Tamar Osborn, Yohannes Kebede, Will Glaser – 44:42
(Red Dust RDDST001. Album review by Adam Sieff)

One of the most creative and enjoyable regular events on the London jazz calendar, Moment’s Notice is an evening of improvised music performed in front of a live audience at AMP Studios in Peckham. Founded by photographer and author George Nelson in 2020, the format is the same each time with five invited musicians playing spontaneously improvised sets of 40 minutes in duo and trio lineups, before ending the evening all performing together. The long list of musicians and spoken word artists who have already taken part is a who’s who of the UK jazz and spoken word scene and includes visiting guests like Angel Bat Dawid and Ben LaMar Gay.

As Nelson said to John Bungey in a recent London Jazz News interview (LINK BELOW): ‘This is bottom-up improvisation, a leap into the unknown – infinite possibilities, no ceiling, no floor’.

“44:42” was recorded at the 9th Moment’s Notice event on September 8th 2021, (there have been 34 so far), and is the first release on Nelson’s Red Dust label, set up specifically to release them. The musicians are multi wind instrumentalist Tamar Osborn (playing baritone saxophone, clarinet and flute), drummer Will Glaser and keyboardist Yohannes Kebede, and their set (which lasted 44 minutes and 42 seconds) was recorded and mixed by Curtis Elvidge. It’s released on March 27th as a vinyl run of 300 units with a digital release to follow in the summer.

This is an enjoyable and absorbing listening experience, the music flowing freely through a number of sections before building to an exciting conclusion. There’s a great variation of sounds at play, Kebede’s keyboards range from analogue, squashy synthesisers and loops to pristine pianos and Osborn’s wind instruments cover the full range of frequencies. Glaser’s drums occasionally get a little lost in the mix but his contribution is always inventive, creating powerful grooves with baritone saxophone punching alongside pulsing synths and bass lines. Just as effective are the gentler moments, including Glaser’s conversation with Osborn’s flute, with Kebede’s keys adding warmth.

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This works well as an album, both in immersive listening on headphones and in a more ambient setting. It must have been exhilarating being in the room as it was happening, and this is as close as you can get.

LINK: John Bungey’s interview with George Nelson