backgroundmagazine.nl : Dharmawan – Anagnorisis
The Indonesian keyboard player Dwiki Dharmawan released in 2015 So Far So Close (see review). At the time I wrote that this is an album which proves most of all that fusion, jazz rock and progressive rock from the 70s and 80s is still very much alive! On this album you can hear a fine melting pot of all those styles. By all means, So Far, So Close is a very engaging and essential album for those who like the above mentioned musical styles. Highly recommended to those who love the music of Patrick Moraz, David Sancious, Al Di Meola, Return To Forever and Mahavishnu Orchestra. Ten years later he released Anagnorisis. The title is a Greek term meaning “recognition” or “discovery”.
Of course I was happy to receive a hard copy of this album. Because the earlier mentioned album was loved by myself a lot. And I would love to hear a same kind of album very much. However after listening to the album I discovered that this release had nothing in common with the album released ten years earlier. The melting of fusion, jazz rock and progressive rock from the 70s and 80s turned on this new album into a fusion of progressive world music, jazz, and Indonesian ethnic idioms.
Dharmawan recorded the album December 2024 at Sierra Studios in Athens, Greece, with support from the Indonesian Embassy. His collaborators during the recordings featured a blend of Indonesian and Greek musicians, notably including: Gilad Atzmon (UK/Israel) on sax and clarinet. Harris Lambrakis (Ney), Vironas Ntolas (Electric Guitar), Kimon Karoutzos (Upright Bass), and Nikos Sidirokastritis (Drums).
Together they created an album which takes a couple of time to listen to before you really can appreciate it. For the die-hard progressive rock fans there is nothing to enjoy. But for the more adventuress people like myself, you can still enjoy this album full of jazz kind of music.
You will hear pure instrumental jazz music instead of playful jazz-rock. Extensive improvisations instead of clearly recognizable rhythmic structures. Anyone more attuned to jazz and its unstructured nature will indeed come to the conclusion that this is, overall, a somewhat more restrained, not particularly dynamic, yet perfectly performed, but somehow quite typical and less complex jazz album. Dwiki Dharmawan passionate playing on the piano can easily be compared to that of Keith Jarrett. With his playing he paid much more homage to classic, free, and playful jazz. Next to his piano playing the album features a greater emphasis on flutes, bass clarinet and soprano saxophone.
I will not go deeper into the compositions separately. But I can tell you when you listen to this album that it is a treat for any experimental jazz enthusiast. But for those hoping for another album with exploring progressive jazz-rock will be disappointed by this Greek-Indonesian collaboration of highly talented jazz musicians.
Finally I’ll have to tell you that I think that Dwiki Dharmawan just wanted to come up with something which brought him back to his musical roots. Something he probably wanted to do for a very long time. Releasing an album with freely improvised jazz with Indonesian folk influences. Which is Anagnorisis by all means.
I will not rate this album and you can decide for yourself if this album should have been reviewed on this website or not. This review is also a kind of warning for people who know his other releases. Don’t expect another So Far So Close. Because it isn’t!
No Rating Henri Strik (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen)
source: https://www.backgroundmagazine.nl/CDreviews/DwikiDharmawanAnagnorisis.html
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