Impassioned Improvisation From Brackeen

There’s an attractive duality in the play of pianist JoAnne Brackeen. When she improvises, beautifully melodious phrases contrast with echoing abstract lines and/or atonal harmonies to great, dramatic effect.

Playing her 21st city in almost as many days, Brackeen was in fine form despite the hectic pace and an unrehearsed drummer and bassist when she opened Tuesday at Catalina Bar & Grill. Sticking to familiar tunes and a single, blues-based original, she was a whirlwind of energy and invention, stamping standards in her own image with constantly varied theme statements and involved, impassioned improvisation.

The Ventura native, who cut her teeth on the Los Angeles jazz scene before moving on to New York and celebrated stints with Stan Getz and Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, has a thespian’s sense of drama. Seldom giving pause in her solos, she instead released a torrent of ideas that rolled forward on their own inertia. Her balance of dark and light, real and surreal gave serious jazz numbers such as Wayne Shorter’s “Nefertiti” particular impact.

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Brackeen used this approach on ballads (“Emily”), boogie, stride and walk rhythms. Her stride style, aired on “Just One of Those Things,” was particularly inviting, as straight, two-step chords veered left into modern, offbeat accents. Her rhythmic pace served to draw listeners in, and even in the most outside moments, served to point the way through the dissonance and cacophony.

Though bassist Putter Smith and drummer Ralph Penland were last-minute replacements for Brackeen’s usual trio mates (drummer Tony Reedus and bassist Ira Coleman had other commitments), they served her well. Smith, who had last played with Brackeen in the ‘50s when both were still legally minors, played simply, giving Brackeen plenty of room to work her magic. Penland took to mirroring and accenting the piano, and Brackeen occasionally returned the compliment with rhythmic reflections of her own.

Brackeen promised the audience she would include more originals as her six-night engagement progressed (she’s an equally ambitious composer), and no doubt, the trio will improve on its rapport. But the promise of this first night is clear: Brackeen is a must-hear for fans of daring improvisation.

* The JoAnne Brackeen Trio plays Catalina Bar & Grill, 640 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood; today-Sunday, 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. Cover $12 today and Sunday, $15 Friday-Saturday. (213) 466-2210.