Easter Sunday by Michael Moore Quartet

Michael Moore - alto saxophone, clarinet
Harmen Fraanje - piano
Clemens van der Feen - bass
Michael Vatcher - drums, saw, percussion

The third recording of this quartet; the pieces are being treated as found objects, and a great deal of interaction.

"Michael Moore composed all but one of the songs here, with one cover of the standard "It Might as Well be Spring". "Cool, Simmering" opens and it has an apt title since Mr. Moore's cascading alto sax sounds like Lee Konitz or Paul Desmond at their coolest. His tone is stunning, the tune is lovely, calm and exquisitely sublime. The tempo and intensity slowly build throughout this piece until it drifts into the clouds and simmers. Overall most of these songs have mellow, spacious sound. Quietly adventurous without breaking a sweat. Pianist Harmen Fraanje plays in a haunting, warm and mostly melodic way, each of his solos are superb with never a wasted note. The tempo and temperature increases somewhat on "Evguth" which is adventurous in its own odd way. One of the more distinctive traits about Michael's music is that he has a sly way of using less notes or spaciousness while keeping the essence of the song intact. Playing a fragment of the entire melody or line and letting the listener fill in the rest. His music seems to breathe and leaves us in magical state of mostly subdued grace."

Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery


"Recorded on Easter Sunday at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam, the album starts off with Cool, Simmering. The tune begins with an uptempo skittering of percussion and light touches on the piano that invite Moore's sax to come skating in. The song has a feel like sliding over the frozen surface of a deep dark pool. The quartet is the same as on Amsterdam.

Easter Sunday, like the name implies, is a quieter, reflective and spacious recording. Acceptance, which begins with a crash of percussion, soon sees Moore playing a longing and gentle melody that stretches over quiet but insistent brushwork. The woodwind on Suleika intertwines and shares intimate space with the piano, which gradually become more rhythmic but still restrained. In general, a quiet energy permeates. The playing has a lighter touch that keeps it floating along even as the piano picks up in intensity and slight bluesy figures drift through the atmosphere. My favorite is the classic It Might as Well Be Spring which closes the album. Played on clarinet, the melody is rendered with all it's fragile joy and swing intact.

Gentle, but with a tenaciousness, this recording is the most consistent. However, all three albums contain different atmospheric and textural qualities and are high quality recordings of an utterly professional and accomplished group."

Michael Moore (1954, Eureka, California, USA) is a saxophone & clarinet player active primarily in Europe and North America playing creative jazz and improvised musics. He leads his own ensembles, works with the Instant Composers Pool Orchestra and many others, collaborates with dancers, teaches music at the Conservatory of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and produces recordings.

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