Tomas Fujiwara: Pith

  Percussionist Tomas Fujiwara leads his 7 Poets Trio, with Patricia Brennan on vibes and Tomeka Reid on cello, on the Out Of Your Head release Pith. Now, pith is a very interesting word, going back to before the 12th century. It originally meant a “central strand of spongy tissue in the stems of most vascular plants,” but came to also mean “the essential core”. These days, the word is most often heard as part of the adjective “pithy”. What does this have to do with the music, you may ask. The 7 Poets Trio dives right into the central conundrum of improvised music: with a given set of musicians, how can we balance their individuality and the need for group cohesion in a way that honors the music above all? That’s the pith of the situation. And the trio addresses that question with a series of delicately balanced and poised performances. Fujiwara composed all the material, save for Other, a collective free-for-all. His melodies serve as frameworks for inspired solos and dynamic interplay. As a teenager, Fujiwara studied with the great Boston drummer Alan Dawson before moving to New York to immerse himself in the scene there. His complex and inventive playing has enlivened many an ensemble, and he seems to be busy forming new ones all the time. The 7 Poets Trio is his latest venture, and it shows a lot of potential for further development. The imaginative cellist Tomeka Raid has quite a lot of tricks up her sleeves, from bass-like walking lines to extended arco technique. On the atmospheric and tempo-less Resolve, she delivers a ghostly sound with the bow while Fujiwara softly uses mallets on cymbals and drums. All the while Brennan is laying down an extended melodic line. Mysterious at first, the piece carefully turns into a peaceful ballad. Josho. with Fujiwara keeping a light and steady beat, is the most “jazzy” of his tunes, with Brennan and Reid each contributing succinct solos. On vibes, Brennan maintains a bright sound and a steady flow of ideas, making her a perfect foil to Fujiwara’s equally creative drumming. Pith is a thoroughly delightful release, highly recommended. 

Out Of Your Head OOYH 022; Patricia Brennan (vib) Tomeka Reid (clo) Tomas Fujiwara (d); New Haven, CT, April 15, 2023; Solace/Swelter/ Resolve/ Josho/ Other/ Breath;  38:44. www.outofyourheadrecords.com