Paul Blay / Germany 03.19.1974

A 1974 European recording where silence and tension intertwine, as the solitary poet speaks through “space.” This album is a live recording of the 1974 Trefpunkt Jazz Festival performance featuring the Canadian prodigy pianist Paul Bley. Capturing Bley in a transitional period after the dawn of free jazz in the 1960s, as he deepened his abstraction and lyricism, this is a highly valuable documentary. During this time, Bley had moved beyond the mere liberation of free jazz and was arriving at his own unique aesthetic of “speaking by reducing sound.” Melodies appear and disappear in fragments, and chords dissolve into the empty spaces. The tension that spreads between sounds, the presence amplified in the silence—all of it constitutes music. The performance also shows glimpses of a sensibility that would later become an important part of his repertoire, such as the works of Carla Bley and the compositions of Annette Peacock, leaving a strong impression of “constructed freedom” that goes beyond mere improvisation. The introspective quality unique to a solo performance and the sharp concentration characteristic of a live performance coexist beautifully. The recording, a rebroadcast with superb sound quality, perfectly captures the resonance of the piano and the atmosphere of the hall. Live At Treffpunkt Jazz Festival, Stuttgart, Germany March 19th, 1974 1. Medley Interval / Haarlem / Nothingness / Olhos de Gato / Short Taste / Ida Lupino 2. Mr Joy 3. Carla Paul Blay (piano) Glen Moore (bass, tracks 2 & 3)