Heart

Album Review

The stylings of Sonny Rollins, Chet Baker, and Dexter Gordon often come to mind when listening to saxophonist Paul VornHagen; Jobim does not. While the Michigan reedman often employs the odd Latin number during gigs, he takes the Brazilian jazz connection one step further on Heart with the use of an ocarina. Sounding something like a cross between a recorder and a pan flute, the Brazilian instrument has a melancholy quality that VornHagen exploits to good use throughout. He reinvisions the standard "The Night We Called It a Day" as a new age bossa nova number replete with shimmering percussion on an ambient intro. Purists need not fear though — there are no synthesizers here and, after the groove settles in, it's martini time all the way. By no means, however, is this a bossa nova album. On the contrary, VornHagen opens the set with a sprightly bop-influenced original, "Wake-Up Call," and later tackles Freddie Hubbard's angular "Crisis." Never one to let his fans down, VornHagen even makes room for his trademark vocals on the standard "Secret Love." Also featured on Heart are the nimble and elegant piano skills of Tad Weed, who complements VornHagen's penchant for melodic, '50s West Coast-style interplay. Fans of VornHagen will no doubt find much to treasure on Heart, and should react favorably to the Brazilian textures.