Trio Libero, Blue Lamp, Aberdeen

Folk & Jazz critic

Tuesday 19 March 2013

Trio Libero brought Aberdeen Jazz Festival to a classy conclusion on Sunday.

Custom byline text:

Rob Adams

There had been plenty of storming gigs by all accounts in the programme that produced the event's biggest success to date with an all-tastes-catered-for policy. It helps no end that the festival can call on the Blue Lamp, a venue that really should be cloned for every city in Scotland, as its focal point.

The trio of saxophonist Andy Sheppard, playing both tenor and soprano, double bassist Michel Benita and drummer Sebastian Rochford doesn't generally storm. Theirs is a conversational approach, with Sheppard and Benita sharing melody lines like a sibling vocal act and Benita's firm-toned lines linking beautifully with Sheppard's often spare but profound improvisations and Rochford's quietly thoughtful percussive colouring.There's an unhurried gracefulness to much of the group's playing, although when they move into a higher gear, such as on the slippery elongated riffing of Slip Duty, they can produce exhilarating fire and urgency. They also like to spring a surprise. Their reading of Elvis Costello's I Want to Vanish, with Sheppard playing deliciously delicate soprano, was a particular highlight, pitched between a gently vulnerable ballad and free jazz soundscaping.Each musician gets room to develop individual ideas within the trio framework without the music turning into a pattern of joined-up solos. Rochford's first-half feature, where he drummed with his hands before picking up sticks and producing increased buoyancy, felt like the natural precursor to the dancing, darting soprano saxophone lines that followed, and this sense of shared purpose continued through two sets of absorbing, often frankly charming, music.HHHH

Contextual targeting label:

Arts and Entertainment

Commenting & Moderation

We moderate all comments on HeraldScotland on either a pre-moderated or post-moderated basis. If you're a relatively new user then your comments will be reviewed before publication and if we know you well then your comments will be subject to moderation only if other users or the moderators believe you've broken the rules, which are available here.

Moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours. Please be patient if your posts are not approved instantly.

Trio Libero, Blue Lamp, Aberdeen

Commenting & Moderation

MOST READ

SPONSORED LINKS

MOST COMMENTED