February 14–21, 2002

music picks|jazz

Tim Berne’s Hard Cell

Tim Berne’s world is marked by a sense of balance. But it’s a precarious, restive balance, an opposition of equal forces — not the stuff of thoughtless repose. In Berne’s music, uncharted freedom and intricate form collide, or collude, unpredictably; the only constants are ceaseless rigor and full-bore intensity, both present even during moments of relative calm. This was true as far back as 1974, when the alto saxophonist moved to New York to apprentice with Julius Hemphill. It’s even truer today, as Berne, 47, further hones a highly personalized comprovisational language, along with a handful of like-minded (but utterly distinctive) intrepid souls. Consider Open, Coma (Screwgun) — a dazzling new two-disc concert recording featuring frequent collaborators Marc Ducret and Herb Robertson along with the 10-piece Copenhagen Art Ensemble. Or look to last year’s The Shell Game (Thirsty Ear), which found Berne inventing vast electro-acoustic landscapes armed with nothing more than a trio (albeit one featuring keyboardist Craig Taborn and drummer Tom Rainey). This group, Hard Cell, often puts texture on par with tonality; their explorations run the gamut from ethereal Brian Eno fare to wicked Miles Davis funk. And they rarely cover the same ground twice.

—Nate Chinen

Mon., Feb. 18, 8 p.m., $15, Tritone, 1508 South St., 215-545-0475.