Igor Yakovenko Trio - Troika (2018)

I have been experimenting with different musicians for about ten years taking part in jazz piano trios. This format attracts me with a great degree of rhythmic and harmonic freedom. Unlike other traditional jazz combos, in this trio the piano ceases to play the role of an accompanying instrument. The pianist gets the opportunity to use the whole richness of timbres of the instrument, to implement non-standard polyphonic and chord ideas. The function of the double bass becomes more substantial: along with the lines of the quarter notes, the double bass player performs contrapuntal passages, constantly interacting with other members of the ensemble. Drums are not just maintaining pulsation, but have an active rhythmic interaction with other instruments. The principles described above were first applied by the ensemble of American pianist Bill Evans. Since the 1960s, these principles have been constantly developed by leading pianists: Keith Jarrett, Fred Hersch, Brad Mehldau, Aaron Parks and others. Such interaction of musicians in the ensemble can be compared with the verbal dialogue in which each participant expresses his or her point of view. The result of this dialogue is a consensus. Musically, this is reflected in the transition to the traditional jazz swing texture, emphasizing the original dance nature of this music.