Eichmann, Dietrich / Arnal, Jeff

The Temperature Dropped Again

Label: Leo Country: UK

"Part of what makes jazz unique is the interplay between the composed and the improvised, an interplay compellingly explored in Dietrich Eichmann and Jeff Arnal's new CD, The Temperature Dropped Again. Pianist Eichmann studied with Alexander von Schlippenbach in the early '80s and was initially a free jazz improviser, but then for twelve years he focused on composing. Recently he returned to improvisation, with a wealth of compositional acumen at his disposal. Arnal, a drummer and percussionist, also has a strong composing background as well as a dedication to improvised music, which includes frequent duets with spontaneous saxophone master Charles Gayle.

The recording is composed of two suites, 'The Temperature Dropped Again' and 'Four French Apparitions,' as well as '...durch offene Grenzen,' an impressive sixteen-minute exercise in energy. All the songs are improvisations determined by compositions, and within this framework Eichmann and Arnal cover a great deal of territory. Their intimacy with their instruments allows them to bring forth an array of fresh, unpredictable sounds; the music is alternately dissonant, meditative, industrial, lilting, explosive, and stark. In the first suite, 'Pendulum' is a particularly lovely piece, simultaneously lyrical and free, and 'Half Pint' works boldly with silence. The highlight is 'Four French Apparitions'; the four songs shimmer with delicacy and beauty as Eichmann's rapidly cascading high notes create an otherworldly sparkle of sound."-Florence Wetzel, All About Jazz