The Onus
The Onus
© 1997 Onus Music
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Throwback instrumentation (clarinet-guitar frontline, plus piano, bass drums) meets modern jazz harmonies and repertoire (Joe Henderson, Stevie Wonder). 4 originals, 2 covers.
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Minutes into the opening set of a June '99 performance by The Onus at New York City's Soul Cafe, pianist Orrin Evans -- who, along with drummer Nasheet Waits, had trekked from the City of Brotherly Love to check out the ensemble -- was moved to smile and exclaim, "Now they sound like a band!"
Not lost on Evans, first runner-up in the 1999 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition, was that, in The Onus, bandleader and clarinetist Darryl Harper had achieved something somewhat rare in the contemporary world of modern jazz; namely, create a distinctive, sophisticated and engaging group sound. In the context of a jazz marketplace in which individual virtuosity often overshadows cumulative aesthetic value, Evans' remark, mundane on its face, conveyed a deep admiration for Harper's subtle, but heady, achievement.
Subtlety and brashness are, in fact, characteristics native to the soft-spoken, high-minded and mildly contrarian Harper, who began playing clarinet, as a six-year-old, at Philadelphia's Settlement Music School. Prior to obtaining a master's degree in jazz performance at Rutgers University, Harper had led bands both throughout high school and while attending Amherst College where he earned a Phi Beta Kappa key and summa cum laude honors in music. Animated by a love and admiration for the great working-bands (especially the ground-breaking Miles Davis quintet of the 60's) that achieved and sustained an exceptional level of musicality through empathetic communication, Harper, in the summer of 1996, set out to form an ensemble in the truest sense. The Onus -- Latin for "responsibility" -- is the irresistable result.
Fronted by Harper and fellow Rutgers jazz alumnus, guitarist Jeff Ray, The Onus achieves its singularly seductive sound in part through its marriage of "throwback" instrumentation, recalling the legendary Benny Goodman-Charlie Christian pairing, and a decidedly modern rhythmic and harmonic concept. Adding to the eclectic mix, an extensive and ever-expanding repertoire of original compositions, re-worked standards, and arrangements of "imported standards" (eg., Stevie Wonder's "Too High") provides fresh fodder for soulful improvisation, while exploiting the unusual tonal and textural possibilities supplied by the band's five instrumental voices. Just as critical to the aesthetic result is the degree of dynamic interaction within the ensemble. This "openness" is enabled both by Harper's imaginative writing and arranging and by the genuine musical camaraderie that exists among Harper, Ray and a dynamic rhythm section consisting of bassist Matthew Parrish, the venerable Philadelphia jazz/funk drummer Harry "Butch" Reed and, at different times, pianists Jason Shattil, Kyle Koehler and Harry Appelman.
Fortunately for those of us privileged to hear the results, Harper has created, in this band of gifted and genuinely artful musicians, a communal context that is conducive to expressing, in sincere artistic conversation, his own sophisticated and captivating voice. Much more than that, he has brought forth one of the most readily-identifiable and appealing group sounds on today's modern jazz scene.
The Onus made its recording debut in 1996 with a self-titled recording that captured in its infancy what is undoubtedly one of the most distinctive and infectious group sounds on today's modern jazz scene. The CD's program, which consists of four original compositions and Darryl Harper's novel arrangement of Stevie Wonder's "Too High" and Joe Henderson's "Inner Urge", establishes Harper's commitment, as a composer and arranger, to bringing fresh, thoughtful and diverse material to the fore.
There is the languid, mesmerizing mid-tempo groove of "Nina", the irresistable swing of the blues "DePriest", the bebop-funk reincarnation of "Too High", the dancing "How Now" (based on John Coltrane's groundbreaking "Giant Steps"), the burning piano-bass-drums rendering of the post-bop anthem "Inner Urge", and the soulful guitar-bass-drums treatment of the lilting ballad "Bliss." The Onus gives the listener an array of "looks", all the while maintaining a sound that, even with individual members sitting out on certain tracks, is distinctly its collective own.
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The Onus
author: Marcus NilssonGreat album. I just love the "How now" track. The clarinet phrases are exquisite and hot!, and there`s good fire behind the drummer too! Finally some energetic clarinet jazz. Great!