1. Worlds Beyond
2. Blues for Schubert
3. Chase
4. Afterthought
5. We Should Know Better
6-26. Faust (Soundtrack For Friedrich Murnau’s 1926 silent movie Faust)
Words Within Music:
Daniel Schnyder - Sax, flute
David Taylor - Bass trombone
Kenny Drew Jr. - Piano
While jazz has sometimes been labelled as America’s classical music,
the ongoing conundrum as to what emerges when jazz and classical styles
meet is evidenced by this recording.
Operating under the name Words Within Music, Schnyder, Taylor
and Drew Jr. use an improvisational give-and-take to move the pieces
forward, yet they are attached to the compositional structure of classical
music.
With Schnyder writing and arranging all the material, the disc has
two distinct components. In the section entitled Worlds Beyond,
the musicians engage in a musical dialogue emphasizing tone and voicing,
which takes advantage of the unusual blending of Schnyder’s soprano
saxophone and Turner’s bass trombone supported by Drew Jr.’s piano.
The names of the pieces are not particularly meaningful given that
they all form part of the prior-noted suite.
In 1926 Friedrich Murnau released the silent film Faust which
was based on the Goethe play of the same name. In this part of the
disc, Schnyder has written and adapted from classical sources (Handel,
Weber, Liszt, Wagner) musical pieces that are meant to develop the
plot, advance the story line and support the action, which are the
traditional expectations of movie music. The pieces vary in style,
length, structure and are elegantly played but, without actually seeing
the movie, one can only presume that these objectives have been accomplished.
The musicianship on this disc is unquestioned given the international
reputation of the individuals involved. The challenge is to find an
audience that will appreciate the nuances and blending of two distinct
musical styles.
Pierre Giroux
CD Reviews
Col Legno Jazz 
