By calling itself the International Hashva Orchestra, this straight-ahead jazz combo is being very ironic. International Hashva Orchestra sounds like the name of a big band that plays klezmer or traditional Jewish music, but there is no klezmer on All's Well -- this CD is acoustic jazz all the way. And Hashva, which only has five members, hardly qualifies as an orchestra. More important than the quintet's ironic name, of course, is its music. On All's Well, Hashva members Nat Su (alto sax), Mark Turner (tenor sax), Mike ...
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By calling itself the International Hashva Orchestra, this straight-ahead jazz combo is being very ironic. International Hashva Orchestra sounds like the name of a big band that plays klezmer or traditional Jewish music, but there is no klezmer on All's Well -- this CD is acoustic jazz all the way. And Hashva, which only has five members, hardly qualifies as an orchestra. More important than the quintet's ironic name, of course, is its music. On All's Well, Hashva members Nat Su (alto sax), Mark Turner (tenor sax), Mike Kanan (piano), Joe Martin (bass), and Jordi Rossy (drums) provide an intellectual blend of post-bop and cool jazz. The writing, most of it by Su, is competent, if unremarkable. Su's compositions show a fondness for Cool School icons like Lee Konitz, Lennie Tristano, Gerry Mulligan, and Warne Marsh, but All's Well doesn't sound like it was recorded in the late '40s or '50s -- post-bop developments of the '60s have affected Hashva as well. Although not earth-shattering, this is a respectable effort. And Hashva deserves credit for offering original material instead of inundating jazz fans with overdone standards that they have heard countless times. ~ Alex Henderson, Rovi
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