It’s Still Autumn
Kepera Records (55 mins)
The collaboration between Iranian kamancheh spike-fiddle master Kayhan Kalhor and Dutch Baroque-jazz ensemble the Rembrandt Frerichs Trio has been a long time in the making: even the recordings that make up this album were made back in 2015.
The trio had been experimenting with Persian pieces alongside Baroque repertoire even before linking up with Kalhor, and when they’re all together, it’s easy to hear why. There’s unusual instrumentation going on here: Frerichs plays the fortepiano, a cousin of the piano that sounds closer to a harpsichord; Tony Overwater plays the violone, a large bass viol with frets; and Vinsent Planjer’s drums are a ‘whisper kit’ featuring antique-style drums. These timbres put them in a space beyond geography. Is that a piano or a santur? A double bass or some sort of giant oud? Together with Kalhor’s peerless kamancheh, at once fragile and powerful, the four musicians enter a unique sound-world.
It’s Still Autumn is split into two larger works – ‘Dawn’ (which contains five movements) and ‘Dusk’ (which is four). The former is quiet and beautiful, the music slowly waking up as if with the world; the latter has more of a hubbub about it, echoing urban environments in the more rhythmically focused sections. This album was definitely worth the wait; let’s hope the relationship continues to bear such exquisite fruit.