Jazz at JAKI: Jan Alexander's Storm Before the Calm

Every situation needs a perspective. The appeal of some lies in the certainty that they are finite. Anticipating the calm will make you cherish the storm.

Actually, we talk about the calm before the storm. But on "Storm Before The Calm", pianist Jan Alexander reverses the order of events. His new album is a retrospective of his journey over the past ten years: from Amsterdam via Essen and Stockholm to Cologne, in which he brings together highs and lows, structure and chaos. His equally entertaining and adventurous compositions are brought to life by Anna Serierse (vocals), Julius van Rhee (alto saxophone), Teis Semey (electric guitar), Duy Luong (double bass/e-bass) and Karl-F. Degenhardt (drums) to life.

Alexander studied at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen, at the Conservatory in Amsterdam and at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, where he dedicated his 2021 thesis to odd meters, which he often uses in his pieces. However, this makes his compositions neither aloof nor unwieldy. They are certainly complex, but thanks to their melodic qualities make them well worth listening to.