The Washington Post 3/26/06: Ned Rothenberg has long been one of the most inventive and consistently satisfying performer/composers on the New York new music scene, always exploring the edges (who else plays the Japanese shakuhachi in jazz?) and embarking on strange, evocative and ear-bending forays into the sonic unknown.
On Saturday night he brought his intriguing trio, Sync – with Samir Chatterjee on tablas and Jerome Harris on acoustic guitars -- to Takoma Park’s Sangha performance space. Rothenberg himself is a virtuosic winds player with a wide palette of multiphonics, circular breathing and other advanced techniques, all in service to one of the most distinctive musical imaginations around.
And the music – drawn from the trio’s two recordings, Port of Entry and Harbinger – was flat-out gorgeous, with a warmth not always found in contemporary music. Playing everything from alto sax to bass clarinet, Rothenberg launched adventurous, intricate solos that unfolded effortlessly through smoky blues and otherworldly squawks to intimate modal ruminations. His sense of line and drama is impeccable, and over Chatterjee’s roiling tabla-work and Harris’ introspective guitar lines, the effect was compelling.
At first glance, this variation on the standard drums/bass/winds set-up looks strained, like a blind date among world music idioms. And learned scholars may debate whether shakuhachi, brushed tablas and slide bass guitar will ever really click together. But this is unusually thoughtful music, and the subtleties of the tabla, along with Harris’ sinuous guitar work, beautifully complemented Rothenberg’s detailed, colorful and hyper-imaginative playing. Download the Rothenberg pdf