“I consider this one of my most richly lyrical and consistently inspired works,” wrote Keith Jarrett of “Mirrors”, the almost half-hour long concluding piece on Arbour Zena. “Jan Garbarek’s contribution is irreplaceable and ecstatic.” It is easy to agree that Arbour Zena as a whole is one of Jarrett’s most exceptional albums. Evocative writing for strings, beautiful playing by Keith and Jan and by Charlie Haden at his most soulful, and a glowing panoramic production make this 1975 recording one of the finest of the early ECMs.
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TRACKLIST
A1 Runes (Dedicated To The Unknown) 15:19
A2 Solara March (Dedicated To Pablo Casals And The Sun) 9:40
B Mirrors (Dedicated To My Teachers) 27:49
3 Reviews Hide Reviews Show Reviews
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Simply sublime.
I was astonished by the luminous beauty of this disc the first time I heard it. It is one of these rare 'hybrid' experiments, which works to miraculous effect. Imagine the opening: the Stuttgart String Orchestra provide a haunting backwash of melody, against which comes a hesitant, stray note from the piano, which appears to hang in the air like an icicle slowly melting. This is soon echoed by some broken fragments of bass, which do no more than hint at the depth of the piece. Garbarek's sax arcs over this, like a gull, then is gone. The beauty of 'Runes' is in the restraint, the hesitancy of long delayed melody lines, which when they struggle into completion achieve such a sense of release, that you feel blessed by such music. 'Solara March' picks up on some of the earlier themes and melody lines, and develops them further, with the trio now starting to make headway and direction, and 'Mirrors' completes this musical journey in an extended composition, where solos shimmer and disappear from the orchestral backcloth. A mesmerising and very beautiful album. Strongly recommended for all with ears to hear, and a heart that beats...
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Recommended
Classic ECM Lp, beautifully remastered and reissued on high quality vinyl.
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Addictive
I am addicted to "Runes" and "Mirrors", both of which draw me in and hold me fixed. ("Solara March" turns into a nice toe-tapper but it's not the profound experience of the other two, if you ask me.) Perhaps Haden (on bass) and Garbarek (on sax) were given some room to improvise, I don't know; but all of these pieces are basically careful compositions. I can't understand why Jarrett, when he can write music like this, wants to pound out those monotonous improvisations of his (as they have gotten to be sometimes).
