Masada String Trio - 50th Birthday Celebration - Volume One

I've been listening to Zorn's music for a while now, and it took a Live Masada String Trio performance, in person, to finally get me to purchase this. I saw the trio perform a few weeks ago at Zorn's club, The Stone, in lower Manhattan. From the first couple bars of the first song, I was hooked. I would say I listen to this live record more often than any other music I've picked up in a while - which is a pretty big deal considering my vast music collection.For those unaware, John Zorn has had a group since the mid-90's called Masada which combines Klezmer music with avant-garde 'Ornette Coleman-style' jazz. The group performs out of two books of songs, all of which have been written by Zorn himself. There are literally hundreds of Masada songs out there, and in addition to the regular quartet, there are several other ensembles that also perform Masada songs - the string trio is one of these groups.The Masada String Trio consists of Mark Feldman (violin), Erik Friedlander (cello), and Greg Cohen (bass). Zorn sits in and conducts them. I've seen it in person as he literally opens up a Masada song book and randomly pulls out pieces. "Number 65," Zorn would say and Mark, Erik, and Greg would pull out that song and play it as if they had performed it thousands of times before. This is not classical music - it has a foundation in jazz, so it's basically jazz being performed on instruments not normally used for that style of music. There is definitely improvising going on, and Zorn picks which musicians improvise and when. His conducting goes far beyound that, though, and he will often cue one or two musicians to play just one note, or a series of individual notes broken down between the three performers. It is easier to pick up on these elements if you have had the privelage of actually seeing it in person. Zorn also does this for his other groups such as Electric Masada, except in that group, he is also a performer!The sounds emanating from my stereo when I listen to this cd are some of the most beautiful and majestic I have ever heard. I could listen to this for the rest of my life and never get bored with it. If you are somewhat familiar with the Masada catalogue, you may recognize some of these tracks. The most impressive element is the switch between arco and pizzicato on tracks such as 'Abidan,' 'Meholalot,' and 'Khebar' - the last being a real barn-burner! The trio is masterful on more digestable tracks as well like the opening, 'Tahah' or the relaxing 'Sippur'.I also believe this record is evidence of Zorn's superb song writing abilities. He has written hundreds of Masada pieces but they can be performed for all sorts of different ensambles that span several different styles of music. No matter what the vehicle of delivery is, the performances are always breathtaking. This is a great place to start if you are not familiar with Zorn's music - most indviduals I have played this for loved it immediately. If you are not new to Zorn and don't own this, you are doing yourself a major inconvenience. Pick it up.

This album, the first volume of releases from a series of concerts in September 2003 at Tonic celebrating John Zorn's 50th birthday, brings forward the Masada String Trio-- Mark Feldman (violin), Erik Friedlander (cello), and Greg Cohen (bass), conducted by composer John Zorn. The trio plays pieces out of the Masada songbook, bringing a chamber aesthetic to the music, but maintaining the largely improvised concept behind the music-- in many ways, this highlights the genius of these players, to be so far out of the accepted domain for their instruments and formation-- string trios improvising on jazz?-- and yet still produce something of such magic and beauty, sometimes aggressive, in your face, as much so as Zorn and Dave Douglas wailing on two horns ("Malkut"), sometimes delicate, passive, truly chamber-like ("Abidan").One thing that should be noted for anyone who hasn't seen this ensemble live, Zorn conducts to a great level, signaling soloists, accompaniments, when the head comes back around, etc. He'll cut off the musicians, start them back up, elicit a single note from them, or keep them on the tracks until the point of derailing, switch them at once from arco to pizzicato and back again, and generally keeps tight control of the proceedings-- to watch the three string players with their focus intently on Zorn and yet playing with such sympathy for each other is really something to behold.The music itself is impressively performed, most of the songs are drawn from "The Circle Maker", each is given an expert reading, filled with briliant soloing and accompaniment ("Meholalot"), the Masada soloist-counter soloist concept remains firmly in place with the trio. To discuss the pieces individually is almost without point, the Masada songbook has a quality where each piece is really a vehicle and is almost less essential than the power of the performance-- a stunning array of technique is shown here, these three, particularly in my assessment Friedlander, are masters of their instrument and have a real passion for the material, getting deep into it. It also I feel is the best of the Masada chamber pieces, highly recommended.

In September 2003, the club Tonic hosted a month-long tribute to John Zorn's music. Zorn and all of his favorite musicians were involved. This CD is the first in a series documenting that celebration.At first glance, this is a live version of The Circle Maker --- and that fact alone makes it worth buying. The Masada String Trio (Mark Feldman, Erik Friedlander, and Greg Cohen) plow through eleven well-known Masada tunes, with Zorn conducting from the sidelines. The performance is fast and creative. You can tell that these musicians love to play these songs.After I heard it a few times, I noticed something else. This is a great LIVE album. It's right up there with the live albums from famous rock bands. Listen to this on headphones and you'll hear the band playing to the crowd. After each track, you hear the crowd respond, then the band dives into another intense Masada tune. By the final track, you're a little worn out, but in a good way.

...a couple of errors but it's a fine recording...Of course, Issachar is better. To me...three stars and a half.