Home » Jazz Articles » We Travel the Spaceways » Ivo Perelman: What A Year In Music

Ivo Perelman: What A Year In Music

View Slideshow

Courtesy John Sharpe

By Mark Corroto
September 29, 2024
View read count

Perelman and his guests, without a score or discussion before entering the recording space, create beauty out of thin air.

There is an adage in the music world that one is damned to be a completist. Ever since performances have been captured on cylinders, records, and now digitally, music devotees have endeavored to collect entire catalogs of their favorite musicians or ensembles. Think about the obsessive hunters of 78 rpm blues records from backwoods artists of the 1920s and '30s, Dean Benedetti's obsessive capture of

Charlie Parker

saxophone, alto
1920 - 1955

" data-original-title="" title="">Charlie Parker solos and Phil Schaap's dedication to every bit of Bird's minutia. There are the

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane obsessives and the

Miles Davis

trumpet
1926 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Miles Davis devotees; both groups search out radio broadcasts and concert bootlegs. Finally, two groups stand out among the obsessive collectors, they are Deadheads and

Sun Ra

piano
1914 - 1993

" data-original-title="" title="">Sun Ra zealots. Their obsession with hundreds, let us call it more like a thousand recordings is a lifetime of work for the completist.

Along the same lines, one is damned to be an

Ivo Perelman

saxophone, tenor
b.1961

" data-original-title="" title="">Ivo Perelman completist. Some say cursed; others would say damned lucky. Since 2014, while the tenor saxophonist has made just a handful of public performances, he has released, on average a half dozen studio recordings per year. This year, 2024, there are twelve new titles. Likened to your favorite podcast or maybe Major League Baseball team with its 162 games, Perelman always has something new for the ears. Here is an overview of his 2024 offerings.

A sampling of the saxophonist's work would not be complete without a

Matthew Shipp

piano
b.1960

" data-original-title="" title="">Matthew Shipp duo recording. Of the nearly 50 sessions the pair have recorded, almost half have been in a duo setting. Magical Incantation (Soul City Sounds) continues what seems like an ongoing dialogue between the Perelman and Shipp—one as confident and spontaneous as only two old friends can have. The pair expand their explorations with bassist

Mark Helias

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Mark Helias and drummer

Tom Rainey

drums
b.1957

" data-original-title="" title="">Tom Rainey, opening new worlds with Water Music (Rogueart).

The trilateral approach to music is explored with the legendary UK bassist

Barry Guy

bass, acoustic
b.1947

" data-original-title="" title="">Barry Guy and Spanish drummer

Ramón López

drums
b.1961

" data-original-title="" title="">Ram��n L��pez on Interaction (Ibeji). There are also two other trio's; a return of L��pez, plus Cuban-born, New York resident pianist

Aruán Ortiz

piano
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Aru��n Ortiz on Ephemeral Shapes (Fundacja Sluchaj) and Truth Seeker (Fundacja Sluchaj) with Mark Helias and Tom Rainey.

Of special note, Perelman adds vocalists with two releases, Vox Popoli Vox Dei (Mahakala) and Messa di Voce (Mahakala). The former matches the saxophonist with Czech violinist and vocalist

Iva Bittova

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Iva Bittova plus bassist

Michael Bisio

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Michael Bisio and on Messa di Voce Perelman is joined by

Joe Morris

bass, acoustic
b.1955

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Morris on bass, drummer Ramon L��pez, and the elegant voice of

Fay Victor

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Fay Victor. The addition of vocalists is a perfect fit for the sound of Perelman's saxophone language, which can best be described as one that mimics speech patterns.

The saxophonist invited two jazz legends, bassist

Reggie Workman

bass
b.1937

" data-original-title="" title="">Reggie Workman and drummer

Andrew Cyrille

drums
b.1939

" data-original-title="" title="">Andrew Cyrille to join with fellow saxophonist

Chad Fowler

saxophone
b.1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Chad Fowler for Embracing the Unknown (Mahakala Music) . As Troy Dostert writes, "(this release) brings a smile to one's face, especially after experiencing the many fine moments of collective music-making on this excellent release."

Finally, there are the duo performances in which the saxophonist and his guest create magic from seemingly nothing. Duologues 1 Turning Point (Ibeji) with Tom Rainey, Duologues 2-Joy (Ibeji) with violinist Gabby Fluke-Mogul, Duologues 3-"Crystal Clear" (Ibeji) with fellow saxophonist

Ingrid Laubrock

saxophone
b.1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Ingrid Laubrock, and Polarity 3 (Burning Ambulance) Pereleman's next installment with trumpeter

Nate Wooley

trumpet
b.1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Nate Wooley.

The magic here is the exploration of sound and the creation of music as alchemy. Perelman and his guests, without a score or discussion before entering the recording space, create beauty out of thin air.

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Michael Mayo, Mary Stallings, Kurt E...
< Previous

Live at Mezzrow
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.