Known as one of Europe’s finest jazz groups, the Marcin Wasilewski Trio certainly turned in a stellar performance at the Cadogan Hall on the penultimate day of the 2024 EFG London Jazz Festival.
Alternating between meditative, slow-building, and fast-paced pieces in their first set, (including Krzysztof Komeda’s ‘Sleep Safe and Warm’) the near telepathic communication between pianist Wasilewski, double bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michal Miskiewicz was clear for all to witness.
The Trio has perfected the art of blending the insistent with the contemplative; Kurkiewicz’s expressive acoustic bass soloing tastefully elaborated Wasilewski’s riffs, while Miskiewicz’s drumming decorously shaped the overall musical conversation.
Indeed, the London outing was a key date in the Trio’s 30th anniversary tour. In the time the band has been together they have not only substantially contributed to the ‘art of the trio’ (to borrow the title of a collection of Brad Mehldau albums), but have loaned their considerable collective strengths as a backing rhythm section to late trumpeter Tomasz Stanko and to tenor sax supremos Joe Lovano and Charles Lloyd.
Their second set was a tad more animated than the first with a cover of The Doors’ classic, ‘Riders On The Storm’ (from the En attendant album) and the Wasilewski originals, ‘Austin’ and ‘L’Amour Fou’ (from the Trio’s Arctic Riff collaboration with Joe Lovano).
The Marcin Wasilewski Trio’s live and recorded sound mirrors the classic ‘ECM sound’ characterised by impeccable sound engineering, warmth and aural spaciousness as essential production values. Their work follows in the footsteps of recordings such as the Keith Jarrett’s ‘Standards’ albums or John Taylor’s ‘Rosslyn’.
The encore piece, a warm interpretation of Prince’s hit song ‘Diamonds and Pearls’ brought the curtain down on a delightful evening.
