Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Bévort 3: Live 2020-2021

Bévort 3: Live 2020-2021

By Ian Patterson
January 23, 2022
View read count

Twenty-five years on from her debut, A Live (Music Mecca, 1997), recorded at Copenhagen's Jazzhaus, Danish saxophonist

Pernille Bevort

saxophone, tenor
b.1966

" data-original-title="" title="">Pernille Bevort returns with another live outing. Live is only her second live recording as leader in that time, though 2021 did see the archival releases, in EP format, of a quartet performance from 1999 and another of Bévort heading a septet from 2002-2003. Live also marks the second release in fairly swift succession from Bévort 3, following 2021's self-produced On Fire, which earned the saxophonist a nomination in the Best Jazz Album category of the Danish Music Awards.

Bévort's regular rhythm team of bassist

Morten Ankarfeldt

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Morten Ankarfeldt and drummer

Espen Laub von Lillienskjold

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Espen Laub von Lillienskjold provide finely attuned accompaniment to the saxophonist's rhythmically supple, melodically framed forays. Whilst a chordless trio faces rhythmic challenges it also presents opportunities; Bévort 3 takes the bull by the horns, embracing the freedoms inherent in this particular trio format to revel in visceral interplay. And though the music stems from the post-bop language of the 1950s and 1960s, it never strays into boundless free-form improvisation; Bévort is essentially a composer who improvises, with melodic and rhythmic lines serving as both points of departure and guiding lights along the way.

The catchy bass ostinato and melodic hook of "Who's Got It" tees things up nicely for extended solos from Ankarfeldt and the leader, who then join in a gently stated vamp as von Lillienskjold ventures forth in the home stretch. Boppish bustle characterizes "Bevarro," with fast-waking bass and busy ride cymbal giving way to a spiky to-and-fro between drummer and saxophonist. Bévort is also adept at mixing it up, with astute changes of tempo and mood keeping the set fresh and enticing throughout. "Apricot Blossom" may begin and end as a brushes-steered mood piece, with the leader plying a lyrical course on soprano saxophone, but von Lillienskjold's switch to sticks kickstarts the trio, provoking a spirited response from Bévort.

Likewise, intro and outro of "Mit Fiktive Sommerhus" tell one tale—dark and brooding—while the trio's loose-limbed interplay in the mid-section, crowned by Bévort's keening explorations on soprano saxophone, tells another one entirely. "Trefoil," a typically playful Bévort composition, walks a quirky line between free-form abstraction, scurrying unison and unaccompanied tenor lyricism. The title track of Bévort's Trio Temptations (Gateway Music, 2014) and the pulsating "Minor Clues" from Perfect Organisation (Gateway Music, 2011) bring the best out of the leader, her burrowing solos unearthing a wealth of riches.

Bévort is equally compelling when dealing in fewer notes, as witnessed on her reading of the blues-inflected ballad "Theme for Ernie," penned by guitarist Fred Lacey in memory of

Ernie Henry

saxophone, alto
1926 - 1957

" data-original-title="" title="">Ernie Henry, and previously recorded by the likes of

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane,

McCoy Tyner

piano
1938 - 2020

" data-original-title="" title="">McCoy Tyner and

Joe Lovano

drums
b.1952

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Lovano. Bévort's seductive playing on these beautiful standard shares something of Lovano's warm tone and the tender lyricism of Lacey's former employer,

Lester Young

saxophone
1909 - 1959

" data-original-title="" title="">Lester Young.

Though the above-mentioned saxophonists are all part of a lineage that Bévort sits comfortably in, what is most striking about this impressive live set is just how distinctive her own voice is, even when drawing upon a time-honored lingua franca. Hopefully, it won't be another twenty-five years before Bévort's next live recording.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Who’s Got It: Apricot Blossom; Bevarro; Mit Fiktive Sommerhus; Trefoil; Trio Temptations; Minor Clues; Theme for Ernie.

Personnel

Pernille Bevort

saxophone, tenor

Morten Ankarfeldt

bass, acoustic

Espen Laub von Lillienskjold

drums

Album information

Title: Live 2020-2021 | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Gateway Music

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Shelly Manne, Alexis Cole & Susan Kr...
< Previous

Il Volo del Jazz 2021
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.