JAZZ REVIEW : STEVE LACY TEAMS WITH WALDRON

For most jazz horn players, the prospect of performing with only the accompaniment of a piano is a thought just slightly less disturbing than walking on stage in underwear. But Tuesday night at Catalina’s Bar and Grill, soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy, neatly dressed in a business suit, displayed no apprehensions at all about working in a duo with pianist Mal Waldron.

Lacy and Waldron have worked together intermittently for nearly a decade, and their rare two night appearance in Los Angeles was a welcome opportunity to hear two of contemporary music’s unique voices in the revealing ambiance of a chamber jazz setting.

Arguably one of the three most influential performers (Sidney Bechet and John Coltrane are the others) in the history of his instrument, Lacy played with the angular, Lester Young-generated lines and odd interval leaps which are the virtual trademarks of his style. A beautifully articulated solo on Billy Strayhorn’s “A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing” confirmed that nearly three decades as an avant-garde stalwart have in no way diminished Lacy’s innate lyricism.

His more intensely rhythmic improvisations--especially on two Thelonious Monk pieces--were equally impressive. Working in split-second, intuitive interaction with Waldron’s massive clusters of sound and rhythm, Lacy pushed his horn to its limits, with squeals, honks, high harmonics slap tonguing and double-stop overblowing. It was a virtuosic performance on an instrument that can be the most crankily problematic of all the saxophones.

Waldron’s focus was not always quite as centered as Lacy’s--with some solos relying too heavily on clanging low register ostinatos and repetitious melodic sequences. At his best, however, especially on an untitled original ballad, Waldron’s rich chording and strong melodic line provided Lacy with a perfect counter.

The Lacy-Waldron booking was the latest surprise in Catalina’s growingly adventurous jazz scheduling. A standing-room-only crowd (with similarly sold out bookings for Wednesday night) seemed to indicate that the market for serious jazz programming may be expanding.