Review Transcending Beethoven, Vol 1 & Vol 2 on Jazzenzo

CD REVIEW + interview

StarkLinnemann - Transcending Beethoven, Volume 1 & Volume 2
instrumentation: Vol 1: Paul Stark piano; Maciej Domaradzki bass; Jonas Linnemann drums, percussion. Vol 2: ditto plus Iman Spaargaren tenor saxophone, clarinet
recorded: October 23 & 24, 2019, Ludwigsburg, Germany
released: December 16, 2020 and March 2021 (already available via website)
label: UCM Records
number of pieces: 4 + 4
duration: 56'43 + 46'49
website: starklinnemann.com - ucm-agency.nl
by: Georges Tonla Briquet

StarkLinnemann is not the only formation to celebrate Beethoven's two hundred and fiftieth birthday this year. They do it very thoroughly and extensively with the release of two separate CDs and concerts at various locations.

Cross-over
Pianist, composer, producer and musicologist Paul Stark and drummer and percussionist Jonas Linnemann have been playing music from classical composers such as Mussorgsky, Liszt and Chopin for a long time. But they also have a thing for jazz. Their cross-over between both worlds has always been positively received in the past. These two volumes with the music of Beethoven have become something different again, says Jonas Linnemann. “The difference is in the processing of the various percussion instruments. With previous albums we usually did this afterwards, but now I recorded them later in my home studio to give some more space to the experiment”.

No theatrical casting, but only the familiar jazz trio with bassist Maciej Domaradzki and for part two the quartet with the ever surprising Iman Spaargaren on tenor saxophone and clarinet as the fourth musician. The recordings took place day by day at the Bauer Studios in Ludwigsburg, a conscious choice, Linnemann explains. “This is the oldest studio in Germany where many legends including Miles Davis and Keith Jarrett have recorded their music. There is a perfectly maintained Steinway grand piano from 1924. Paul has fallen in love with that specific sound. The professionalism of sound engineer Philipp Heck and the good experience with the staff of the Bauer Studios always gives us the confidence to return”.

Experience
StarkLinnemann's approach can be caracterized as such: they retain the original classical mood but mix it with rhythms and harmonies from jazz. Influences from other continents occasionally trickle through and provide added value and additional perspectives. They themselves are happy to add some more musical information. “Beforehand, Paul makes a thorough study of the piece to be arranged by analyzing harmonies and form. Then there is the rehearsal of the original version with often very difficult virtuoso passages. This allows him to work through the piece as a classical pianist. Often only after months of study does the recomposition process start. Of course we also studied Beethoven as a person and the time in which he lived by reading scientific literature on the subject. This is important for getting a grip on the essence of his musical message. Where possible, we leave the original keys and form parts intact. Chords are modernized and melody lines made poppy or bluesy. Sometimes it happens that tones disappear from the melody or are just added again. It could be the case that a melody that has an even rhythm with Beethoven has a much more erratic character with syncopation and long and short note values. In our music it must always fit in a groove that feels natural to us. Improvising happens over the chord progressions. These are almost always derived from the harmonic sound of the original”.

Scherzo et trio
In concrete terms, this provides the following impressions. On Volume 1 ("Piano sonata Opus 28 - Pastorale") StarkLinnemann uses the allegro by means of light sound effects and small playfull melodies. The discovery of the rustic landscape can begin. Little John greets things, as it were. After a while, the piano gently makes the first ray of sunshine shine. Bassist and drummer carefully outline the framework in which everything takes place. A first exciting passage is built up by repetitive trance percussion, although always very delicately applied. Gradually things are getting faster thanks to a balanced crescendo structure. In the andante there is an underlying blues feeling coupled with a melancholic appearance, with again a parallel rollout of the storyline. From the very first notes, the scherzo et trio has been synonymous with a whirlwind of moments of action, including a drum solo. Finally, in the rondo, the small games of sonorities initially return and it could all be a bit more playful and even bigger. The pastoral in the title is not undermined by virtuoso exhibitionism, even though the technicality of the performers is beyond question. Impulsive and instinctive action and reaction ensure continuous involvement of the listener.

Sound artists
Quite different and yet not, is Volume 2, "Cello Sonata Opus 69 - Amid Tears And Sorrow". The fourth man makes the difference. Saxophonist and clarinetist Iman Spaargaren provides a professional diversion to a more explicit classical domain without the jazz patterns gradually becoming less powerful, on the contrary. In the first movement, for example, the ensemble continuously shuttles between the two styles, but always stays close to jazz. As the CD continues, they also smuggle in Afro-Cuban elements. The Scherzo et Trio is one of the most sober and intimate fragments, but also the only one that can be directly linked to the subtitle "Amid Tears And Sorrow". The closing rondo provides pure fireworks with Spaargaren on the loose when he radically sends the whole thing towards the bop.

The fact that the gentlemen grant themselves the title of "sound artists" appears to be right after listening to both CDs. You can also describe it as a sophisticated transfiguration from classical to jazz.

Nature
Why did Paul Stark and Jonas Linnemann choose these two opuses from Beethoven's enormous repertoire? Stark: “I studied Opus 28 years ago as a classical pianist. In that sense it was already completely under my skin. I love nature and wanted a composition in which images of nature and / or phenomena play a role musically. We have brought the pastoral character of Beethoven to a more modern plan by thinking more universally. In our version you may also be able to imagine African, Indian and American landscapes. Besides a piano sonata, I also longed to arrange a cello sonata. Hence "Opus 69". The combination of tenor sax and sometimes bowed bass works fine in my opinion to give shape to a cello in a different and more modern jazz way. I also thought it was very important that it didn't sound too artificial”.

Concerts
A first concert will take place in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw on October 25 *. In addition, you can experience it all again in Studio 15 of Stichting Ateliers in Tilburg (November 15 and December 20) and in Parkvilla in Alphen aan de Rijn (November 29). Unique is that the audience sits on stage together with the musicians.

* The concerts in Tilburg and Alphen aan de Rijn will continue. The concert in Amsterdam has been canceled due to the new measures regarding Covid-19.