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Tim Garland with Chick Corea
and the Northern Sinfonia

The Mystery

Audio-B ABCD 5020

The latest orchestral work from saxophonist Tim Garland (previous compositions include a BBC-commissioned saxophone concerto, a piano concerto and an LSO-commissioned overture) is a skilfully programmed set of pieces reflecting his various musical (and personal) enthusiasms.

Two Sakoba African Dance Company commissions, 'Who is Father Time?' and 'Romance for One', are discernibly informed by the narratives that inspired them, the former depicting (via the haunting use of bass flute) a 'mysterious masked figure' watching the world's mechanisation, the latter a woman's search for emotional equilibrium; there is a plangent traditional melody ('Icelandic Lullaby'); a couple of duets with Chick Corea ('The Mystery' unfolding into an orchestral piece, 'Monk's Mood' an absorbing duo exploration of the celebrated Monk tune); three 'abstractions' of Monk material; two relatively simple, touching melodies inspired by Garland's children; and an adventurous orchestral arrangement of Corea's 'Crystal Silence' that features an improvised introduction by Corea himself.

Throughout, Garland's saxophones (he is one of the surest-toned soprano players currently operating and his tenor playing is both subtle and assured) are artfully blended with striking, alternately delicate and robust orchestral colours so that each piece becomes an organic whole rather than (as too often in such projects) an uneasy confection in which shimmering strings are the icing on a relatively straightforward jazz cake.

Like Garland's work with Acoustic Triangle (or even his early band, Lammas), The Mystery does not so much blur boundaries as simply refuse to acknowledge their existence. An absorbing and adventurous 70 minutes of music.

Play a track (mp3 file)

The Mystery