Spontaneous jazz can sometimes sound lazy, and that is definitely not the case with Phil Bancroft's new suite 'Testimony', which is out now on the saxophonist's own Myriad Streams platform, just a few weeks after the launch of his trio album, 'The Beautiful Storm'.
What he recorded in that barn captures the resonance of the building and the horn together and it's simply mesmerising.
Ask any sax player and they will tell you that they have occasionally stood in a room and just played, to experience the acoustics of that moment. What Bancroft has done is capture that moment in his own barn when inspiration seems to have gripped him in a deep and significant way. Hearing the physicality of his playing (breaths taken, keys clanking) simply adds to the visceral nature of this suite.
Bancroft says: “Despite my initial reservations, I feel I have created something of merit that is very much my own work that captures more than just the notes formed in the moment and I am proud and excited to release it into the world.”
Solo sax has something of an ethereal, other-worldly sound to it, and that is more than ever true of Testimony, which was recorded in a barn during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown in 2021. Completely improvised, the suite nevertheless takes a structure of its own. Bancroft says: “I was exploring the amazing acoustics of the barn and trying to learn how to make videos for social media. So, I set up some cameras and a nice microphone and thought, ‘Let’s see what happens...’. I improvised with no intention or plan. To be honest, while I was playing, I was feeling that the whole thing was a waste of time, that I couldn’t play, my inner critic was in full flow.”
What he recorded in that barn captures the resonance of the building and the horn together and it's simply mesmerising.
Bancroft is a well-respected international sax player who hails from Scotland but has collaborated with musicians around the world. His Trio AAB, with twin Tom (drums) and Kevin Mackenzie (guitar) is much loved, and he has also just released his own trio album, The Beautiful Storm with Graeme Stephen (guitar) and Gyan Singh (percussion).
Ask any sax player and they will tell you that they have occasionally stood in a room and just played, to experience the acoustics of that moment. What Bancroft has done is capture that moment in his own barn when inspiration seems to have gripped him in a deep and significant way. Hearing the physicality of his playing (breaths taken, keys clanking) simply adds to the visceral nature of this suite.
Bancroft says: “Despite my initial reservations, I feel I have created something of merit that is very much my own work that captures more than just the notes formed in the moment and I am proud and excited to release it into the world.”
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