Ralph Towner – Wspomnienie (cz. 1)

But it was a sad occasion, because Ralph Towner died on the 18th of January. A man who, we can say, squeezed out some very personal, or rather personal, maybe a better word, mark in the history of jazz, associated with the prestigious ECM label. And a man who, I think, created his own musical world, very atmospheric, very climatic. And I think that maybe this evening you will have a nice time with us, just listening to this music, which, I think, in this winter aura outside the window, maybe not the worst to introduce you. I think that the first piece is a little cute sounding, but on the other hand, I also think that having this element of this particular mood that Ralph Towner at least reminds me of.

somehow sounded interesting. Well, of course, we have to say where Ralph Towner came from to his listeners. He is an American born in the state of Washington, but never somehow this America and American music did not attract him very much, it attracted him more to Europe. Although he studied a bit in American music schools, he decided quite quickly to start his education in Europe, under the guise of a well-known jazz master at the time. And it can be said that this European tradition shaped him to the same extent as the American one. I would even say that the American one even a little less.

The Silence of a Candle, 1974, Ralph Towner. And here we can go a little deeper, I think, into Ralph Towner's instrumentarium, because this is also the subject of the river. Not only the character itself, but also the instruments he used. He was a multi-instrumentalist, so to speak, a person who She played a lot of interesting instruments, although quite common when it comes to jazz, but the virtuoso level Ralph Tauner achieved only on the guitar. And I think this piece is a bit surprising because we have here Ralph Tauner, the pianist.

And we come back to Brujo, which is a Spanish magician, magician. And maybe this piece has something magical in it, at least for me. But I think this piece is not only a good example of the sound of a 12-string guitar of this style, typical for Ralph Towner, but you can also see here the ability to cooperate with Ralph Towner with other musicians. I think he will also be remembered, at least I remember him as a musician who cooperated very well with his colleagues, musicians who who was a very good music partner for his co-workers. And I think you can hear it in this piece.

Because I think that this dialogue between John Obercrombie on an electric guitar and Ralph Towner on a classical guitar sounded very nice here. And this is, I think, something that resembles a conversation, just a regular conversation, a conversation of words, but written on instruments. And here I think that this conversation takes on such a magical dimension. I don't know about you, but I'm a fan of the introduction to this piece. It is a long, very extensive, magical introduction and only then does this piece start. It is an unusual, I think, example of such poetic music, which brings such a good atmosphere, but not quite.

There is also a bit of anxiety, a bit of melancholy. a little more difficult emotions, but in general this sweetness, such an unusual one, rises above this piece. And I think it also fits well into such winter evenings, like today. I think so, just as I am telling you about this Ralph Tauner, about this Ralph Tauner, just from the great letters, that this poetry of his music is also a kind of recognition sign. Something that I really appreciate, that is, such a simplicity. This music is not one-to-one, it's not exactly what it seems at first glance. Someone can feel it quite quickly and say, ah, it's quite boring, or ah, it's too refined or too complicated.

But I think it's not like that. Of course, this music is complicated, it is refined. It can be difficult for a listener who does not have enough energy after work to delve into such music, but I think it is just noticeable that it is not so difficult when it comes to reception. Despite the fact that it is indeed sublimated, it is refined, but I think that it is above all poetic. And this value of poetry makes it so that this threshold of entry into music is easy.

Thank you. Nimbus. And you know, Nimbus is a rain cloud. Well, today, at least over the boat, such rain clouds are rising a bit, so maybe a comment on the weather. Something like that. I like to refer to these atmospheric phenomena. But this song, apart from the fact that it probably comments well on such a sky from which it is about to rain or snow, it is just such a description, I think. Not only Ralf Tauner, but also the topic of co-workers is coming back, because we have Jan Garbarka, who plays the flute and the soprano saxophone here.

And I think he is also a very important co-worker when it comes to Ralf Tauner. And here, too, I think there is a nice dialogue between him and Jan Garbarka. But maybe closing the subject of Nimbus, although I was great, so to speak, I was listening to this song, it is some kind of very immersive, it draws very much into its specific atmosphere and follows these solos. I think it's not difficult, but it's very pleasant. But you have to get back to reality. And I just wanted to tell you, reading about the death of Ralph Towner, we come across an article in the New York Times. And there was such information that the music was very eclectic.

This is actually a symphonic album, but I think it's interesting here, we can say again some dialogue by Ralf Tauner, this time with a whole group of musicians, a large orchestra, a radio station from Stuttgart. Listen to how this dialogue plays out.

If you can compare it to this journey through the tunnel of fears, it is such a purifying journey, at least for me. And I hope that you listened to my conclusions during the day, even better Ralf Tauner, because there is a risk that Ralf Tauner will come back. We will probably dedicate two auditions to him, maybe even three. And I hope that this adventure with Ralf Tauner is not a tiring adventure. So we will slowly finish. Grażyna Bąk did not realize it. Besides, my dad is a guest today. He sits there and talks to Rembim, who will soon take over my place. So thanks for today and see you in a week.