Aaron Parks - Arborescence (2013) FLAC

Pianist Aaron Parks is a forward-thinking jazz musician who came to
the public's attention during his time with trumpeter Terence
Blanchard. Born in Seattle, Washington, Parks began playing piano at
a young age and by the time he was 14 had enrolled in an early
entrance degree program at the University of Washington. Originally,
Parks pursued both science and music degrees; however, his
prodigious talent won out and by age 16 he had transferred to the
Manhattan School of Music. While there, he studied with noted
pianist Kenny Barron and received several competitive accolades,
including being named the 2001 Cole Porter Fellow of the American
Pianists Association.

There is no shortage of fine solo piano offerings on ECM, going all
the way back to Paul Bley's classic 1973 "Open, To Love".
Twenty-nine-year-old pianist Aaron Parks is notable in jazz circles
for the skill he displayed in bands led by Terence Blanchard and
Kurt Rosenwinkel, as well as on his own wonderful "Invisible Cinema"
for Blue Note in 2008. "Arborescence", his first solo recording for
ECM, marks his second appearance on the label. His first was backing
South Korean vocalist Yeahwon Shin on her lovely collection of
ballads and lullabies, "Lua Ya", recorded in 2012 and released in
September 2013. "Arborescence" is a collection of 11 improvised
pieces recorded at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Though two works, "Elsewhere" and "Homestead", were taken from
previously composed works, here mere elements and themes were used
as jumping-off points into exploration. This set is very much in the
moment, though its atmosphere is more internal and restrained. A
listen to its mysterious opener, "Asleep In The Forest", evidences
this. The piano's sounds and harmonies are investigated not as
process, but as a deeply connected emotional dialogic relationship
between instrument and music, to reveal a 'voice'. The use of
repetition in many of these pieces isthe polar opposite, with the
much more dynamic "In Pursuit" as an example, revealing the sound of
the pianist digging inside the emotional and sonic geography where
harmony, space, tone, and silence commingle.

"Toward Awakening" commences haltingly, one carefully placed note
and chord at a time, but gradually develops movement as its timbral
palette expands, never losing its intuitive elegance. "River Ways"
comes from several directions at once, as the left hand articulates
a repetitive sequence, the right hand conjures it further in another
register, both of them meeting on a seam where dissonance, multiple
tonalities, and several voices are articulated invidiously in
directions that diverge after their initial meeting. "Arborescence"
is as mercurial after ten listenings as it is after one. The only
'strategy' that these pieces seem to share is Parks' determination
to remain open as improviser and listener. This requires discipline.

Parks never runs off with his discoveries, but remains present to
them as they whisper, move, and slowly dance, seemingly never
imposing his will against the suggestion of the music itself. The
innate, quiet grace displayed on "Arborescence" is far from static,
but an intricate, ever-evolving labyrinth of sonic communication and
elocution.