by John Henry
Frank Glover
ABACUS
***** (5 Star Rating)
Frank Glover is an Indianapolis-based musician not well-known elsewhere. For his second Owl album he has fashioned a three-movement symphony-concerto that mixes jazz improvisation with modern classical writing. There are nine separate tracks listed, but everything fits together as more of a single musical story with much variety but a cohesive thread going thru the whole thing. The general melodic style is less tonal than Billy Childs’ album, but full of fascinating instrumental colors and feelings. Glover is inspired in his soprano sax work by John Coltrane, but his clarinet is at the fore on most of the tracks. His second movement is titled “Ballerina” and is the longest as well as more moving section of the work. Pianist Zach Lapidus has a lovely solo, joined later by the French horn. The title tune, which is one of the four that make up the first movement, was inspired by the clicking of the beads on the ancient mathematical device, the Abacus; this becomes the sound of the marimba. Memories of a trip to the ancient town of Salamanca in western Spain becomes a lyrical respite between two more intense tunes in the third movement of the work. Although this is basically a concerto pitting Glover’s quartet (which he calls Kihlo) against the orchestra, it sounds quite different from other such efforts.
Glover’s impressive soundscapes bear repeated hearings to reveal their unique stories. Top-quality sonics aid one’s effort.