Three Point Shot

Jerry Bergonzi has been a saxophonist in great demand for quite some time, from his beginnings with Dave Brubeck until recently with John Abercrombie. But he still has never been able to make it really big. There are probably several reasons for this. He is an enthusiastic teacher who fills his students with enthusiasm. He is a professor at the New England Conservatory, but also teaches at the Berklee College of Music and at the state college in Mannheim, among other places. In additional, he has also written several important textbooks (they have been published by the publishing company Advance Music), which are basic works for saxophone students today. All of this leaves little time for long tours. He also works consistently on his own personal sound and always does completely without electronic aids as well as other populist measures such as covering songs that pop groups had success with on the charts. When he can be seen and heard in Europe, then he works with two musicians who are only known to connoisseurs in Germany. But Bergonzi knows exactly that they create an environment for him, which gives him all the freedom that a soloist needs in a small group without harmony instruments. And he proves with this "three-point shot" that he knows how to use this freedom in a unique and exciting way. Jacek Kochan began his career in the 70s of the last century, but he already moved to the U.S.A. a few years later and from there to Canada. He become established as a drummer in demand for Oliver Jones, Kenny Wheeler, John Abercrombie and others by 1995 and already got to know Bergonzi. He returned to Poland a bit later after that. Since that time, he has been accompanying musicians in Europe such as Greg Osby, Gary Thomas and Marc Copland, among others; quality just makes a name for itself. Piotr Lemanczyk, the youngest in the trio, has his own quartet project with Tim Hagans and plays in other bands alongside of Clarence Penn, Adam Pieronczyk and Jakob Dinesen, among others. One remarkable feature of his is that he not only accompanies solidly and brilliantly, but that he also has an impressive understanding of melodies. And that is exactly why you find so much pleasure in listening to his solos.