The Bannau Trio

“Points of View”

(Whirlwind Recordings WR4645)

Welsh born vocalist, songwriter and lyricist Nia Lynn is now based in London but retains a love for her homeland that is reflected in the name of her long running chamber jazz ensemble The Bannau Trio , Bannau meaning beacon as in Bannau Brycheiniog (or Brecon Beacons), Lynn’s birthplace. Founded in 2005 the trio also includes flautist Gareth Lockrane and pianist Ross Stanley, the latter equally well known as one of the UK’s leading Hammond organists.

“Points of View” is the trio’s third album following two previous releases on 33 Records. It was recorded live at The Forge venue in London’s Camden Town district, also the location for piano trio Phronesis’ breakthrough album “Alive”. I was fortunate enough to witness the Bannau Trio at a performance at Black Mountain Jazz in Abergavenny back in 2009 playing material from the group’s first two albums. “Points of View” features a whole new repertoire which mixes Lynn’s original songs and vocalese collaborations with a selection of carefully chosen jazz, pop and rock covers.

The inspiration for the Bannau trio originally came from singer Norma Winstone’s classic ECM album “Somewhere Called Home” which featured a similar instrumental line up of Tony Coe (reeds) and John Taylor (piano). Winstone still runs a similar trio which now sees her collaborating with reeds player Klaus Gesing and pianist Gauco Venier and this line up has recorded a series of excellent albums for ECM. It’s therefore highly appropriate that Winstone should make an appearance on this latest Bannau Trio guesting on the Nikki Iles / Nia Lynn collaboration “Upon The Hill”.

As well as being a fine interpreter of a lyric Lynn is also a gifted improviser with a highly defined wordless vocal technique, inspired in part by her mentor Winstone. This aspect of her singing is superbly demonstrated on the opening “Renewal”, a breezy and delightful interpretation of a tune by Ralph Towner. Lynn’s flexible vocals dovetail neatly with Stanley’s piano and Lockrane’s various flutes with both instrumentalists also getting the chance to shine.

The songs of Tom Waits are surprisingly popular with female vocalists, Waits’ songs are strong enough in their own right not to need his own distinctive growl to make them work. The trio’s choice here is “Soldier’s Things” from Waits’ seminal album “Swordfishtrombones”.  The trio retain the feel of Waits’ original and there’s an unexpected earthiness about the singing and the playing as the adventurous arrangement sees the trio stretching out and taking the tune to some appropriately exotic places. The Forge audience clearly loved it and the piece serves as an excellent example of the trio’s principle of expressing “the freedom to roam with melody, time and texture, to draw on the influences of folk and jazz along with that of the original work”.

Lynn’s “Linger” is the first of the original songs, her words and music exhibiting the influence of folk melody and Winstone’s lyric writing. However the Bannau Trio is not just about Lynn, this is a highly interactive unit and both Stanley and Lockrane are essentially equal partners and crucial to the music’s success. Both make substantial contributions here, adding greatly to the atmosphere of the piece whilst exhibiting an admirable instrumental virtuosity.

Norma Winstone joins the group for “Upon The Hill”, a song featuring Lynn’s words and the music of pianist Nikki Iles, Winstone’s collaborator in the Printmakers ensemble. The wordless vocals of the two women combine superbly on Iles’ hymn like tune, carefully paced by Stanley’s piano and supplemented by the rich timbres of Lockrane’s flute. The latter half of the tune also features a succinct and moving Lynn lyric.

“Two Points of View”, effectively the title track, sees Lynn adding words to a tune by pianist Gwilym Simcock. Stanley provides a lyrical solo that Simcock himself would be proud of and then combines beautifully with Lockrane’s warmly rounded flute.

These two also impress on John Lee’s tune “Harriet” with its adventurous progressions and harmonies. Lockrane produces an impressive range of sounds from his various flutes throughout the album, this piece even features some Roland Kirk / Jethro Tull style vocalisations. Lynn’s contribution here is wordless but effective, but this piece, a kind of darker cousin to Towner’s opener, is mainly focussed on the instrumentalists.

Anthony Newley’s “Who Can I Turn To” represents the first real dip into the jazz standards repertoire. Lynn delivers the lyric with genuine feeling as Stanley and Lockrane contribute expansive but intelligent solos.

“Lonely Ghosts” is arguably the pick of Lynn’s original songs, with its evocative words and expressive vocal allied to instrumental solos that illustrate the sentiments of the lyrics perfectly.

“Some Other Time” features the music of Leonard Bernstein and the words of Betty Comden and Adolf Green. As with the Newley song Lynn expresses the lyric with a genuine sense of involvement as Stanley and Lockrane offer characteristically sympathetic support on a somewhat sombre arrangement.

The album closes with Lynn’s own “Precious (Reprise)”, a song from a previous album with semi spoken lyrics that simultaneously express both world weary cynicism and romantic need. Stanley provides a welcome rhythmic impetus throughout and also solos effectively, preceded by Lockrane’s frothy flute.

After nearly ten years together the musical chemistry between the members of the Bannau Trio is readily apparent throughout this recording and the three musicians conjure an impressive array of colours and textures from the seemingly limited line up of just two instruments and voice. Their music is quietly adventurous and supremely skilled and consistently retains the listener’s interest despite the absence of bass and drums. It may be a little too rarefied for some listeners and the debt to Winstone is obvious but there’s no denying the trio’s collective and individual abilities. “Points of View” represents an impressive artistic statement in its own right and is a wonderful souvenir for anybody who was lucky enough to be at The Forge when it was recorded. 

Nia Lynn will make a welcome return to Abergavenny when the Bannau Trio appear at the wall2wall festival as part of the stroller Programme on the afternoon of Sunday 31st August 2014.
See http://www.blackmountainjazz.co.uk for details. 

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