Dann Zinn's "Shangri La"
Zinn’s website aptly describes his latest effort, “Although scholars don’t all agree on the origin of the word, dictionaries are united in their definition of Shangri-La: a remote, beautiful, imaginary place where life approaches perfection. Dann Zinn’s new trio release, Shangri La, like that mystical world, takes the listener far from the familiar humdrum and into a place of wonder and newness. Zinn (tenor and processed saxophones, wood flute), accompanied by Australian Chris Robinson on guitars and ukulele, and the great Peter Erskine on drums and percussion, fashions an inviting, often unpredictable musical experience on the Shangri La’s 11 tracks—nine self-composed, the others Zinn’s arrangements of music by Brahms, Puccini and, yes, Green Day.
Explaining why he chose to work within the bass-less trio format, Zinn says, “I was looking for a very open sound, where each timbre is very important, and each note and sound takes on a real importance and has its own space. I love the idea of three people communicating, and even the feel on stage is open and extremely dynamic. Plus, the challenge of problem solving when one takes out, maybe, the most critical part of the band, led the music into new areas. This added quite a bit of responsibility to each of the musicians. Perhaps real art thrives in these limitations. I wanted a tight, lean, spare sound and approach, but still beautiful and accessible. I was not interested in playing jazz per se, but wanted to get to the spirit of jazz, which to me is taking the tools of the jazz style and creating.”
Zinn’s choice of collaborators was no accident. “Peter Erskine is of course one of the most brilliant musicians of our generation,” he says. “He has played with all the greats in every style imaginable at the highest level. This recording combines so many sounds, grooves and textures, and requires such high listening skills, that Peter was my first choice, and did the most amazing job. What I didn’t expect was his uncanny ability to make everything feel so much better instantly—a musical facilitator. His musicality is off the charts! Chris Robinson is a one of a kind. He is brilliant in many styles of music, but holds allegiance only to his own instincts. Great feel, great with the loops, and just a phenomenal soloist. He’s my partner in crime, and this music is tailor made to fit his playing.”
Dann is a world class musician, known for his brilliant saxophone and flute playing, stunning compositions, and contribution to music education in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. Hailed as a “guru,” Zinn finds beauty in making music comes from constant reinventing and searching. In a recent article in the Oakland Magazine, The Zen of Zinn, Zinn says, “I love practicing myself. It’s one of the best parts of being a musician. We’re lucky to be able to do it. Digging for something new is what jazz is all about.” Zinn’s work has developed into a unique style. Having a sound of his own is tantamount to his creativity. By blending diverse influences, Zinn has made his music accessible, melodic, textured, and emotional in both intense and beautiful ways…”
Zinn’s new album, which can also be found on the Abstract Logix website, was similarly profiled… “Maybe we’ve had it all wrong about Shangri-La. Instead of viewing it as a fictional utopian locale, as laid out by author James Hilton in his famed Lost Horizon (Macmillan, 1933), it can be alternately viewed as a wide-open musical state of being waiting to be explored. That’s what saxophonist Dann Zinn seems to go for on this aptly-titled release. For this project, Zinn put together a flexible trio capable of blurring lines.
Atmospherics and solid-state jams exist simultaneously, peace and war work in the same space, empty canvases can turn busy at a moment’s notice, and the line between the scripted and the spontaneous is often hard to read. Zinn’s musical version of the titular idyllic wonderland is really as multi-dimensional as you can get.
Zinn and his partners on this journey—guitarist Chris Robinson and drumming icon Peter Erskine—are open-minded and open to anything. When these three get going, there’s no telling what they’ll do. Serenity gives way to heat (“Daydreams”); the raw and raunchy come to the surface (“Wanderlust”); a Green Day pop hit is re-imagined as a vehicle for wood flute (“Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life”); the allure of the matador comes into focus (“The Bullfighter”); and a state of questioning is explored to the fullest (“Rain”). Along the way, there are lots of sonic marvels and technical wonders to behold.
Zinn’s register-hopping groove creation during “Voodoo” is a gas, his epic battle with Robinson on “Wanderlust” is an obvious highlight, and his sensitive looks at dissimilar artists—Johannes Brahms, Giacomo Puccini, and Green Day—are each beautiful in their own way(s). Erskine, as always, can whisper or grind to perfection, and Robinson proves to be a man of many moods and colors. Have these three found the mystical realm they were looking for? There’s no way to truly answer that, but they’ve certainly carved out some great music that speaks to their strong chemistry and skills….”
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