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5 albums that offer a glimpse into the world of John Zorn

If I have to quote Bulgakov, John Zorn creeps up like a killer with a knife, on a quiet street, in the middle of the night. He presses tonnes of information into my brain. I need months of listening, reading and digging, to fully grasp the magnitude of what’s happening. As it turns out, John Zorn is a whole separate universe, oddly intertwined with things already familiar to me. At least there’s something familiar to hold on to, I tell myself. And behind every project there is a ton of new things. I somehow manage.
Of course, everything begins with Masada, even though I’m not too sure about it. But that’s just my point of view. So, here it goes, five albums, which gently crack the door open:
Live at Tonic (Tzadik, 2001) – stories from a Manhattan club, sometime around the end of the ‘90s and the early ‘00s. It’s easy to play with musicians like that – a simple jazz quartet – John Zorn – alto saxophone, Dave Douglas – trumpet, Greg Kohen – double bass and Joey Baron –drums. I witnessed this very same group of people fill up the silence of a space with three-dimensional sound. I am not too sure how that miracle happens. But it does. John Zorn – Masada – Live at Tonic 1999 – Beeroth
Live in Seville (Tzadik, 2000) – simple proof of what is written above. Once again, a live recording of John Zorn – alto saxophone, Dave Douglas – trumpet, Greg Kohen – double bass and Joey Baron – drums, and maybe the first bit of proof of the power of John Zorn Tonic. A highly academic performance of the most complicated kind of music. Hazor
Lucifer (Tzadik, 2008) – a bigger group like Bar Kokhba Sextet, which includes Cyro Baptista – percussions, Joey Baron – drums, Greg Cohen – bass, Mark Feldman – violin, Erik Friedlanfer – cello, and Marc Ribot – guitar. Incredibly lyrical and multi-layered chamber music. It allows for freedom, so a lot more people can show their ideas within the set format. The interesting thing here is that the acoustic instruments prevail. A unique combination of violin, cello, contrabass and right opposite that – Marc Ribot’s guitar plus Cyro Baptista’s percussions and Joey Baron’s drums. Gediel
O’o (Tzadik, 2009) – here the formation is Dreamers and it consists of Cyro Baptista on percussions, Joey Baron on drums, Trevor Dunn on bass, Marc Ribot on guitars, Jamie Saft on keys and Kenny Wollesen on vibraphone. A celebration of melody, of reggae, of the groovy sound, not without the active involvement of old pal Jamie Saft. The good thing about John Zorn is that once he hears what his musicians are capable of, he lets them roam free. And they fly. An extremely lively and humoristic album. Now with Kenny Wollesen on the vibraphone. A simple flight, simple lightness. Capable people having fun. Here, of course, is the link- Little Bittern

John Zorn – Pellucidar – A Dreamers Fantabula (Tzadik, 2015) – here the Dreamers formation consists of Cyro Baptista on percussions, Joey Baron on drums, Trevor Dunn on bass, Marc Ribot on guitars, Jamie Saft on keys and Kenny Wollesen on the vibraphone and they are left to improvise (as much as the notes allow them to, of course) a lot more. This exact album I consider to be a form of revolution, a bridge between contemporary classical music and jazz. Gormenghast

*All cited albums are issued on John Zorn’s Tzadik label.
Instead of a postscript – the beauty and the poetry in John Zorn’s music are found in his live performances and lucky for us they will be happening in Europe very often over the next year and a half, including at this year’s edition of the Sarajevo jazz festival. Watch this space.

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