Steve Kuhn

The trio's set began with a Tadd Dameron tune, "Super Jet". Both Kuhn and Finck are notable for their exploitation of their respective instruments' entire compasses. The pianist frequently drew upon widely spread chord voicings, with a penchant for arpeggiating up to the very top of the instrument. Finck, on the other hand, has a low C extension on his upright bass, and relished plumbing sepulchral depths with it. At other times, he soloed way up on the instrument's neck, favoring treacherously difficult glissandi that always landed true. Washington's drumming was enthusiastic but economical -- a wise choice given the relatively intimate confines of Merkin Hall.

Perhaps the most impressive tune of the set was Fats Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz". Kuhn put this piece through a kaleidoscopic array of tempo changes, presenting the dance in traditional incarnations as well as treating it to more modern reconstructions. Finck and Washington were unstinting in their support, facing the many metric hurdles with verve and ingenuity.

The Waller was followed by a breezy rendition of the Steve Swallow tune "Ladies in Mercedes", lithe, lively and playful. The first set concluded with a medley of two songs: "Sophisticated Lady" by Duke Ellington and "Airegin" by Sonny Rollins. While these compositions might seem like strange "med-fellows", my only regret was that more tunes weren't included in the first set, as the trio seemed to be hitting quite a stride by the end of "Airegin".

For the second half, Kuhn was joined on stage by Finck, conductor Carlos Franzetti (who also made the arrangements for Promises Kept) and a dozen string players. Almost any jazz-plus-strings project leans more heavily on ballads than uptempo numbers; a string ensemble is inherently less propulsive a backing band than horns or a rhythm section. The material on Promises Kept has an additional extramusical reason for the ruminative character of the compositions; Kuhn has dedicated the album to the memory of his parents, Hungarian immigrants from Budapest. As such, many of the pieces bridge the Old World sounds of romantic classical music and European folk music with the New World jazz language that Kuhn has embraced for much of his career.

"Promises Kept", for instance, had a gentle waltz as its main section, but was framed by a pensive introduction and exploratory chromatic passages. Kuhn's playing blends jazz chords with Rachmaninovian voicings. The string section was well prepared, playing with confidence and lustrous tone.

Franzetti not only led the ensemble with authority, but made some inventive choices with the arrangements that stepped outside the normally conservative parameters of such a project. "Trance" had an introduction that mirrored the language of Twentieth century Hungarian composer Bela Bartok (the most angst-filled portions of several pieces seemed to come in their introductions). Once the main section began, however, it settled into a style that was far closer to Sondheim. The most adventurous material came during the free-sounding introduction to "Oceans in the Sky", filled with glissandi, tremolos and a questing solo from Finck. Upon entering, Kuhn mirrored these tremolos in his left hand, on top of which he placed a modal melody in 6/8 time.

The concert proper ended with "Lullaby", a lovely and spacious number with a sweeping melody reminiscent of film music. The audience's enthusiastic applause warranted an encore -- and given the vociferous crowd, Kuhn was careful to caution that the ensemble had prepared only one encore. "Pastorale", a wistful piece in G-minor, brought the evening to an elegiac but satisfying conclusion.

Article by Christian Carey