JAZZ REVIEW : 6 Nations, 1 Percussive-Rich Sound at the Coach House
Stop the presses. There may yet be hope for mankind: Representatives of six nations from four continents found common ground Saturday at the Coach House in a harmonious demonstration of cooperation toward a common goal.
The group, assembled under the leadership of guitarists Jorge Strunz (from Costa Rica) and Ardeshir Farah (from Iran), pooled skills in a display of empathy that would bring shame to larger, better-known international organizations devoted to world unity.
The sextet included Mexican percussionist Luis Perez, Colombian bassist Guillermo Guzman, Cuban conguero Juanito (Long John) Oliva and drummer Paul Tchounga, from Cameroon. The six, working mainly from their recent album “Primal Magic,” created a percussive-rich sound, driven by the guitarists’ flamenco fireworks.
Strunz and Farah sped through blistering theme statements, sometimes in a seamless unison, sometimes in well-blended harmonies, or exchanged fiery lines that built on each succeeding trade.
Both are so alike in attack and virtuosity that, with eyes closed, it was difficult to tell which of them was taking a lead role and which was strumming in support.
Yet there were differences. Strunz propelled himself full-bore into his improvisations, starting at a fever-pitch and staying there with long, swirling lines, often variations on a single theme. Farah began his excursions with shorter, more lyrical lines beginning at a reserved dynamic level before building to a sizzling climax.
The two were at their best when working together, bringing a tune to a resounding climax, or inflating its intensity with exchanges that threatened to pop the strings right off their instruments.
Strunz’s “Amazonas” opened with Perez’s birdlike whistles that were given added depth by electronic effects. A duel between Oliva’s congas and drummer Tchouga ignited “MesoAmerica” before Farah cooled the conflict with strategically placed chording.
The long set suffered from the relentlessness of the rhythmic onslaught, though; it badly needed the kind of considered, though no less impassioned, guitar duets that grace Strunz and Farah’s “Misterio” recording (on the San Clemente-based AudioQuest label). The sustained energy level at the Coach House tended to make the last several tunes almost indistinguishable from each other.
Opening act Tuxedo Cowboy is more a folk ensemble than the country-classical hybrid that its name and instrumentation (cello, flute and guitar) would suggest. Though there were a couple of nice instrumental moments, the three seemed to have rhythmic problems when melding their disparate sounds. Worse yet, Montana-import Debra Anne writes and sings the kind of saccharine lyric that would have gotten the trio run out of even the most laid-back hootenanny era coffeehouse. Lucky for them, the Coach House audience was more forgiving.