For his third album as a leader, pianist
Bojan Zulfikarpasic returns to his roots ("koreni" in Serbo-Croatian) and a music he rejected while growing up in the former Yugoslavia.
Koreni features
Zulfikarpasic surrounded by several regular collaborators, a few countrymen, and Turkish virtuoso
Kudsi Erguner, who plays the ney, a Middle Eastern reed flute. Settings vary from a piano/sax duo to an octet propelled by two basses. Often compared to
Wynton Kelly or
Bill Evans,
Zulfikarpasic proves that he can be at ease in any jazz context and that Balkan music possesses the required qualities to be a basis for improvisation. "Radio Bo," penned by drummer Tony Rabeson and performed by a traditional piano trio, is indeed deeply rooted in bebop. And "Sveti Boze" is surely the pianist's tour de force, an arrangement of a religious chant from the 14th century that is metamorphosed into a very open and free exploration. Other compositions rely on the uplifting quality that characterizes Eastern European dances. The entrancing and beautifully dark "Zulfikar-Pacha" and the closing march, "Satcha," are among the highlights. All the musicians should be credited for their contributions but a special mention goes to
Julien Lourau, whose powerful and fiery solos demonstrate that he is one of the most promising French saxophonists of his generation, and to
Kudsi Erguner, whose wooden and eerie sound on the ney adds a lot of texture.
Koreni is a testimony to
Bojan Zulfikarpasic's encyclopedic jazz knowledge and to his skills in meshing different genres. As a result, the music will appeal as much to jazz aficionados as to fans of Eastern European music. ~ Alain Drouot