This album is ambitiously announced as being ”a musical exploration of cultural identity with universal resonance.
It lasts just under 40 minutes and left me wanting more. Only the opening track (of six) - Clattering (Kraków) - runs over 10 minutes but the impression is that any of the pieces could easily be substantially expanded.
‘Esz Kodesz’ is the work of Detriot born, London raised Alex Roth on guitar, effects who is ably backed by two highly regarded Polish musicians : multi-instrumentalist Wacław Zimpel on clarinets/electronics and Hubert Zemler on percussion.
Roth himself is a prolific composer and collaborator and the trio came together during his British Council supported residency at the Galicia Jewish Museum in Kraków in 2018.
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There’s a beautfully elegant, meandering quality to these instrumental works that evolved out of improvised sessions. The mood ranges from soporific Lullaby For Gajla (Warszawa) to the reverent Lord, Have Mercy (Lviv) with the controlled euphoria of the title track being the impressive centrepiece.
Alex Roth’s website
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