Open Ears in a Room Together
Six musicians meeting without a script, finding grooves that feel both deliberate and discovered.
Michel Portal brought together an unlikely ensemble for Baïlador (2010): Scott Colley on bass, Lionel Loueke on guitar, Ambrose Akinmusire on trumpet, Bojan Z on piano, and Jack DeJohnette behind the drums. The session itself was the point—no arrangements to follow, just six strong voices in a room trusting each other's instincts. Portal's bass clarinet anchors most of what happens here, woody and conversational rather than flashy, while Bojan Z's piano stays minimal, leaving space for ideas to breathe. What makes this work is restraint. DeJohnette never overplays; he shapes rather than drives. Akinmusire's trumpet enters sparingly, cutting through with dry tone and careful phrasing. Loueke's guitar meshes with the bass and piano in ways that suggest conversation more than solo spotlighting. The best moment is how these players seem to listen harder than they play—there's room for silence, for response, for real interaction instead of parallel monologues. Portal, a French reed master known for fearless contemporary work, treated this group as equals, not as backing. Baïlador has the feel of a working band that assembled once and captured something honest. It won't revolutionize anyone's thinking about jazz, but it's the sound of six experienced musicians choosing simplicity over complexity, and that choice, executed with this level of attention, becomes its own kind of generosity.
Who's playing
Scott Colleydouble bass
Michel Portalbass clarinet
Bojan Zpiano
Lionel Louekeguitar
Ambrose Akinmusiretrumpet
Jack DeJohnettedrums
Where next?
The musicians on this record
Parallel Realities 1978
Jack DeJohnette
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
When the Heart Emerges Glistening 2011
Ambrose Akinmusire
plays trumpet here
plays trumpet here
