Melody Breaking Loose in Santa Cruz
Recognizable Brazilian melodies give way to fierce, explosive improvising between Perelman and Shipp.
Bendito of Santa Cruz is a duo session between tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman and pianist Matthew Shipp, recorded in 1996 and released on Cadence Jazz Records in 1997. The personnel is just the two of them, and that sparseness shapes everything. There is no rhythm section to hide behind, so each player has to carry the weight of the music in real time. I can't verify the specific studio or the exact session dates, so I won't guess at them, but the setup itself tells you what the record is about: two improvisers listening closely to each other.
Most of the material comes from Brazilian folk songs, which Perelman arranged and adapted. That is the key to the record's character. Melody is a high priority here. Perelman states recognizable tunes plainly before moving outside into much more intense and explosive playing. AllMusic reviewer Alex Henderson picked up on exactly this shape, and it is what makes the album easy to enter. You hear the song, then you hear it come apart.
As a place to start with Perelman, this is a good one if you like your saxophone raw but still tethered to a tune. It is not his most abstract work, and Shipp's playing is more grounded than in some of his later collaborations. Listeners who want pure free improvisation may find the folk frameworks a little reassuring, but the trade-off is a record that holds together well from first track to last.
Who's playing
Matthew Shipppiano
Ivo Perelmantenor saxophone
