Jorge Rossy Vibes Trio

With Al Foster & Doug Weiss

In April 2016, the Jorge Rossy Vibes Quintet went on its first Tour. Al and Doug arrived in Barcelona one day before Pete and Mark did, so we spent that first day running over the repertoire of the quintet in trio format.  Our aim was just to remember the tunes and arrangements because it had been a while since we had last played them together back in September 2015 during the recording of the CD Stay There (Pirouet).

After playing some of the tunes and a couple of standards in trio, both Al and Doug suggested that we include a tune in trio each set because we all loved how it felt. In fact, we didn’t do that during the tour because it didn’t seem right to me to have Mark and Pete just waiting around the stage while we did our thing. I was also eager to play the music and the arrangement of the CD as well as other quintet arrangements.

Nevertheless the impression of that first rehearsal in trio never left me. I never forgot how easy it felt playing with just Doug and Al: it sounded complete, roomy, meaningful, relaxed, focused, intimate and conversational. It’s not a surprise if one considers what an amazing trio player Al Foster is. With his magical touch and constant flow of ideas, Al manages to create a landscape that shapes the tunes and gives a clear direction to the music, with constant new motifs appearing and engaging the soloist and the bass line.

Doug is also a supreme melody maker, and he creates textures and infectious grooves with Al that are really fun to play with.

The result is truly balanced triangle: the three parts share equal space and responsibility; the sound is airy, lyrical and mysterious, but also spontaneous and unpretentious. Jazz!

Jorge Rossy – Vibes & Marimba        Al Foster – Drums       Doug Weiss – Bass

Images (click to large img)