SANT PAU 44 QUARTET

There is a story that tells how, on one occasion, Duke Ellington went to the coach in which Django Reinhardt lived and asked him : ‘Do you know what jazz is? I’ll tell you. It’s just a four-letter word’. He marked three beats in the air with his hand and turned once again to the brilliant guitarist to add:
‘Do you know the truth? Music, Django, music!’
And indeed, today, it seems contradictory and rather too daring to even attempt to pin down the meaning and scope of the word jazz, since the concept itself encompasses a libertarian spirit that makes this kind of music the antidote to routine, conformist attitudes and commercial bartering.
The music of Sant Pau 44 participates wholeheartedly in the inheritance of the Afro-American tradition, while also incorporating a number of modern elements and sounds, two aspects that seem to be perfectly familiar to the saxophone player Raúl Romo, who doubtless encountered them time and time again while he was studying jazz composition at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, in Boston.
To judge by what is on offer in this first album, the originality demonstrated in both the group’s compositions and playing clearly shows that the musicians here are fully committed to creativity, are not afraid to take risks and choose adventure over the safe course of standard North American sounds that can be easily identified by the public. The group’s compact sound, which is rooted in shared musical experiences of the past, and the original way in which they interpret each and every track, make it clear that the four members of the group are musicians with much musical experience which is the product of huge personal effort, rather than mere chance or clever television marketing. The clarity of Raúl’s phrasing and musical expressiveness with his high sax, the safe anchor provided for the structure of the tracks by the piano playing of Koldo Uriarte, the heat and sonority of Jose Izagirre’s bass and the musical landscapes created by Hasier Oleaga on the drums, all combine to establish the perfect basis for communication with the audience.
The group’s live performances confirm the maturity so evident in this album. Their concerts are like a breath of fresh air on today’s jazz scene, which has been somewhat stale of late.

XABIER PORTUGAL