JOHN ZORN NEW MASADA QUARTET
Village Vanguard178 7th Avenue South, New York 10014
John Zorn brings his New Masada Quartet to the Village Vanguard for an evening drawn from the Masada Songbooks, his expansive body of compositions. The quartet features Zorn on alto saxophone with guitarist Julian Lage, bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Kenny Wollesen. Re-formed with this lineup in 2019, the group approaches the Masada material through a mix of klezmer, jazz, Middle Eastern and classical musical roots, extending Zorn's description of the project as “Ornette Coleman with Jewish scales.”
Zorn is a New York experimentalist, and the New Masada Quartet is one of several ensembles carrying forward his Masada project. Tzadik calls these four players “like-minded virtuosi” and “one of the best groups Zorn has ever had.” Writing about a concert, The Arts Fuse singled out the quartet's “exceptional musicianship” and its ability to bridge “the accessible and avant-garde,” while observing that the original Masada quartet remains difficult to match for “pinpoint intensity.” All About Jazz hears the current band as “white hot and razor sharp,” driven by “burning solos” and “hypnotic grooves.”
A narrow basement staircase leads to a triangular room with a red curtain and a stage at the point, where musicians play for a small audience of 123. Tables open like spokes from the stage, and the walls hold portraits of jazz legends. The acoustics are excellent, and the only sound before the music begins is the hum of the room. No food is served, only drinks at a bar. Shows start at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., with seating beginning at 7:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. respectively. The atmosphere is focused entirely on the music, with silence requested before the concert begins.