Down to Earth
Rova:Orkestrova takes Coltrane's Ascension off the pedestal.
There is no shortage of opinion regarding John Coltrane's Ascension. The 40-minute free-jazz behemoth, recorded in 1965 by Trane's classic quartet supplemented by four extra saxophonists, two trumpeters and a second bassist, is undeniably one of the landmarks of free improvisation. More controversially, it's either the moment when Coltrane's experiments broke through to the next level of expression, unshackling him from the confines of traditional structure in order to chase his muse into transcendent freedom, or it's the beginning of the end, when the saxophonist became unhinged and forsook the beauty of jazz for atonal cacophony.
; "TRANING DAY: Rova's performance is the finale of Ars Nova's")
TRANING DAY: Rova's performance is the finale of Ars Nova's "Seraphic Light" series honoring Coltrane's 80th birthday. (CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION) |
In either case, it's considered the document of a moment: a single outpouring of emotion, unrepeatable (for better or for worse), groundbreaking but not a solid foundation. Coltrane never performed the piece again, and for 30 years, no one else apparently considered taking it up. After all, it's a performance, not a composition.
The members of the Rova Saxophone Quartet continued to think along those same lines, even as they prepared an arrangement of Ascension to celebrate its 30th anniversary 12 years ago. "The surprise for us at the 1995 concert was how strong the composition was," explains Rova co-founder Jon Raskin. It's a sentiment echoed by Larry Ochs in the liner notes to 2003's Electric Ascension (Atavistic). "Even though it was a very loose form, when we looked back at it in hindsight, it does whatever a good composition does. It defines a sonic space and creates an identity in which to improvise or perform."
The 1995 performance expanded the quartet into a large ensemble called Rova:Orkestrova. That initial arrangement re-created the original instrumentation, which surprised Rova by uncovering hidden structural pathways. "The original instrumentation," continues Raskin, "really ended up, not forcing you, but leading you to the sounds that Coltrane got. Going into it, I thought that it was this kind of piece that allowed you to push out beyond its structure, and in the end we thought the way to really move the piece around is to change the instrumentation up. That would free us up and allow different kinds of interactions and language to come in."
That idea led, eight years later, to Electric Ascension, a new arrangement that supplemented the Saxophone Quartet with two violins and a selection of electric and electronic instruments, much of which wouldn't have been available to Coltrane at the time of the original recording. The hour-plus performance that resulted found new, scintillating textures in its unusual combinations — far more in keeping with Coltrane's original intent than a strict homage that ignored the passage of time and modern developments would have been.
Violinists Carla Kihlstedt and Jenny Scheinman and guitarist Nels Cline, who has himself reinterpreted Coltrane's Interstellar Space, will return from the 2003 performance, while the rest of the lineup will be completed by an odd yet thrilling hodgepodge of experimenters: accordionist/electronic musician Andrea Parkins, turntablist Marina Rosenfeld, bassist Trevor Dunn and drummer Andrew Cyrille.
Tin Hat violinist Kihlstedt points out the seemingly obvious but overlooked fact that placing a piece like Ascension on an untouchable pedestal threatens to render it irrelevant. "It's such a cool idea to take that piece, that has such incredible historical significance, and bring it into its modern incarnation," Kihlstedt said. "Looking at it as a historical thing keeps it dead, and I think they've had the courage to let it change. It's like going to an annual religious occasion. You have to re-create it every time you do it. You can't just regurgitate it or you miss the point."
Two days before the Orkestrova performance, the Saxophone Quartet will perform a selection of recent works, including some new graphic scores the group is working on. The quartet performance is especially welcome considering that Rova has not performed in Philly for a long stretch
The pair of shows, in addition to being the finale of Ars Nova's "Seraphic Light" series honoring Coltrane's 80th birthday, will also help celebrate Rova's 30th. The group formed in 1977 and continues with three of their four original members. "For us it still remains a vital vehicle to create in," explains Raskin of Rova's longevity. "We're able to meet the creative needs of the members, basically. We're continually composing new works or creating new structures or collaborating with different people. If we didn't have anything to do, we'd probably just stop. But we have a bunch of interesting projects in front of us to do, so off we go."
Rova Saxophone Quartet plays Thu., Feb. 8, 8 p.m., free, with The Pavones and From Bacteria to Boys, The Rotunda, 4014 Walnut St.; and Rova:Orkestrova plays Sat., Feb. 10, 8 p.m., $30, International House, 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, www.arsnovaworkshop.com.
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