gets his 100-years celebration as a four-hours- long, not very coherent concert. Add to that the fact that the concert is massively dominated by Tango - which Borges, Argentine or not, according to his own sayings didn't even like, because he found it too vulgar and sentimental.
    But since the Maestro’s stories often deal with oblivion, we the listeners, regarding  Tuesday night’s Borges- and not in the least Tango-marathon in Den Anden Opera (The Other Opera), can choose to step lightly over the rather irrelevant Danish Tango-dancers as well as the Danish attempts at singing and playing arrangements of the modern Tango composer number one, Astor Piazzolla, even with two pieces in different arrangements. Because more than anything, it was the more individualistic Danish attempts at as well the Tango as music in - one way or another - Borges’ spirit that made this evening memorable, alongside the readings of connoisseurs Per Aage Brandt and Peter Poulsen; not in the least Poulsen’s readings of Borges poems, often showing him from a darker and more sensual side than the stories.
    The first of the concert’s three parts was dedicated to Danish contemporary music, two pieces of which built on Borges poems. Peter Bruun’s  »Arte poetica« is a penetratingly beautiful, rather simple and somewhat pretentious piece with airy colors and pretty melodic lines. It somehow nicely mirrors the text’s rather pompous praise of poetry and the volatility of time.
    Contrary, there’s quite a lot of bite and ferocity in Niels Rosing-Schow’s first-performance »Yo«, »I«, where Borges' recurring themes of doubles and death are played through in quite another, more dramatic, concentrated and to-the-point manner. But if one more than anything connects Borges with many layers of meaning, insinuations and crisp irony, it was probably  Per Nørgård’s two Tangos »Esperanza« and »Without Jealousy«, that conjured up Borgesian moods, despite the lack of any direct connection to Borges.
    From the concert’s second half, the mini-concert by Danish Saxophone Quartet of Piazzolla arrangements stood out. Not so much for the arrangements that often were so compact that they seemed to get in the way of the flow of the melodic material as well as the rhythmic energy, but more for the savvy virtuosity of the ensemble.
    In the third part the connection to Borges, the writer, was almost severed, apart from the fact that trombonist Erling Kroner once met Borges, has dedicated a number of works to him and also performed instrumental versions of two Piazzolla Tangos, originally with words by Borges. This didn't stop this part of the marathon-concert from, back to back with Nørgård’s Tangos, displaying  the most audacious and  electrifying music, from older pieces like »Tango de Oscuridad« and »Borges - El último Tigre« via - the evening’s best - Piazzolla-arrangements, to the very new »Omoy-Coyé«.
    Why? Because Kroner and his musicians - the quintet just debuted their new CD  »Tromboníssimo« - like Nørgård take a personal stance to as well the Tango as other Latin American styles, and rather than playing arrangements of authentic Tangos make their own jazz-colored versions with as well an abundance of hip details as daftly swinging rhythmic layers and not a few inspired solos thrown in for good measure.
    As part of the story of Erling Kroner's year-long interest in the tango - starting decades before  Astor Piazzolla and Tango schools infested the musical community - belongs the fact that he, in 1984 in Buenos Aires, two years before the demise of Borges, was lucky enough to lure the then 84 year old, blind poet to his very first Jazz concert. It is not hard to imagine that he, in spite of his dislike for the Tango, one way or another, somehow really did feel at home.
Storstrøm Chamber Ensemble, conductor Henrik Vagn Christensen, tenor soloist Mads Elung-Jensen, bandoneón soloist Alicia Petronelli. Per Aage Brandt and Peter Poulsen, recital. Danish Saxophone Quartet (Jørgen Bove, Christian Hougaard, Torben Snekkestad and Per Egholm). Dancers from Tangoskolen in Copenhagen. Erling Kroner Dream Quintet (Kroner, trombone, Pernille Bévort, saxes, Kurt Larsen, accordion, Jesper Bodilsen, bass, and Henrik Simonsen, drums).
Den Anden Opera, Tuesday 24th.

(translated and abbreviated by Erling Kroner)

Guess who ran away with it all? Nobody else but the 'supporting act' Erling Kroner's so called dream-quintet, for the occasion augmented with two South-American soloists, guitar-player Quique Sinesi and bandoneón-player Dino Saluzzi. Kroner's almost hour-and-a-half long first part of the concert consisted of ten original compositions and arrangements by Kroner, who once again proved to be in a class by himself with densely emotional music, encompassing richly varied tempos of an enormous rhythmic elasticity (special thanks to bassist Jesper Bodilsen and drummer Henrik Simonsen) and  daring sound-colors, where extremely talented Pernille Bévort on tenor- and soprano met Erling Kroner's expressive trombone and Kurt Larsen's sparkling accordion-playing in exquisite interplay with Quique Sinesi on guitar and virtuoso Dino Saluzzi on the accordion-like bandoneón. It was an amalgam of the Argentine tango, the American blues and midnight-blue big city jazz meshed in a host of varied rhythms. Too bad we will have to wait a whole year for the music to be released on CD. It was simply amazing.
(Per Calum, Jyllandsposten 1998)

True Magical Masters..... one was missing spark and  some nerve in the overall picture.
Saluzzi with Kroner Compared to this, the concert's first part lead by Danish trombone-player Erling Kroner seemed much more interesting. Actually I don't recall having heard such alluring music from Kroner's hand for many years, but then again his current quintet is an extraordinarily creative constellation which was furthermore expanded by two exquisite Argentine musicians, guitarist Quique Sinesi and bandoneón-master Dino Saluzzi. The latter, whom we have heard quite a few times before in Denmark, is a marvelous musician, who works in jazz-contexts as well as Argentine forms, rather the milonga and the candombe than the tango (which was only introduced in the coda of the third piece of the concert, Siluetas). From his bellows-accordion, the German-Argentine bandoneón, he pulls the most fragile melodic spirals, contrasting these with abrupt, passionate chords. His playing contains some of the same qualities as those of Jim Hall's (... 'deeply emerged in the lowest possible dynamics he releases a wealth of sound-nuances that are only found down here,  on the borderline to silence.'...) and Kroner's piece dedicated to him, Maestro Mágico, could as well refer to the prize-winner. In the nine pieces in this part (of the concert) Kroner integrated impulses from a.o. Argentine music, Charles Mingus and Duke Ellington in a most organic way. A more restraint repertoire would have allowed for more solistic expansion, but that apart, everything was most listenable, with the elegy  'Corrido de Doña Luz (for the occasion dedicated to the late and sorely missed Ebbe Traberg and his widow,  Doña Emilia) as a very special, and especially  moving, high-point. Also Kroner's integration of the Argentine musicians into the Danish quintet was admirable. Let me point out especially the confrontation of Danish accordion-master Kurt Larsen with Saluzzi, the soundscape between these two and Pernille Bévort's soprano. In Kroner's group the powerful bass-playing of Jesper Bodilsen furthermore had a key-role, one could have wished for Thomas Ovesen, and thereby Jim Hall.
(Erik Wiedemann, Information 1998)

(translated and abbreviated by Erling Kroner)

Jazz
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2001
Ernie Wilkins Almost Big Band

Ronnie Scott's, London
Rating: ***

Wednesday May 23, 2001

Following the vigorous visit of the George Gruntz Concert Band last week, another hard-blowing big band is in residence at Ronnie Scott's until Saturday. And this time it's closer to the old Count Basie riff-punching school.

Where Gruntz's ensemble tested the bendability of the traditional big-band formula and let loose the idiosyncrasies of powerful soloists, the 12-piece Ernie Wilkins Almost Big Band is more respectful of the traditions it springs from. But anyone who still gets a shiver from the sound and vision of a big-band trumpet section standing up to blast out brass riffs as succinct as one-liners will find this band right up their street.

Wilkins was an altoist and arranger for Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Tommy Dorsey, Clark Terry and Harry James. He moved from the US to Copenhagen in the 1970s, forming his Almost Big Band there to explore the excellent repertoire he had put together for the cut-down Basie orchestra of the 1950s. Wilkins died two years ago, but trombonist Erling Kroner and baritonist Per Goldschmidt keep the show on the road in his memory.

The coolly inflamed sound of the late Paul Gonsalves was invoked by a gently swaying tribute. The effortlessly interweaving elegance of Wilkins's writing for the horn sections made the piece simmer with controlled energy - like the entire evening.

On a fast blues, a steady undertow of muttering riffs leaned insistently on the soloists, bringing crisp contributions from Goldschmidt and Kroner. Suite for Big Band rolled the same basic materials through a series of tempo changes, but the quality and richness of the writing, and a string of taut, focused solos made it a fine showcase. Kroner's economically inventive trombone break on the slow blues component was one of the highlights of the opening night. Maybe not as raw or compelling as Gruntz the previous week, but a high-class, traditional big-band menu nonetheless. John Fordham, the Guardian

Erling Kroner Dream Quintet in concert

Erling Kroner calls his new group his 'dream-quintet'. According to the musical potential as well as the reception, it can easily become a dream-quintet for the audience as well. Yesterday’s 'world-premier', as Kroner with unquestionable logic presented the first public performance of the quintet, offered elastic rhythmic, melodical and sound-wise varied and constantly extremely catching music. It is quintet-music that doesn't sound like anything else in these parts, not in the least because of the refined accordion-playing of Kurt Larsen, which was beautifully integrated in the overall picture. Erling Kroner himself was, as always, an enormously expressive musician in a repertoire consisting mainly of old warhorses far from being obsolete. On the contrary, they are still alive and kicking, from the absorbing,  'The Forgotten Art' thru the somber 'Sombras' to the massively swinging 'Little Miss Gravity Center. (Per Calum, Jyllandsposten)

Music by inner urge. A quintet deserving a much larger stage.
. . . (Kroner) has always been a musician taking his own singular road, and among his qualifications, his gift for spotting young talent was always evident, molding them and letting them take part in developing the music. From that point of view, everything followed the pattern beautifully, even though neither accordionist Kurt Larsen nor drummer Henrik Simonsen are youngsters, but with their (in a jazz context) unusual instrument and rather unorthodox playing respectively, both contributed strongly to the character of the music. But then again tenor- and sopranoplayer Pernille Bévort and bassist Jesper Bodilsen are definitely youngsters, and what contributions they had to offer the experienced Kroner in the performance of the singular universe that is his: the combination of  a Charles Mingussy density and gutsiness and a Latin-American emotionally high-strung poetry. Bévort already masters the almost stalking-like way of playing, literally listening while playing, and thereby gaining an intensity to her playing, which is remarkable, not the least in the slow to fast 'Sombras' she used the possibility of developing her solo over the constantly intensifying rhythmical background. Likewise Jesper Bodilsen, whose solo in the opening 'The Forgotten Art' clearly demonstrated that he knew that a complex basis can be delivered by simple means. And who, by the way, in the last tune of the hour-and-a-half long first set almost seemed to work against Simonsen, thereby creating an excitingly ambiguous feeling without ever losing sight of the imminent pulse. At the same time it was something of a 'coup' yet so self evident to use Kurt Larsen's nuanced accordion, from  trembling desperation to raw body-power and, like in  Kroner's own, particularly expressive playing, covering a wide spectrum of moods. It deserves to be mentioned that there was a stimulating concentration about the music from the audience. But then again we would still like to hear the quintet on a larger stage as soon as possible. (Thorbjorn Sjøgren, Politiken 1996)

Kjeld Frandsen, Berlingske Tidende 1996
. . . . and I'll say his dreams came true. It was extremely well-functioning. An exquisite mix of brash devil-may-care expressions a la Mingus, and melancholic and insinuating aftermaths of Buenos Aires and vicinities. You experienced a group with a sound all its own. A very personal color. Not in the least Kurt Larsen added to that. His command of sound and dynamics was singular, and his solistical endeavors were an exquisite joy. Drummer Henrik Simonsen gave the ensemble just the right lift, and the young super-talent from Aarhus, bassist Jesper Bodilsen, played with great commitment. Erling Kroner served us with full-grown trombone-playing, very rich and melodious, and then he could - like the rest of us - rejoice in the playing of his young cohort, tenorsaxist Pernille Bévort. She too added color to the ensemble, and her authority and imagination when embarking on longer solo-flights, couldn't but demand attention. There was heat and beautiful reverberations, like there should be on a true Copenhagen jazzfestival-afternoon.

Thorbjørn Sjøgren, Politiken 1997
Rest assured about one thing when listening to a concert by Erling Kroner: He will make damned sure to inform you about the music, the musicians and himself, and if it hadn't been for the fact that he is such a great musician, composer and arranger (and not without self-mockery), it could be too much with all his talking. But I must admit that the two and a half hours of music, tight and with only a minimal intermission, presenting him in duo-, trio-, quartet-, quintet- and tentet-formations, gave a more comprehensive - and even more exuberant - picture of Kroner's musical world, than I recall having experienced in a long time. Going from one formation to another added to the basic entertaining qualities and diversity of the music: The duo with Kroner's trombone and Kurt Larsen's accordion  in Carlos Gardel's tango 'Volver' with a sensuality to be felt in the corners of the eyes and the guts, the leader's robust, Jimmy Knepper-like playing in the lone standard of the evening 'Just Friends' and the quintet-version of 'The Forgotten Art' with Pernille Bévort's intensely burning tenorsax, with a slight bow (yes, just slight) to a Booker Ervin-ish assertion. And after the intermission the larger group presented a dense impassioned sound-picture and an intelligent use of the horn-resources: Astor Piazzolla's 'Adios Nonino' with a.o. Kurt Larsen's vibrantly, passionate playing, Jan zum Vohrde's biting alto  in the blues 'Back Alley Sue', a couple of Charles Mingus-like pieces, yet another of Kroner's life-long mentors, and all in all concentrated to the point soloing with focus on the collective spirit and character of the music. . . and Jesper Bodilsen, who constantly seems to get more authority in his playing and therefore dares playing with the nonchalant audacity that makes this type of music breath rhythmically free.

(translated and abbreviated by Erling Kroner)