Ches Smith Trio: The Bell (ECM, 2016)
“Avant garde” jazz, or more generally “avant garde music” can be a scary label, one that can send mainstream ears scurrying for cover amid fears of harsh dissonance and incomprehensible, formless sound effects. The suggestion of “spontaneous improvisation” can generate similar discomfort — without planning, how do we prevent a train wreck? In my early […]
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