Piano for Nuria

by Ken DrydenHans Georg Brunner-Schwer didn't waste time in the studio when he had a rhythm section the likes of pianist Tete Montoliu, bassist Peter Trunk, and drummer Albert "Tootie" Heath. The three musicians, who were playing for a recorded studio meeting between tenor sax giants Ben Webster and Don Byas over two days in 1968, were simultaneously working on their own record date for Saba. The opening track is a startling original blues by Montoliu that mixes the flavor of Monk's dissonance with the Catalonian's own furious hard bop technique. Trunk contributed both the bluesy waltz "Tranquillogy" and the unpredictable "Visca l'Ampurda," which must have been a challenge to learn. Montoliu's approach to standards like "Alone Together" and "Speak Low" is more typical, while he tackles "I Surrender, Dear" as a solo. Unlike most recordings issued by Brunner-Schwer, the piano on this CD seems out of tune and slightly overmodulated, giving it a somewhat brittle sound. But Montoliu's breathtaking performances are able to overcome these minor blemishes.