The striking opening track, 'Acclimation,' begins with Ware eestablishing the theme in a blistering tone before launching into a fenetic run through the range of his horn. Shipp immediately begins to flay the melody, peeling it away layer by layer, only to offer it back in jagged shards. Parker takes the riff even farther, shearing part the theme in an expansive, constantly evolving arco bass solo. Recent precussion addition Ibarra brings graceful texture to this heady mix. A former student of rythmic pioneer Milford Graves, Ibarra works her kit from all angles, creating a paplabnle sense of space within the composition with an array of bells, tiny cymbals and non-linear rhthmic digressions.
Book ended by complex, stumbling refrains and condensed solos, the feverish 'Antidromic' and 'Alignment' are perhaps the compositions most determined by form. Says Ware,"I've always been very aware of form. People sometimes say that this type of music is just random notes, that anything goes. That's just not the case at all. There's so much information being passed through this music-musical, philosophical, and metaphysical- and the motifs and melodies have their own direction about them. We've been playing together for so many years that our internal musical apparatus is able to just hone right in on these natural plateaus."
The sprawling 'Utopic' is Wisdom of Uncertainty's unquestionable centerpiece. Beginning serenely with the trio of Shipp, Parker and Ibarra. Shipp chips out the subtle, moving refrain while Parker bows out a stunning counterpoint over Ibarra's delicate shell of bells and chimes. Beyond their lengthy tenure in the Ware Quartet, Shipp and Parker remain rhythmic partners in Shipp's own trio and quartet, their own duo and in 1996, added their indelible stamp to Brazilian saxophonist Ivo Perelman's Cama de Terra disc (check their jaw-dropping duet on the title track for details). Over the years, the two have achieved an unspoken, highly developed language that here allows them to shadow each other almost unconsciously. Ware's lyrical entry begins on a grand note and soon gives way to an expansive, at times combustible solo that unlocks a range of emotions. An immense, wildly spiritual track, it's classic jazz in every sense of the term, and the David S. Ware Quartet has rarely sounded this beautiful or majestic.
'Utopic' speaks of people who are willing to explore the outer reaches of human experience and not be so willing to readily accept what the past has been and what society dictates that the human experience should be," Ware offers. "It's a dedication to those souls who are willing to take a risk and discover something fresh and something splendid-people who are willing to search themselves."
'Continuum' brings the album to a close and full circle., with the saxophonist stating the melody and then quickly giving it up to Shipp, Parker, and Ibarra to reconfigure, only to reclaim it with a forceful solo of his own. Like Wisdom of Uncertainty itself, it's the real deal-turbulent without being overwhelming, directed yet hardly restrained, and another high point in the constantly evolving scope of the David S. Ware Quartet. Grab hold while you can. -Matt Galloway, Toronto, May 1997
First, I got this album on a whim. I randomly got it because it was the first album by David S. Ware that I saw on amazon. I skimmed the tracks and read the reviews and they were all good so I decided to buy it. The David S. Ware Quartet is David S. Ware on saxophone, Matthew Shipp on piano, William Parker on bass, and Susie Ibarra on drums. This is my first real modern free-jazz studio recording. All the other free-jazz recordings I have are live performances. I can get a real sense of what they're reaching and trying to do here. For the most part, the tunes have a line, maybe two or three, then they kind of go off into what most people would say is 'random notes and playing', but we free-jazz fans wouldn't put it that way. The first two tracks are like that, they have an opening motif and then they kind of just go off into the outer limits of free-jazz saxophone, like a modern version of the late John Coltrane. But the third song in the middle of the album, 'Utopic' begins with a profound piano statement, then a bass thing, then the drums. Then Ware comes in with his saxophone, blaring and bracing us for the rest of the tune. There's lots of chimes and bells and stuff on the percussion side of things. It's a bold statement that enters into the spiritual realm, if one would ever go there with describing music. That first half of the album is spectacular.
The next half of the album opens with a tune called 'Alignment'. This starts with a rhythmic motif and then they stretch out on the theme, playing variations of it as the saxophone goes into the outer limits. The next tune, 'Sunbows Rainsets Blue' is a more somber and mellow tune that starts with a melody on the piano and has beautiful piano arpeggios. Then the saxophone comes in does its thang, so to speak. The melody is both beautiful and haunting at the same time in this piece, evoking many different emotions from the players. The drumming is especially interesting on this piece, all the cymbal flourishes are noticeable and add much to the piece. The last tune is called 'Continuum' and brings the album full circle. It was a chromatic kind of melody going up a scale, playing variations on that in the opening motif, before the saxophone comes in for extended improvisation. Later, the piano has its turn playing a solo. At the end of the tune, the drummer takes a solo. It's a tasteful, volley of snare and cymbal hits that sound great. Then they end it by repeating the chromatic theme of the piece.
I gotta say that buying this album was definitely worth it, buying it on a whim was risky but I love the album. I like how the drummer is a woman, she play's so amazingly! The drums on this album is almost like a painter, not so much just a time keeper, but someone who is adding colour to the the songs. I could have bought something more recent but realistically its interesting hearing how David S. Ware sounded when he was in the beginning phase of this Quartet. This is one of the better free-jazz experiences I've had, the others being Jack Dejohnette's Made in Chicago, Ornette Coleman's Hamburg concert in 1987, and the new lineup of the Art Ensemble of Chicago sometime in the 200s. Out of all of those, I would say this album is more rewarding, although Ornette Coleman live in 1987 was amazing too because the lineup consisted of Coleman, Don Cherry, Billy Higgins, and Charlie Haden. A lot of what this Quartet did back in the 90s, (this album was made in 1997) reminds me of what The Bad Plus
Also, Matthew Shipp's piano playing is similar to Ethan Iverson's (pianist for the Bad Plus). This album makes me definitely want to check out more. I've heard a lot of Ware's more recent stuff but I'll have to go back and listen to his earlier work. It's too bad that Ware died in 2012 of a blood infection. He was a great musician on the free-jazz scene, working as far back as the 1960's, with Cecil Taylor. Go buy this album. It was pretty cheap. This is basically my gateway into the free-jazz studio album world. I've heard Ornette Coleman's free-jazz album and John Coltrane's free-jazz stuff, but this is the first real modern free-jazz album I've got my hands on and I'm sure glad I got it. Great stuff man! This music inspires me to practice more on the guitar.
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