Customer Reviews

Masada 4

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the fourth in the series of John Zorn's 10 Masada quartet albums (plus, as far as I know, one live recording released by Jazz DCOR and few more released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik). The four musicians of Masada quartet (John Zorn - alto sax, Dave Douglas - trumpet, Joey Baron - drums, Greg Cohen - bass) are all masters of their instruments. They have recorded the ten albums in only a few studio sessions, all of which feature very, very passionate and inspired playing. All of the albums are beautifully played, with exquisite sense for measure and taste, the musicians bringing their instruments to the edge of possible (and beyond, as it often seems, it's awesome!) but their virtuosity never being self-serving. Many compositions sound like folk themes, there are a lot of emotions, a lot of melancholy or sense of longing, but also some 'smoking', joyous faster tracks. Ornette Coleman comes to mind in some slipped music references or in the general feeling of some tunes. "Dalet" is the title of this (fourth) album and originally, it was a "bonus" CD to people who purchased the previous three Masada records (named after the A-B-C of the Hebrew alphabet, namely "Alef", "Beit", and "Gimel"). And there lies the one and only reason for which I would hesitate to whole-heartedly recommend this record. Namely, the three compositions on it have only about 20 minutes of music combined (unlike an hour or so of the other nine Masada CDs). However, if you have heard any of the other Masada CDs, it is likely you will eventually get this one (because you will love it!). The entire series is so elaborately produced (with beautiful covers etc.) and just so breath-taking, that in preparation for a 1996 CD presentation of the first Masada quartet CD, at the local radio station (Radio Velika Gorica), I actually went to the Jewish Community Center in Zagreb and asked the Rabbi who was so kind to help me (thank you, Rabbi Moshe) try to decipher the concept behind it. I knew that Masada was a rock fortress on the shore of the Dead Sea, which served as the final outpost for the Jews against the invading Romans in the first century, but what about all these titles? It wasn't easy, but apparently they are derived from the Talmud and are a cross between Hebrew, Chaldeic and Aramaic words. The fact is that I do not know for sure, but fuelled with music I follow the most attractive of numerous historical references.

The entire series is dedicated to Asher Ginzberg (Ahad Ha'am), founding father of Cultural Zionism, and the beautiful quote from Gershom Scholem printed at the back of CDs makes perfect sense: "There is a life of tradition that does not merely consist of conservative preservation, the constant continuation of the spiritual and cultural possessions of a community. There is such a thing as a treasure hunt within tradition, which creates a living relationship to tradition and to which much of what is best in current Jewish consciousness is indebted, even where it was -- and is - expressed outside the framework of orthodoxy."

And if you EVER feel tempted to think that the compositions on 10 Masada albums get a bit repetitive, then try Zorn's Masada Chamber Ensembles and you will hear these beautiful songs rearranged and reinvented in the most impressive way (check out the Bar Kokhba, Zevulun and Issachar CDs).

This is the fourth in the series of John Zorn's 10 Masada quartet albums (plus, as far as I know, one live recording released by Jazz DCOR and few more released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik). The four masters of their instruments (John Zorn - alto sax, Dave Douglas - trumpet, Joey Baron - drums, Greg Cohen - bass) have recorded the ten albums in only a few studio sessions, all of which feature very, very passionate and inspired playing. The 10 albums are beautifully played, with exquisite sense for measure and taste, the musicians bringing their instruments to the edge of possible (and beyond, as it often seems, it's awesome!) but their virtuosity never being self-serving. Many compositions sound like folk themes, there's a lot of emotions, a lot of melancholy or sense of longing, but also some 'smoking', joyous faster tracks. Ornette Coleman comes to mind in some slipped music references or in the general feeling of some tunes.

"Dalet" is the title of this (fourth) album and originally, it was a "bonus" CD to people who purchased the previous three Masada records (named after the A-B-C of the Hebrew alphabet, namely "Alef", "Beit", and "Gimel"). Unlike an hour or so of music on each of the 9 other Masada albums, this one is over in just about 20 minutes. This fact is the reason for a single reservation I'd have in whole-heartedly recommending this record. However, if you have heard any of the other Masada CDs, it is likely you will eventually get this one (because you will love it!). The entire series is elaborately produced (with beautiful covers etc.) and dedicated to Asher Ginzberg (Ahad Ha'am), founding father of Cultural Zionism. Beautiful quote from Gershom Scholem printed at the back of CDs makes perfect sense: "There is a life of tradition that does not merely consist of conservative preservation, the constant continuation of the spiritual and cultural possessions of a community. There is such a thing as a treasure hunt within tradition, which creates a living relationship to tradition and to which much of what is best in current Jewish consciousness is indebted, even where it was -- and is - expressed outside the framework of orthodoxy."

Finally, in case you EVER feel tempted to think that the compositions on 10 Masada albums get a bit repetitive, do try Zorn's Masada Chamber Ensembles and you will hear these beautiful songs rearranged and reinvented in the most impressive way (check out Bar Kokhba, Zevulun , Issachar and Taboo And Exile CDs).

The other reviewer is sadly mistaken-- they must have gotten Masada 4 mixed up with one of Zorn's other discs. This is NOT ambient stuff. This is intense jazz to say the least. If you like the other Masada stuff this is absolutely indispensable (by far their best). Unfortunately it's only twenty minutes long, barely enough to play three songs, but what gems. Honestly, buy this album if you're any kind of an audiophile-- the tones are warm and beautiful. Or any other Masada album for that matter.

Originally only available to those who purchased the first three Masada albums (but since commercially released), "Dalet", the fourth Masada album, is an EP of sorts, with three songs from the same February 20, 1994 session that produced the first three albums. The band (John Zorn- alto sax, Dave Douglas- trumpet, Greg Cohen- bass, Joey Baron- drums) plays songs from Zorn's Masada book, a series of Jewish-scale based heads from which improvisation can take off. This band's strength lied in their ability to interact-- point/counterpoint improvisations from Zorn and Douglas, brilliant work beneath other musician's solos, etc.

The three pieces on this release are all quite good-- "Midbar" is built with longer and more dramatic themes and features an unusually bluesy improv from Zorn under which Baron eventually falls into a rock beat. "Mahlah" is a laid back midtempo piece that features fantastic soloing in particular from Douglas and a great patient building solo from Cohen that allows itself to come into its own slowly. "Zenan" is a drum feature and full of fire-- a strong, almost Middle Eastern theme and an uncharacteristically aggressive solo from Baron, who typically shows a mastery of subtlety with Masada-- I actually much prefer those solos to this one and find this to be the weak link on the record.

All in all, its a decent release, but its really quite unessential and awfully expensive for less than 20 minutes of music. If you must have everything, pick it up, but if you're looking for an introduction to Masada, check one of the other records (the second album, "Beit" or the recent live recording "50th Birthday Celebration Volume 7") first.

Keeping this simple: excellent music from Masada, though incredibly short, less than twenty minutes. Very enjoyable, so pay the import price if you want (or are a completist... it hurts to be a completist sometimes, doesn't it?) or buy something domestic... and cheaper... and longer...

Originally only available to those who purchased the first three Masada albums (but since commercially released), "Dalet", the fourth Masada album, is an EP of sorts, with three songs from the same February 20, 1994 session that produced the first three albums. The band (John Zorn- alto sax, Dave Douglas- trumpet, Greg Cohen- bass, Joey Baron- drums) plays songs from Zorn's Masada book, a series of Jewish-scale based heads from which improvisation can take off. This band's strength lied in their ability to interact-- point/counterpoint improvisations from Zorn and Douglas, brilliant work beneath other musician's solos, etc.

The three pieces on this release are all quite good-- "Midbar" is built with longer and more dramatic themes and features an unusually bluesy improv from Zorn under which Baron eventually falls into a rock beat. "Mahlah" is a laid back midtempo piece that features fantastic soloing in particular from Douglas and a great patient building solo from Cohen that allows itself to come into its own slowly. "Zenan" is a drum feature and full of fire-- a strong, almost Middle Eastern theme and an uncharacteristically aggressive solo from Baron, who typically shows a mastery of subtlety with Masada-- I actually much prefer those solos to this one and find this to be the weak link on the record.

All in all, its a decent release, but its really quite unessential and awfully expensive for less than 20 minutes of music. If you must have everything, pick it up, but if you're looking for an introduction to Masada, check one of the other records (the second album, "Beit" or the recent live recording "50th Birthday Celebration Volume 7") first.

Unlike the thrilling music which John Zorn usually produces, this album consists of ambient sound, and very soft sound at that. It appears to be an effort to see how little sound can be produced for an hour while still producing some sound. I find it more unlistenable than any other recorded work in the history of recorded sound. Obviously I am missing something about the intent or merits of the artist's vision. John Zorn is not dull, so somehow I seem to be unable to penetrate the merits of this effort.