The Dimensions in Jazz concert series has once again lived up to its reputation for presenting adventurous artists. Anna Webber’s SIMPLE Trio played about 90 minutes of original compositions Friday night that effectively opened up the boundaries between contemporary composed and improvised music.

Webber, a British Columbia native and a rising star on the international music scene, announced that she developed the featured pieces, all from the threesome’s latest CD, “Binary,” from “internet source material.” The compositional links may indeed be complex and unpredictable but, not surprisingly, it was the human minds, hands and breath employed in the playing that proved essential.

Webber played an aggressive tenor sax, given to lower-register rumbles and flights of expressiveness as the intensity of the pieces built. Her solo on the opening composition, “Impulse Purchase,” included an exciting excursion into free jazz while “Disintegratiate” had her working in an unsteady unison with the fragmented rhythmic approach of pianist Matt Mitchell.

Mitchell, who previously visited the Dimensions series as part of the Dave Douglas group, was again a pleasure to hear as he added the push and pull of cutting-edge classical sonorities, employing intense dissonance while also revealing delicate open spaces.

John Hollenbeck, a seasoned drummer and overall percussionist, literally used all the bells and whistles, brushes, mallets, hands and what-all-else in a performance that added humor while servicing Webber’s obvious preference for odd meters and a shifting focus in the mix of instruments.

Webber switched to flute for a couple of pieces that lightened the sonic load while still maintaining its depth. “Meme” was a scramble but “Tug o’ War,” though it developed a pulsing forcefulness, also included a haunting passage that proved this group capable of softer subtleties.

“Underhelmed,” another of Webber’s wordplay titles, finished the performance with a funky beat that brought this high-minded trio back just a little bit closer to the ground.

The evening began with a solo set from accordionist Ted Reichman. The Maine native electronically looped expansive harmonies with rhythmic repetitions, then added folk-like melodic passages to fill the church chapel with compelling, cinematic soundscapes.

Steve Feeney is a freelance writer who lives in Portland.


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