Jeremy Pelt The Artist

The centerpiece of this collection is an absorbing five-part suite inspired by Rodin’s sculptures. It finds New York trumpeter Jeremy Pelt in a sonically expansive mood, supplementing a core sextet with the adroit guitar of Alex Wintz and the prismatic Rhodes and effects of Frank LoCrasto. The four non-suite tracks, more steeped in acoustic jazz, bristle with the same energy and harmonic seeking. The new presence here is vibraphonist Chien Chien Lu, who makes an outsize contribution both as a captivating improviser and as a colorful and attentive ensemble player (on marimba as well, particularly effective in doubling the basslines of Vicente Archer). She lends Pelt’s music a certain Bobby Hutcherson-like flavor, shimmering and thoroughly modern. Pianist Victor Gould swings and stretches out with authority; drummer Allan Mednard and percussionist Ismel Wignall give a three-dimensional quality to every groove. And Pelt achieves some of his most commanding and lyrical trumpet playing on record.

Showcasing a five-part suite based on the work of French sculptor Auguste Rodin, Jeremy Pelt's 2019 album, The Artist, finds the trumpeter translating his love of the visual arts into a set of deeply textured compositions that touch upon harmonically rich modalism, driving post-bop, and lyrical balladry.