Asaf Harris Quartet

“I Thought I Was Ready”

(Asaf Harris Music – AHN001D – released in association with ECN Music)

Asaf Harris – tenor saxophone, Guy Moskovich – piano, Omri Ever Hadani – double bass, David Sirkis – drums
with guest Onn Yosef Kadosh – oud (track 8)

“I Thought I Was Ready” is the second release as a leader from the Israeli tenor saxophonist and composer Asaf Harris. His debut album “Walk of the Ducks” was released on the British label Ubuntu Music in 2022 and the UK connection continues with ECN Music handling the distribution of this latest release.

Harris is a graduate of the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City where he was mentored by jazz greats such as Dave Liebman, Billy Harper and Chris Cheek. A frequent award winner he represented the School at the 2019 AISJ Convention in Zagreb and in 2020 received the John Coltrane Award.

He is a long time member of the Big Band led by the esteemed Israeli saxophonist and composer Eli Degibri and is also a part of the co-operative trio KOMRADIN, which also features drummer / percussionist David Sirkis and oud player Onn Yosef Kadosh, who both appear on “I Thought I Was Ready”. KOMRADIN’S debut album “Qamar Al-Din” was released in 2024 and features a mix of jazz and Arab classical music.

Harris is a versatile artist who also composes orchestral works in addition to writing for the cinema. He wrote the scores for the films “Truth, Nothing But…” (2014), “Sulha” (2016), both directed by his father Eytan, a film cameraman and director.

Of these the soundtrack to “Sulha” is available for purchase (as are Harris’ solo albums and “Qamar Al-Din”) via Harris’ website http://www.asafharrismusic.com

Harris is also an educator who teaches at Israel Conservatory of Music and at the Tel Aviv-Yafo Music Centre.

Recorded in Tel Aviv in July 2023 “I Thought I Was Ready” builds upon the success of the acclaimed “Walk of the Ducks”, which also featured Moskovich, Hadani and Sirkis. However the debut was actually a quintet recording with the line-up also including guitarist Nisan Bar. There were also guest slots from Harris’ fellow saxophonists Yehonatan Cohen (soprano) and Yuval Drabkin (alto).

“I Thought I Was Ready” features the classic sound of the classic jazz quartet, with Kadosh’s oud only making its entrance on the final track. It would appear that Harris returned from New York to Israel at the time of the pandemic and that he has since remained in his homeland. However his years in the ‘Big Apple’ have certainly influenced his playing and the sound of the quartet is very contemporary and imbued with the kind of energy and urgency that one associates with the music of New York City. The music also includes elements from the music of the quartet’s homeland. It’s a distinctive amalgam but the overall impression is of top quality contemporary jazz seasoned with the flavours of Israel and the wider Middle East.

Harris says of his regular collaborators;
“Nothing in this music is forced.  The sound comes from the space we share and the way we listen to one another”.

The quartet is certainly a tight and cohesive unit and although Harris declares that nothing in the music is “forced” the musicians certainly play as if they have plenty of fire in their bellies. Harris’ sound on tenor is consistently fluent and incisive, he’s a hugely accomplished player in terms of technique and has clearly learnt well from his illustrious mentors. The rest of the group show a similar level of expertise, Moskovich delivers a number of impressive solos and Sirkis is skilled and dynamic presence behind the kit, with Hadani a consistently grounding presence on double bass.

It’s Harris’ intention that every track should tell a story, something that is perhaps reflective of his cinematic background. The album commences with the title tune which “looks at the difference between feeling prepared and truly being so”. On the evidence of this assured performance I don’t think Harris has too many problems in terms of preparedness. The piece is ushered in by a unison sax and piano melody with a folkish lilt that acts as the foundation for the subsequent collective development of the piece and the inventive soloing of both Harris and Moskovich. The pianist has also played with the great Israeli bassist and composer Avishai Cohen, which represents a considerable feather in his cap.

“I Don’t Know What’s Inside (but it’s got to be good)” takes its title from Harris’ New York days and a chance meeting with a homeless person as Harris waited in line outside the city’s Blue Note jazz venue. The music has a big city energy about it as the leader’s darting sax melody lines combine with Sirkis’ dynamic drumming and Moskovich’s urgent, percussive piano soloing. Harris later takes over on tenor, probing deeply and introducing flashes of Middle Eastern influences into his playing.

“Langa Grove” is inspired by the forest area in which Harris grew up and the music embraces a suitably nostalgic feel. The piece is ushered in by a passage of unaccompanied piano from Moskovich, his gently lilting arpeggios subsequently joined by the haunting sounds of bowed bass as Hadani picks up the melody, subsequently joined by the leader’s tenor. There’s a misty, gauzy quality to the music, but the sound later becomes more agitated as Harris digs more deeply, adding free jazz inspired hints of dissonance as Sirkis drops percussive bombs. Eventually calmness is restored as the piece resolves itself in serene fashion.

The pounding “Climbing Down” ups the energy levels once more with its urgent, fast moving rhythms and Harris’ exultant tenor sax soloing. Moskovich’s solo represents a mercurial outpouring of ideas while remaining intrinsically melodic. The consistently excellent Sirkis weighs in with a dazzling drum feature.

“Routes” is inspired by Harris’ musical beginnings and although slightly less frenetic overall than “Climbing Down” it still bristles with energy and purpose. The leader is in imperious form throughout and delivers a towering solo in the latter stages of the tune. Elsewhere there are moments of comparative repose with Moskovich taking the lead at piano before the temperature begins to rise again as he and Harris enter into a series of increasingly garrulous exchanges.

“The Story Of” is inspired by the Israeli popular musicians Yoni Rechter and Matti Caspi, both now in their seventies. It’s a charming piece, an affectionate tribute that combines lyrical balladry with an element of musical humour. Harris adopts a warm, ballad tone on tenor and the performance is also notable for a richly melodic solo from Hadani on double bass. There’s also a flowing piano solo from the consistently impressive Moskovich.

“Taqism” is a brief (fifty six seconds)  but engaging solo saxophone meditation.
It acts as a kind of intro for the closing “FCB”, which introduces the distinctive sound of Kadosh on oud, who shares front line duties with Harris’ strident tenor in a series of powerful exchanges fuelled by Sirkis’ forceful drumming. Eventually the energy dissipates and the album concludes relatively peacefully, providing what Harris describes as “a natural sense of closure”.

I’ll admit that haven’t found Harris’s music particularly easy to describe but I have found it hugely enjoyable and satisfying to listen too. He’s a superb saxophone soloist and an intelligent and consistently interesting writer. His efforts are enhanced by the playing of a top notch quartet with whom he has developed a strong and very impressive rapport. All impress individually but they also represent a very cohesive, but adventurous and often fiery, unit. The standard of the playing from everybody concerned is exceptional throughout.

Given Harris’ connections with Ubuntu and now with ECN it is to be hoped that he will visit the UK to play live at some point. He, and the rest of the band, are musicians that I would relish seeing performing in the live environment.

 

 

 

 

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