Sunday mornings are when the serenity is supposed to come down. Sunday morning is the cocoon from the heavy exhaustion of too much Saturday night fun. Sunday morning is when the city agrees to use its inside voice. Sunday morning is when a hush settles in over the land. It is a time for sitting still and listening to quiet music and silently praying the aspirin and coffee do something to stop your head from exploding. Drama and stress are strictly forbidden on Sunday morning.
Your Sunday Morning Jazz Album is just for you, for times just like these. If you possess the freakish compulsion to get-up-and-go when the clock strikes Sunday morning, this music is not for you. Go and listen to a Spotify EDM playlist or something. But whatever you decide, just do it quietly and far away from those of us who appreciate the true solemn nature of a Sunday morning.
For nearly twenty-five years, the trio of pianist Marcin Wasilewski, bassist Sławomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michał Miśkiewicz have been concocting their own special distillation of sonic tranquility. It began back in 1993 in Koszalin, Poland as the Simple Acoustic Trio. And though they now go by their pianist’s namesake and relocated to Warsaw, it remains the same peaceful music conjured up for people who know how to spend their Sunday mornings. Their 2008 release January is the most potent example of their talent.
A rendition of Prince’s “Diamonds and Pearls” highlights the Trio’s deft use of melody, and how little bursts of melodicism sprinkled over hushed tones accentuate the quiet ambiance. And sometimes they take a different route and simply string out a melodic inspiration from first note to last, as on “Cinema Paradiso,” with the comforting murmur of bass and drums as the conversational tool to carry it through. And even when the trio puts a little hop in their step on “The Cat” or incites some dramatic tension on “Balladyna,” the music is no less soothing and no danger to the welcome stillness that has settled in over the room.
You need this album today, right now.
Artist-Title: Marcin Wasilewski Trio – January
Personnel: Marcin Wasilewski (piano), Sławomir Kurkiewicz (bass) and Michał Miśkiewicz (drums).
Proper Use: 1) Nursing a hangover, 2) Early inoculation for Monday stress, 3) Piano addiction.
May 28 2017
Your Sunday Morning Jazz Album: Marcin Wasilewski Trio – “January”
Sunday mornings are when the serenity is supposed to come down. Sunday morning is the cocoon from the heavy exhaustion of too much Saturday night fun. Sunday morning is when the city agrees to use its inside voice. Sunday morning is when a hush settles in over the land. It is a time for sitting still and listening to quiet music and silently praying the aspirin and coffee do something to stop your head from exploding. Drama and stress are strictly forbidden on Sunday morning.
Your Sunday Morning Jazz Album is just for you, for times just like these. If you possess the freakish compulsion to get-up-and-go when the clock strikes Sunday morning, this music is not for you. Go and listen to a Spotify EDM playlist or something. But whatever you decide, just do it quietly and far away from those of us who appreciate the true solemn nature of a Sunday morning.
A rendition of Prince’s “Diamonds and Pearls” highlights the Trio’s deft use of melody, and how little bursts of melodicism sprinkled over hushed tones accentuate the quiet ambiance. And sometimes they take a different route and simply string out a melodic inspiration from first note to last, as on “Cinema Paradiso,” with the comforting murmur of bass and drums as the conversational tool to carry it through. And even when the trio puts a little hop in their step on “The Cat” or incites some dramatic tension on “Balladyna,” the music is no less soothing and no danger to the welcome stillness that has settled in over the room.
You need this album today, right now.
Released in 2008 on ECM Records.
Music from Warsaw, Poland.
Available at: Amazon
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By davesumner • Jazz Recommendations, Sunday Morning Jazz Album • 4 • Tags: Best of 2008, Jazz - Best of 2008, Sunday Morning Jazz Album