Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Tyshawn Sorey Trio +1 (with Greg Osby): The Off-Off Broa...

Tyshawn Sorey Trio +1 (with Greg Osby): The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism

By Troy Dostert
December 13, 2022
View read count

Tyshawn Sorey Trio +1 (with Greg Osby): The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism

Even for a musician who thrives on unsettling expectations, Tyshawn Sorey's Mesmerism (Yeros7 Music, 2022) caught a lot of listeners by surprise. The inimitable drummer's recordings have long occupied that amorphous space between avant-garde jazz and contemporary classical music, and "accessibility" has rarely been the term of choice for his creative output. But utilizing a trio format including pianist

Aaron Diehl

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Aaron Diehl and bassist

Matt Brewer

bass
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Matt Brewer, the album offered six remarkable renderings of classic jazz repertoire, including such time-worn standards as "Autumn Leaves" and "Detour Ahead." Not only the material but the personnel choices were striking, as Diehl is perhaps best known for his work with vocalist

Cecile McLorin Salvant

vocals
b.1989

" data-original-title="" title="">Cecile McLorin Salvant, while Brewer has a resume that includes stints with

Terence Blanchard

trumpet
b.1962

" data-original-title="" title="">Terence Blanchard and Jeff "Tain" Watts. Even so, there is no mistaking the idiosyncratic touch Sorey and partners bring to the music, as the gorgeous but frequently abstract treatments are anything but a by-the-book exercise.

As excellent as Mesmerism is, what might be considered its follow-up, The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism, is even better. Recorded live at the Jazz Gallery in March 2022, the trio has effectively been expanded to a quartet, which now includes bassist

Russell Hall

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Russell Hall and alto saxophonist

Greg Osby

saxophone
b.1960

" data-original-title="" title="">Greg Osby. With Osby's assertive presence in the mix, there is now a more palpable urgency to the music, and the material feels more anchored in the jazz tradition. That's not to say that it has become any more predictable or routine, however—in fact, the sheer creativity on display is astonishing, and it amply justifies the generous three-and-a-half-hour runtime of the recording.

With an abundance of standards again on offer, including a scintillating version of

Cole Porter

composer / conductor
1891 - 1964

" data-original-title="" title="">Cole Porter's "Night and Day" to kick off the first set, the album gets its energy from the open-ended sense of play that characterizes each piece. Most of the tracks clock in at over ten minutes, which allows for plenty of arresting pivot points and fascinating digressions. Sorey can swing with the best of drummers, and he gets lots of opportunities to do that here, although his penchant for shifting the pulse and de-centering the rhythmic foundation of each tune are also in evidence. Diehl matches his versatility, with gestures ranging from grandiose to austere; his subtle shadings behind Osby on "Chelsea Bridge" are delicate and ruminative, but his thunderous torrents on the first take of Osby's own "Please Stand By" are rapturous. Hall's rhythmic versatility is itself a marvel, as he is able somehow to keep pace with the fluid peregrinations of the pieces, but his lyrical proclivities are also apparent, as he demonstrates on his nimble accompaniment and unhurried, meditative solo on

Andrew Hill

piano
1931 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Andrew Hill's "Ashes." And last but not least, of course, is Osby, who is in top form throughout. He can extract all the tender emotional content from "It Could Happen to You," but he can just as easily unleash a glorious tumult on

Miles Davis

trumpet
1926 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Miles Davis' "Solar."

Some of the tracks are repeated between sets, but this hardly diminishes their value; indeed, it provides an opportunity to witness the group's creativity in action. The two versions of Osby's "Please Stand By" are a case in point: whereas the first is fueled by a deep-seated groove under Osby's keening melody, the second has a looser, more propulsive feel, with Sorey's punchy fills leading the way. And "Three Little Words" in the first set is a showcase for Diehl, with his lovely rubato opening that paves the way for a sprawling, twenty-minute exploration, while the second set's version is more compact and tightly-structured, animated by an infectious, swinging tempo.

Listening to these musicians investigate jazz repertory with such imaginative zest is a reminder that the best jazz has always walked the line between reverence and reinvention. Sorey will in all likelihood always prioritize his more esoteric pursuits, but in the meantime, these reminders of his jazz roots are worth savoring.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

(Set 1): Night and Day; Please Stand By; Chelsea Bridge; Three Little Words; Mob Job; Ask Me Now; (Set 2): Out of Nowhere; Ashes; Please Stand By; Three Little Words; Jitterbug Waltz; Mob Job; It Could Happen to You; (Set 3): I Remember You; We��ll Be Together Again; Contemplation; Out of Nowhere; Solar; Ask Me Now.

Personnel

Tyshawn Sorey

drums

Greg Osby

saxophone

Aaron Diehl

piano

Russell Hall

bass

Album information

Title: The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Pi Recordings

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Learning the Art of Jazz, Part 2
< Previous

Jim Worsley's Best Jazz Albums Of 20...
Next >

Tyshawn Sorey Concerts

Dec 6 Sat

Peter Evans Being & Becoming

Solar Myth
Philadelphia, PA

Dec 7 Sun

Peter Evans Being & Becoming

Solar Myth
Philadelphia, PA

Dec 12 Fri

Tyshawn Sorey Trio

Firehouse 12
New Haven, CT

Feb 6 Fri

Tyshawn Sorey: Members, Don't Git Weary

Zellerbach Theatre
Philadelphia, PA

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.