 By Sammy SteinÂ
A gayageum is a traditional Korean plucked zither with 12, 18, 21, or 25
strings. Historically made from paulownia wood, the instrument produces a
soft, delicate, resonant sound, the range of tone enhanced by having movable
bridges. Do Yeon Kim is an internationally recognised gayageum player who
has been key to bringing this instrument into contemporary music. Being a
plucked string instrument with a wooden body, it has percussive overtones
that make it versatile and able to blend with percussion or stringed
instruments.
On Wellspring (Tao Forms), Kim teams with Mat Maneri on viola, Tyshawn
Sorey on drums, and Henry Fraser on bass, and the result is a crazily
magical seven tracks, four composed by Kim and three group compositions.
The opening track, ‘The Beats of Distant Thunder,’ is a creative blending of
sound with plucked strings, flowing lines, and percussive distractions that
create a flow of energy from one musician to another. The breath-like ebb
and flow, along with a rise and fall in dynamics, make for a piece brimming
with interest. It feels like almost the perfect free playing match, as each
musician takes explorative themes, sees where they go, and passes the
concepts deftly to the rest. Sorey’s percussion is monumental on this track,
and the gayageum reveals a huge range of sounds.
‘Walking In The Dream’ is an enchanting blend of sung and spoken vocals and
sonorous, gutsy bass lines. It is a track that brings in essences of Crass
at times, with the shouted, meaningful vocals. On ‘Whispers Among Dawn,’ Kim
changes her 25-string gayageum for a 12-string one, and the sound is
distinctly more open. The interaction with the bass is mesmeric. On ‘Sun
Shower,’ Kim is back to her 25-string gayageum for a beautiful number with
interaction between viola and gayageum that becomes hard to differentiate at
times. Halfway through, Kim unleashes madcap vocals that align perfectly
with the multi-layered textures of the instruments. The sheer depth of the
controlled noise of the final third until it fades is worth listening to at
full volume.
On ‘Diffraction,’ Kim switches to the 12-string gayageum again, for a
dynamic, interactive track, followed by ‘Linear System’, which is so laden
with sound, it sounds like many instruments; it is hard to believe just one
is involved. It gets denser, and more layers seem to evolve until everyone
quietens and the vocals of Kim gently, almost tentatively, rise from the
near silence. The music builds again, then, with a cymbal crash and a bass,
it is gone, yet not quite. It moves into the final track, ‘Calculus for Our
Souls,’ which is the most atmospheric track of the album, with Kim’s vocals
singing, shouting, calling over the instruments, with Maneri’s viola adding
its own lines underneath before the drum and bass introduce even more layers
to this extraordinary music.
This is one heck of an album, with something for everyone, from free jazz
lovers to punk vocal style and hints of classical in the string lines. It is
mesmeric and different, yet there is also a familiarity – the sense of
musicians coming together and creating free jazz that does just what this
kind of music does – connects and communicates.
Kim says of the album that she was asking the question: How could she embody
the world through her music to create a powerful and lasting impression on
the listener?
Question answered: This album does exactly that. It is an expression of
primal force, encapsulated by musicians who understand what Kim needed and
wanted. The dynamics are beautiful, the communication sound, and the music
captivating.