Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Free Jazz Group Wiesbaden: Frictions / Frictions Now
Free Jazz Group Wiesbaden: Frictions / Frictions Now
By
Peter Brötzmann
woodwinds1941 - 2023

Gunter Hampel
woodwindsb.1937

Manfred Schoof
trumpetb.1936

Alexander von Schlippenbach
pianob.1938
Twin mainstays of the quartet were trumpeter Michael Sell, who has gone on to become a respected contemporary composer, and reedman and sometime pianist Dieter Scherf, who has been inactive since the mid '70s. Guitarist Gerhard K?nig and drummer Wolfgang Schlick left similarly little trace. Given the lack of money associated with the genre, it's surprising that the outfit stayed together even as long as it did. But perhaps that is testament to the commitment and rightly held belief in what they were doing which lead to the pair of self issued discs which represent the unit's legacy.
Sell's darting trumpet still bears the hallmarks of his hard bop antecedents and, like Freddie Hubbard on

Ornette Coleman
saxophone, alto1930 - 2015

Milford Graves
drums1940 - 2021
As a group they sound ahead of their time. That's helped by the unconventional instrumentation and the swapping between instruments by everyone except Sell. The throbbing drums and guitar avoid steady meter. And while all anything goes between the composed segments, which take in tricky unisons and free-bop heads, the transitions convince as accomplished and natural. Some of the approaches are also novel such as the drone backing for a drum feature. However there are some aspects such as the post bop trumpet flurries and busy jazz rock guitar episodes which come across as dated.
The multifaceted "Frictions" -a continuous 37-minute cut -draws on compositions by both Sell and Scherf which are interpolated regularly within the kaleidoscopic expression. It starts in a vaguely menacing bucolic mood, with Scherf's tolling piano and Schlick's rumble offset by animated flute, presumably from K?nig. Thereafter changes come thick and fast, as the charts serve as launch pads for intense exchanges. Particularly exciting are the passages featuring alto saxophone and trumpet in parallel streams of consciousness.
They abandon scores entirely for the second session two years later, but at some cost to their individuality. "Frictions Now Part 1" places even greater emphasis on spontaneous interaction, although Sell's considered lines add structural elements. Simultaneous blowing of horns remains potent, but the free for all sounds more generic. "Frictions Now Part 2" seems fresh in its restraint, exploration of tone color, gradual cumulative development and textural variation with K?nig on double flute, and Scherf on oboe and the piano strings.
But notwithstanding any limitations, it's a great find. ">
Track Listing
Frictions; Frictions Now Part 1; Frictions Now Part 2.
Personnel
Michael Sell: trumpet; Dieter Scherf: alto saxophone, oboe, piano, shepherds flute, shenai, prepared trumpet, bamboo flute; Gerhard K?nig: guitar, prepared guitar, flute, double flute; Wolfgang Schlick: drums, metal.
Album information
Title: Frictions / Frictions Now | Year Released: 2015 | Record Label: NoBusiness Records
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