A three-night celebration of Ornette Coleman, produced by noted photographer Jimmy Katz, culminated with a scintillating performance by a new trio led by sax great Joe Lovano and featuring the stellar rhythm tandem of bassist Cameron Brown and drummer Joey Baron. Premiering a new seven-movement suite of compositions written in the spirit of Coleman’s idiosyncratic music, Lovano’s Super Sonix Trio enthralled a packed house at the intimate Jazz Gallery with a stunning set marked by uncanny listening and uncommon empathy among the three kindred spirits.
Opening with Lovano’s “Etterno” (Ornette spelled backwards), the trio shifted nimbly from the meticulously crafted head, which had Baron and Brown glued to the charts, to an adventurous free section that had them closing their eyes and letting their intuition take over. Baron is especially effective in these freewheeling rubato scenarios. With remarkably keen instincts and sharply honed skills on the kit, he is able to propel the music forward with a surging pulse while simultaneously offering fractured fills and engaging in animated conversation with Lovano in the moment. Few other drummers are as adept at ‘leaping off the cliff’ and creating spontaneously as Baron is.
