Recenzija, Peter Erskine:
I have been
asked to offer some words about my new friend, Imer Taja Brizani. But first, I
should say this: I am a fortunate drummer. First, by having enjoyed an
education received from two great masters of music: George Gaber and Joe
Zawinul. When I studied percussion with renowned timpanist Gaber, beginning
with our first lesson together when I was a 10-year old drummer and continuing
through my university years, he would often make specific mention of the
following facets of percussion: the mambo from Cuba, the sensuous sounds of the
caxixi and surdo from Brazil, the finest possible tone obtainable from a
triangle in the symphony orchestra, and the intricate rhythms of the Macedonian
bass drum. Years later, when I was working with Joe Zawinul in the group
Weather Report, he would boast about the power and beauty of gypsy music. I
began to think that both Joe and Jaco Pastorius had some gypsy blood in their veins.
The person
who would connect the dots for me regarding all of this is bassist, composer,
producer and author Imer Traja Brizani. Traja contacted me to work with him in
a context that I am most familiar with, the jazz big band ~ in this case, the
excellent Big Band RTV Slovenija. If music is a universal language, then big
band jazz is a dialect that is instantly recognizable by players and fans
alike. Ever since my first work with the big bands of Stan Kenton and Maynard
Ferguson (along with Bob Mintzer, Kenny Wheeler, Vince Mendoza and Bob
Florence), I have found myself coming often to Europe and working in this
genre. Business as usual, except for the musical spin that is Imer Traja
Brizani’s world. This is one of the more unique big band projects to have come
my way.
Therein, the
second reason for my good fortune: I am honored to have been chosen for this
collaboration between the American big band ethos and the Macedonian bass drum
groove. Even though the Big Band RTV Slovenija has been in existence for over
60 years, the music it plays is essentially American! Well … not so fast, Mr.
Erskine. Brizani’s musical trick was to marry the two forms. From Basie to
Brizani, and Motown to Macedonia, the musical distance proved far less than the
miles it took for me to get there.
And once
there, my hosts treated me very well. The big band members welcomed me as one
of their own. Traja introduced me to his lovely family, which includes two very
talented sons (his wife is a great cook, too!). This man lives and breathes
music. He’s brought the electric bass out front, much like his hero and my
friend Jaco Pastorius, to a most interesting place. His music carries the pulse
of the Macedonian bass drum and the song of the gypsy. Traja’s music is of the
earth, and it is urban, too. It’s a campfire in the countryside, a car radio on
the highway, a fine jazz concert in a beautiful hotel on a snowy night in
Slovenia, and a mysterious band of players who disappear into the night…
I feel
fortunate to know this man and to have played his music. Please enjoy this CD
documentation of a very special collaboration, one that though miles away from
where I live somehow brought me back home.
Peter Erskine