Robert Balzar Trio,
Robert Balzar Trio,
Jazz Bar, Edinburgh
Rob Adams
Bands don't routinely get encores at the Jazz Bar. The quick turnaround between mid-evening and late sessions often means that there's no time anyway. It really wouldn't have been right, though, if the Robert Balzar Trio hadn't played one and if they hadn't played the selection they chose we would have missed something truly special.
Bassist Balzar and his fellow Czech musicians, pianist Jiri Levicek and drummer Jiri Slavicek had already demonstrated a talent for teasing camouflage. Earlier, out of a contemplative introduction by means of a familiar phrase here and a hinting chord change there, a gloriously inventive reading of You Don't Know What Love Is had gradually emerged and the fractured lines of All the Things You Are suddenly coalesced into a romp so fresh and exciting that it could have been brand new rather than a jazz staple.
They maintained this level of intrigue and invention through two sets, with Levicek producing solos of extraordinary creative stamina, wondrous touch and tonal range and the three of them playing with dynamic variation and a thinking-as-one mutual understanding. Just as Secret Love, taken at a frightening pace, was thrilling, with a cheeky 'Thelonious Monk in the belfry' coda, Levicek's Snow in the Backyard was a deliciously sub-meditative ensemble effort.
And then there was the encore. Born in the abstract and painstakingly developed, it ultimately revealed itself as a number played possibly by every student of jazz over the past 60 years although not in this form: the magnificent Solar adagio.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article