Further proof, if any were needed, that jazz is a global music is delivered by these new releases from people who are not from the United States. On New York Paradox, the Moroccan/Yemenite bassist Omer Avital offers original compositions inflected with the vibes of Spain, North Africa, and the Middle East, and his quartet grooves them beautifully. From Canada comes multireed player Dennis Kwok, heading a well-disciplined big band of millennials playing his original suite, Outward Bound.

Omer Avital—Qantar
New York Paradox (jazz&people/Zamzama Records)
A review
I’ve been trying to recall an album on which bassist Omer Avital plays that did not intrigue me, but I haven’t been able to come up with one. He keeps the streak going on New York Paradox, recorded live and unedited in his club, Wilson Live, in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. Leading his Qantar quintet—with Asaf Yuria (soprano and tenor saxes), Alexander Levin (tenor sax), Eden Ladin (piano), and Ofri Nehemya (drums)—the bassist contributes the eight original tunes on the album. As always, he brings warmth, groove, taste, and exuberance to the project, along with his strong technical capabilities, and makes music that is, quite simply, a pleasure to hear. The opening track, “Shabazi,” gets the ball rolling with a sax fanfare, a North African feel—Middle Eastern, North African, and Spanish influences abound in Avital’s music—and a polyrhythmic groove that starts an involuntary toe tap. Nehemya takes a stunning solo to introduce himself, and he keeps the stew simmering throughout. The soulful “Zohar Smiles,” an ode to Avital’s son, is tenderness and gratitude, with solos from Ladin and Avital. The anxious, exhilarating, and taxing energy of the title track raises the tension level, reflecting the city for which it is named, and “Just Like the River Flows” counters with a relaxed energy, with terrific solos from both Yuria (on soprano) and Levin. There’s a feeling-your-way-in-the-dark sensation on “It’s All Good (Late 90s);” a swinging blues titled “Today’s Blues;” and a light-footed waltz, “C’est Clair,” with a nice contribution from Levin. The album closes with “Bushwick after Dark,” a minor blues that features solos from Yuria and Avital, and feels like something of an homage to Art Blakey. Avital brims with life—that’s him shouting encouragement to his bandmates—and imbues his music with an undeniable humanity, and his colleagues are all in on this proposition, making New York Paradox a welcome addition in trying times.

Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra
Windward Bound (indie)
A review
The Dennis Kwok Jazz Orchestra comprises 19 players, all of whom are under 35 years of age and hail from southern Ontario. Kwok himself, if I read the press release correctly, is a mere 25 years of age, having founded the group three years ago, and he’s already an accomplished composer, arranger, and multireed player. The orchestra is committed, as Kwok notes on the back of the album, “to the creation, performance, and showcase of new works composed by the next generation of artists,” and its members are “dedicated to preserving the big band tradition while staying relevant to our generation.” The project is nothing if not ambitious, presenting Kwok’s six-part suite, Windward Bound, an extended paean to “sailing on Lake Ontario as well as folklore of life on the seas.” Equally ambitious is his soloing on 10 woodwinds across the album. Kwok takes a painterly, almost programmatic approach to his subject, capturing the slap of the waves, the magical glide, the wind in your hair, and a luffing sail. Opening with birdsong and water, “Part I: The Calling” captures an almost giddy excitement, and the bracing entrance of the orchestra announces Kwok’s flare for the dramatic and the orchestra’s admirable discipline. Highlights include the blending of the voice with the horns in “Part II: Ready, Aye, Ready” and the sequence of quartets in “Part III: A Flat Boat Is a Fast Boat,” each pairing a diferent horn with the rhythm section. “Part IV: Tempest” offers a sound painting that captures the sudden, swift violence of a fast-moving storm. “Part V: Elegy” opens tenderly and swells to a near keening before giving way to quiet acceptance. A tasty line for the brass and a terrific trumpet solo distinguish “Part VI: Red, Right, Returning,” which deposits the listener back in the birdsong-charmed harbor. The formidable arrangements evince a confident use of texture and a possibly overdeveloped sense of dynamic balance, as evidenced in the sharply contrasting episodes within each part. Overall, Windward Bound offers the chronicle of an orchestra sailing for the thrill of it.

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© 2020 Mel Minter