Viktor Toth, Clayton Thomas, Macio Moretti at Barka (Krakow Autumn Jazz 2012; 25.10)

Clayton Thomas

Viktor Toth, Clayton Thomas and Macio Moretti have never nor player nor met before. Non entirely unusual situation on the improvised music scene - you play a tons of gis with guys you've never met before, possibly will never meet again, for better or worse. Representants of three different scenes and backgrounds (Budapest and free jazz, Berlin and radical free improv, Warsaw and indie rock) came together in Krakow for a special event that was born as an idea to be checked and presented on Krakow Autumn Jazz.

And as soon as they hit the first notes their different backgrouns are evident, Clayton Thomas plucks and slaps the strings with various objects, Viktor flows freely yet with a classic jazz feel through flying notes while Macio Moretti hits the punkish rhythm with a rock energy and punk attitude.

What's even more evident though is that those three meet together in the place and time to co-create an unique mixture of styles and influences that, while coloured with  all possible shades of the rainbow, mantains a surprsing cohesity, due to their egoless presence of mind and will to co-create and co-exist.

Viktor Toth

Each set has a short encore that's is a free jazz pleasure with fast bass walking, circus-mad fast hi-hat and breaknecking saxophone runs. The trio interchanges beetween heavy grooves and meditative, reflective melodies as well as searching, hipnotic ancient-like chants (Viktor, aside the saxophone plays a variety of wooden flutes).

There are moments of irresistible headbanging and laughter as well as those of enchanting, hypnotic beauty hidden but uncovered in the textural and timbral patterns, repetitive melodies (etheral sound of the string's aliquotes plucked gently with the fingetips of the mallets is something to behold).

Macio Moretti

The trio attracts the audience's attention both throuth the long and varied improvisation of the 1st set (plus the fast and furious free jazz ride short encore) as well as during the shorter, more coincise pieces in the 2nd one - a series of improvisation with a simple idea at the nucleon, a short phrase, a repetitive groove, a timbre or a a rhythm. And the syncronicity is picture perfect as they stop and go and play with the sudden breaks and broken rhythms and call and response like ebbs and flow till the point the only possible reaction is pure laughter (how often does music make you laugh with pure enjoyment?).

Improvising musicians meet with other improvising musicians to well .... improvise quite often (cause that's what they do) but I'd daresay that they rarely tick so quickly and so well both in rhythm and melody as did Viktor, Clayton and Macio yesterday. Which hopefully will make this event much more than just a "project" or a "collaboration" but will make this three a regular trio. For possible future enjoyment. 

Viktor Toth - alto sax, flutes
Clayton Thomas - double bass, objects
Macio Moretti - drums

Barka. Krakow Autumn Jazz 2012. 25.10.2012

ps. as there are no audio-visual materials available from the concert (for now), I invite you to have a listen to this playlist featuring fragment's of most recent cd by Viktor "Popping Bopping".

Jazz Alchemist Radio with Elifantree, Swedish Mobilia, Pink Freud and Viktor Toth

This time I'd like to present you four of the albums I've written about in the last few summer months. There's mix of energetic rock and melodic nu-jazz by Pink Freud "Horse and Power", the improvised heavy progressive rock by Swedish Mobilia "Knife, Fork and Spoon", the dynamic and energetic free bopping fun by Viktor Toth's Quartet from "Popping Bopping" and, last but not least, for something completely different, the undefined crazy and fun mixture of genres spiced with joyfull enthusiasm by Elifantree from "Time Out". Hope you'll like it.

1. Viktor Toth - Pocket-Ticket

2. Elifantre - Tic Toc

3. Pink Freud - Tickets, Buttons and Flyer

4. Swedish Mobilia - Knife Fork and Spoon

5. Viktor Toth - -39C Sunny / +29C Humid

6. Elifantree - The Eye

7. Swedish Mobilia - Pop-up Toaster

8. Viktor Toth - A Ballad for White Flowers

9. Elifantree - Puppet Show

10. Pink Freud - Pink Hot Loaded Guns

11. Swedish Mobilia - Moka

12. Swedish Mobilia - Preparation - 12 sec

13. Elifantree - How About a Little Love

14. Pink Freud - Zero Ending Story

15. Elifantree - Time Out

Jazz Alchemist radio 17/09/12 with Elifantree, Pink Freud, Swedish Mobilia & Viktor Toth by Jazzowy Alchemik on Mixcloud

Viktor Toth - Popping Bopping [BMC Records]

Viktor Toth - alto sax
Bart Maris - trumpet, effects
Matyas Szandai - double bass
Robert Mehmet Ikiz - drums

Laszlo Valik - mixing and live effects

Budapest Music Center Records 2011

Viktor Toth stirred the jazz scene and caught some attention with a series of trio/quartet releases featuring the one and only Hamid Drake on drums. Vivid, vigorous, dynamic music merged succesfully jazz of the Ornette Coleman's tradition and hungarian folk melodies. This particular release focus much more clearly on the jazz core of the music and brings a selection of powefull music played in the free-bop tradition of Ornette's classic quartet, with melodic themes, dynamic interplay, sharp and wild soloing.

"Pocket-Ticket" even in its title reminds slighly of the melodic bop tunes like "Humpty Dumpty" (same case with the shamelessly swinging at ease "Hong Kong" with some bluesy honking) - whole lot of fun. "My Home" is an enchanting ballad with beautifull, nostalgic melody played unisono by sax and trumpet.

The Cool Runnings Orchestra - Tribute to Marley [BMC]

The Cool Runnings Orchestra :
Carsten Daerr - piano, organ, fender rhodes, melodica
Hamid Drake - drums
Manu Codija - guitar
Christophe Monniot - alto, baritone and sopraniono saxophone
Michael Schiefel - voice, electronics
Matyas Szandai - double bass
Viktor Toth - alto saxophone

BMC (Budapest Music Center) Records 2011

How does Bob Marley's music fit with jazz? I don't really know, yet it is not surprising to see Hamid Drake involved in such a project. He has played reggae music over the years and his physical presence (dreadlocks and all) suggests strongly an affinity for rasta culture and the sunny music of Jamaica. An affinity which he shares, as this album proves, with other jazz musicians.