CD/Blu-Ray Review: Anthony Braxton - 12 COMP (ZIM) 2017

Anthony Braxton

12 COMP (ZIM) 2017

(Firehouse 12) firehouse12records.com/album/12-comp-zim-2017

When The Complete Dean Benedetti Recordings of Charlie Parker was released in 1990, a reviewer for Musician magazine admitted that he put several of the discs (out of seven) into his CD player and let them spin while he was sleeping. The idea was that, perhaps subliminally, he would receive further insight into the myriad lo-fi recordings of Parker. Benedetti didn't have enough space to record entire tunes so he settled for the crucial parts - the solos.

The writer's approach made sense. This was a box of seven CDs, which have become known as the Dead Sea Scrolls of jazz. In those pre-internet days, writers still depended on getting a hard copy of a release by mail. Deadlines were tight, so chances are there wasn't time to really dig hard into a massive work like that. Or else, I totally missed the artistic license that the writer took in describing the music. We're going back 31 years, after all.

As hard as it might be to penetrate the Benedetti set, it has nothing on 12 COMP (ZIM) 2017, a dozen new compositions by Anthony Braxton, each anywhere between 40 and 70 minutes each. (The physical edition of the set presents all the compositions on one Blu-Ray Disc. The link above offers the chance to purchase high-resolution digital files.) 

12 COMP (ZIM) 2017 came out in June and while they're have been some pieces written about it, neither of the two main domestic jazz publications have printed a review. Perhaps my peers have been spending the past several months trying to delve into the work, figuring out how to say more than a few over-arching descriptions of the music. It's quite a bit more involved than, for instance, Braxton's own massive Charlie Parker homage, the 11-disc Sextet (Parker) 1993. But the thought of listening to Mr. Braxton's work while sleeping doesn't really seem like a good idea for anyone who already has regular anxiety dreams. The better approach - copious notes, taken while listening.

ZIM Music is Braxton's newest system based on his Language Musics. It derives from gradient logics, which are aspects of music that continually change, such as tempo or color (brighter and brighter or darker and darker). The notation of the music includes "extraction notation" which is technically impossible to play and requires the musicians to "extract" something from the music in their improvisation. How the players react is what makes a gradient process out of the performance.

The instrumentation on the dozen compositions ranges from a sextet (two of the pieces), septet (six of them) and nonet (four pieces). None of the lineups include bass, drums or any percussion instrument. They do all include tuba (Dan Peck), which offers low end foundation and another voice to interact or clamor with the other players. All of them feature two harpists (Jacqui Kerrod with either Brandee Younger, Shelley Burgon or Miriam Overlach). Accordion (Adam Matlock), cello (Tomeka Reid) and violin (Jean Cook) also show up.

As far as fellow horns, longtime Braxton member Taylor Ho Bynum (brass) is a mainstay, but the nonet tracks also feature Stephanie Richards on trumpet and additional saxophonist  Ingrid Laubrock. Braxton himself plays his usual artillery of reeds - sopranino, alto and bass saxophones, contra-bass clarinet and probably a few others. When the dynamics change in a piece, he is often the first to come to the sonic surface, brandishing a different instrument than he had moments prior.

The music features many sonic shifts along the way. At various times, the harps create textures that sound like music boxes. They also play in a manner that was once used in film soundtracks to evoke a screen shift into a dream sequence. These pieces all seem to be united with the regular use of group crescendos and the use of long pauses or breaks in the middle of a piece. The latter seems like the silence that comes between movements of a symphony, though the music doesn't always follow that trajectory. Those elements present what could be considered recurring themes between each piece, but it's unclear whether that was Braxton's intention. 

A 16-page booklet comes with the Blu-ray, in which the composer tries to explain his methods. This often proves to be as enigmatic as the music, especially when Braxton presents numbered points that describe "a five part decision construct" used to play the music. The most illuminated point comes in #1111: "The page order in the ZIM MUSIC can be rearranged to keep the music fresh. This is possible because every notated page is two measures long..." Others directions are even more vague, the best being: "The train in the tunnel is getting closer and closer - in other words get out of the way fool [sic]." Challenging yes, but Braxton wants to have fun too.

"Composition 402," the first track, feels like it has the most sense of direction. (Although this one likely had a decent amount of rehearsal since it premiered in Poland before being recorded at Wake Forest University in 2017.) Braxton plays powerfully, as he does throughout the album, especially on alto, where his rapid technique still sounds jaw-dropping. Here it sounds like the group is "accompanying" him in a more traditional way. In "Composition 419" his alto sounds gentle and a bit lyrical. "Composition 415" might be the most memorable track since it holds together like a piece, with different movements or textures (or gradients) sprouting out of it. Like the others, it's marked by a lot of those pregnant pauses.

A dozen album-length compositions might be something that draws the attention of Braxton fanatics exclusively. But the musicians on this work - not all of them avant players - understand the gradient logics and bring a lot of contagious energy to the proceedings. One good example comes in "Composition 414" where the nonet sounds like they're playing backwards in the opening minutes. Elsewhere it's interesting to try and discern Braxton from Laubrock or Bynum from Richards, so close in spirit do they play. 12 Comp might be a major investment, but it's one that yields many dividends. 

Just don't put it on before bed.