(Avant-Garde / Modern Creative / Between the Lines) John Lindberg / Karl Berger - Duets 1 - 2006, FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

With roots in the vocalized timbre of the blues, the conversational nature of the duet has become commonplace in jazz. The conceptual inroads made in the post-war years further expanded traditional notions of rhythm, melody and harmony, allowing even greater expressive freedom for such intimate dialogues.
Coming from different generations but arriving at the same aesthetic outlook, pianist/vibraphonist Karl Berger and bassist John Lindberg share a proclivity for lyrically contemplative free jazz. Espousing the liberated lyricism of such icons as Ornette Coleman and Paul Bley, their dialogues are more cerebral than kinetic, often bordering on the impressionistic.
A key player in the halcyon days of the New Thing, Berger has performed and recorded with everyone from John McLaughlin, Dave Holland and Lee Konitz to Don Cherry, Marzette Watts and Clifford Thornton. Eschewing the typical four-mallet method, his vibraphone technique is linear in execution, much like his piano playing. An advocate of the melodic line rather than the chord, Berger's tonal view is readily espoused by Lindberg, making them a sympathetic pair.
An in-demand sideman and session leader in his own right, Lindberg is also a founding member of the erstwhile String Trio of New York. A resolute and melodious improviser, his playing is sublime one moment, intense the next. "In My Mind's Eye" demonstrates his capacity for both; beginning with mellifluous arco work, Lindberg quickly intensifies his attack with searing harmonics and torrid string rending.
Varying the instrumental palette over the course of the album, Berger switches between piano and vibraphone while Lindberg alternates between arco and pizzicato technique, lending a surprisingly varied patina to the session.
Akin to Ornette Coleman's Harmolodic theory, Lindberg and Berger share melodic, rhythmic and harmonic responsibilities equally. Their interpretation of Ornette's "Peace" is a case in point. Berger's vibes glide gently over and around Lindberg's rubato pulse. The structure of the tune is pliable, expanded and contracted by the pair's thematic interpolations of the melody.
Duets 1 provides the two masters a perfect forum for the exchange of ideas. Veering from the plaintive, tenderness of "Dakini" to the jagged angularity of "3-3-3-7," the duo explores a wealth of dynamic approaches. The title indicates a likely follow-up; one can only wonder where they'll venture next. ~ Troy Collins, AAJ

John Lindberg has been heard in a variety of groups over the years -- some with a pianist and some without a pianist, some with saxophonists or trumpeters and some without saxophonists or trumpeters. Lindberg, at his best, knows how to rise to the occasion, which is exactly what he does on Duets 1. This 2004 date finds the acoustic bassist forming a duo with German improviser Karl Berger -- who is heard on both acoustic piano and vibes -- and together, they deliver a mildly avant-garde album that is more inside (in a post-bop way) than outside but certainly has its share of abstraction. If you are an instrumentalist, duet recordings are not advisable unless you have a really strong rapport with your musical partner and know exactly what you are doing. That's because the more intimate the setting, the less room there is to hide; getting lost in the crowd is hardly an option when only two musicians are on board. But Lindberg and Berger have nothing to hide; they are skillful, seasoned improvisers (Berger turned 70 in 2005), and they enjoy a consistently strong rapport whether they are turning their attention to original material or Ornette Coleman's "Peace." Hearing Berger on both piano and vibes is a treat; he handles himself enjoyably well on both instruments. But whether one is hearing an acoustic bass/acoustic piano duet or an acoustic bass/vibes duet, there is no doubt that Lindberg and Berger are very much in sync. Nonetheless, Duets 1 might be a little too cerebral and abstract for some listeners -- at least those who don't have a taste for the avant-garde. But listeners who are not intimidated by the cerebral will find a lot to like about Lindberg's intimate duets with Berger. ~ Alex Henderson, AMG

Exact Audio Copy V0.99 prebeta 5 from 4. May 2009
EAC extraction logfile from 24. December 2009, 19:15
John Lindberg / Karl Berger / Duets 1
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