| Quartier du Faisan isn't merely a compilation of stylistic curiosities but a clear stance on modern orchestra music, an eccentric version of an alpine big band. Perhaps this isn't jazz at all — but without the slightest doubt it is a hymn to jazz. Max Nagl says his music comes about intuitively, he listens, and he picks and chooses to structure it into something that has been unheard of so far. To him, all that matters are colours, iridescent exceptions, surprisingsounds. Thus, jazz is a pool of ideas, a stimulus, a source, no more and no less. — Tilman Urbach
The ambitious Austrian composer and alto saxist Max Nagl never rests and seems to have another project in mind whenever we hear from him. With upwards of a dozen discs as a leader on different labels, we never know what to expect, except for something interesting. On 'Quartier Du Faisan" Max uses some ten musicians, only a few of whom we know: Franz Hautzinger on quarter-tone trumpet, Josef Novotny on piano & electronics and Achim Tang on double bass. Mr. Nagl is a gifted and pretty diverse composer, his music involves the different worlds of jazz, from older to more modern styles. He keeps the five horn players (2 alto saxes, 2 trumpets and 1 trombone) here on the toes by writing tight, swinging lines with adventurous harmonies. "Bycykell" has an infectious drunken swagger, with some groovy organ and a great bluesy alto solo from Clemens Salesny. The band had the good fortune to develop during their six-month stay at the Porgy & Bess Jazz Club in Vienna, you can hear this in their tight and spirited tunes. All of these fine horn players get a chance to stretch out and pull off some fine solos throughout. One of the highlights is getting a chance to hear microtonal trumpet hero, Franz Hautzinger, play some astonishing more normal jazz solos. Jozef Novotny's electronics add just the right amount of eeriness to keep things from getting too normal. The thing that stands out most is Nagl's great writing and arrangements, which are excellent from beginning to the end. - BLG
Review courtesy of All About Jazz:
It would be a crying shame if the great musical mind of Austrian saxophonist/bandleader Max Nagl’s wide-ranging creative musical persona fails to garner more exposure here in the USA. With his large ensemble, the artist often surfaces as a modern day Gershwin coupled with elements of Mingus to complement his distinct persona. On this session, recorded live at the “Porgy & Bess” jazz venue in Vienna, the ensemble executes deceptively complex arrangements designed upon cheery motifs and an overriding sense of buoyancy. Nagl’s compositions span areas that bespeak lushly arranged motifs, to conjure up notions of spiritual bliss, along with mainstream swing and ballsy, blues vamps. Many of these depth-laden works maintain an airy vibe, and then on the flip side, the soloists occasionally render off-kilter phrasings along with hearty funk vibes and brassy horns. But Nagl’s disparate viewpoints largely make sense! In sum, it’s a gorgeously envisioned affair that transmits just one or two sides of Nagl’s high-echelon degree of artistic finesse. (A top ten pick for 2005.) |