https://www.porgy.at/reviews/396/

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Choreografierte Freiheit

von Hannes Schweiger, 03/2024

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​translated from German by ChatGPT:

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"Choreographed Freedom

MICHAEL MOORE/ANTONIO BORGHINI/JOE HERTENSTEIN

Michael Moore (clarinet, alto saxophone)

Antonio Borghini (bass)

Joe Hertenstein (drums, percussion)

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All three are proactive personalities on the global jazz scene with worldwide reputations.

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Intrada: Openly structured waves of rhythmic and bass-melodic events press against lyrical arabesques from the clarinet, which participates with complete sovereignty. It remained calm amidst the nervous pulsations. Urgent coincidence was achieved. In these first minutes, the potential of this fine trio was already apparent, confirmed note by note. A distinctive sense of musical spatiality, dynamics, and timbre, and Moore's talent for melodically inventive creativity. Another quality emerged: the careful handling of their instruments and the music they created. Yet the intensity was at its peak – of a delicate consistency. In this sense, drummer Joe Hertenstein impressed with extremely sensitive drumming. The sticks deftly danced over the instruments. Seamlessly shifting between in and out of time, constantly fueling the tension. Together with Borghini’s refined, ingeniously arranged bass playing, he crafted clever complementary rhythms, layering and smartly varying them or highlighting their peaks with surprising offbeats. Hertenstein located the swinging pulse both in rhythmic arcs and time units. He deftly combined various achievements of modern jazz drumming – splendidly. Equally excellent were Michael Moore’s creative inputs. His playing has a notably intelligent ambiguity. He uniquely blends the intentions of Cool Jazz with the innovations of Free Jazz. This is unmistakably transferred into his musical language. His tone on both clarinet and alto saxophone is distinct. Conceptually, the trio’s music taps into the power sources of jazz. However, it does not indulge in a new traditionalism but rather a refreshing escapism. Their understanding of jazz spans multidirectional musical influences, which can no longer be separated from each other. The crux is the differentiation between various aesthetic expressions. It's also about achieving an unspoiled sonic reality. Another crucial aspect is the interplay between pre-composed elements and improvisational creativity. Without insisting on a specific stylistic definition, the former is handled by Hertenstein and Moore with penetrating melodicism, while the latter experiences contrasts of escalation, tension, relaxation, symmetry, and asymmetry with delightful sophistication. Wonderful examples were the pieces dedicated to Jutta Hipp and Paul Motian/Masabumi Kikuchi and an imaginatively conceived waltz. The here-and-now character of this trio’s music evolves from premeditated, clever polyphonic and polyrhythmic patterns. “Thick Live After Lockdown.”

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