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CD
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ROKU 040CD
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Pat Thomas returns to OTOROKU for his fourth collection of solo piano improvisations, this time recorded in a studio setting at London's Fish Factory. For 25 years now, beginning with Nur (Emanem) and continuing through Al-Khwarizmi Variations (Fataka), The Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari (ROKU 019LP), and now The Solar Model of Ibn Al-Shatir, Pat Thomas has drawn on the Arabic world for titles for his solo piano work -- specifically the long-standing Islamic tradition of astronomical invention. For Thomas, the work of the polymaths he dedicates his music to has been sidelined by Eurocentrism, just as the Arabic origin of "jass" and the scalar, intervallic and polyphonic contributions made by Arab musicians have been routinely overlooked. Islamic innovation is at the heart of Thomas' solo projects and draws a direct link between his Sufi faith and a totally unique style of playing. Each of his solo piano records is a dedication -- not just to the innovators Thomas names but to the beauty of the universe in all its complexities. Starting standing up with one hand inside the piano and one on the keys, "The Solar Model" begins with single staccato bass notes appearing like chondrites in the darkness, occasionally tumbling towards a rhythm and then falling out of it. Metallic string work starts to pull towards an unseen center and eventually notes from the upper registers appear, clear and light. With both hands drawn to the keys, Thomas builds towards scintillating beauty, carried through "The Laws of Motion" and propelling listeners towards the A-side closer, "For George Saliba". The whole landscape of the A side swings with this one movement, until its energy is spent on one last sweeping rotation. On the B-side, "The Oud of Ziryab" notes to the instrument maker who added a fifth pair of strings to the Oud. The single bass notes of the first side are swapped for clusters, bursting together and decaying in space. Making use of the sustain pedal and the silence of a studio setting, it's one of the most open, lush recordings of Thomas at the piano -- more Muhal Richard Abrams than Monk, the lower end thundering under rapid, crystalline blues. "For Mansa Musa" brings back a swing instantly recognizable as Pat, with a huge euphoric lift halfway that crowns the record but the album's end title "The Birds are Singing" is more celestial, more chromatic -- a reminder that the spiritual matters just as much as the physical for Thomas.
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LP
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ROKU 040LP
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LP version. Pat Thomas returns to OTOROKU for his fourth collection of solo piano improvisations, this time recorded in a studio setting at London's Fish Factory. For 25 years now, beginning with Nur (Emanem) and continuing through Al-Khwarizmi Variations (Fataka), The Elephant Clock of Al-Jazari (ROKU 019LP), and now The Solar Model of Ibn Al-Shatir, Pat Thomas has drawn on the Arabic world for titles for his solo piano work -- specifically the long-standing Islamic tradition of astronomical invention. For Thomas, the work of the polymaths he dedicates his music to has been sidelined by Eurocentrism, just as the Arabic origin of "jass" and the scalar, intervallic and polyphonic contributions made by Arab musicians have been routinely overlooked. Islamic innovation is at the heart of Thomas' solo projects and draws a direct link between his Sufi faith and a totally unique style of playing. Each of his solo piano records is a dedication -- not just to the innovators Thomas names but to the beauty of the universe in all its complexities. Starting standing up with one hand inside the piano and one on the keys, "The Solar Model" begins with single staccato bass notes appearing like chondrites in the darkness, occasionally tumbling towards a rhythm and then falling out of it. Metallic string work starts to pull towards an unseen center and eventually notes from the upper registers appear, clear and light. With both hands drawn to the keys, Thomas builds towards scintillating beauty, carried through "The Laws of Motion" and propelling listeners towards the A-side closer, "For George Saliba". The whole landscape of the A side swings with this one movement, until its energy is spent on one last sweeping rotation. On the B-side, "The Oud of Ziryab" notes to the instrument maker who added a fifth pair of strings to the Oud. The single bass notes of the first side are swapped for clusters, bursting together and decaying in space. Making use of the sustain pedal and the silence of a studio setting, it's one of the most open, lush recordings of Thomas at the piano -- more Muhal Richard Abrams than Monk, the lower end thundering under rapid, crystalline blues. "For Mansa Musa" brings back a swing instantly recognizable as Pat, with a huge euphoric lift halfway that crowns the record but the album's end title "The Birds are Singing" is more celestial, more chromatic -- a reminder that the spiritual matters just as much as the physical for Thomas.
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LP
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ROKU 019LP
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Recorded live at OTO in May 2015, The Elephant Clock Of Al Jazari comprises four typically genre-defying and sonically dexterous pieces from one of the UK's best pianists. Pat Thomas began playing piano at the age of eight. He studied classical music and reggae was an early interest. Thomas was inspired to take up jazz after seeing legendary pianist Oscar Peterson on television. By 1979, Thomas was performing seriously as an improviser. In 1980, he became a member of Oxford-based group Ghosts with Pete McPhail and Matt Lewis. He has worked with Mike Cooper, Jimmy Carl Black, Thurston Moore, Mats Gustafsson, Evan Parker, Alan Silva, John Zorn, and more. Pat Thomas received the Paul Hamlyn Foundation Award for Composers in 2014. Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi. Edition of 500.
In Thomas's own words: "The title for this album, was inspired by the incredible automatic water clock invented by Badi' al-Zaman ibn al-Razzaz al-Jazari. Al Jazari refers to the fact he was born in Al Jazira which lies between the Tigris and the Euphrates in what is now Northern Iraq. Badi al Zaman means prodigy of the age. He is known by historians of technology as the father of modern robotics. The Elephant Clock at seven meters high is a testament to his engineering genius, it utilizes Greek water raising technology, combined with an Indian elephant, Egyptian phoenix, Arabian figures, Persian carpet and Chinese Dragons celebrating the diversity of cultures in the world. This and other marvels of engineering can be found in his Book of the Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices translated by Donald Hill (Pakistan Hijra Council). Over 50 devices are mentioned. Amongst them the first analog computer, his remarkable Castle Clock, however, the debt the world owes this Muslim genius is found in his remarkable water raising devices, particularly water raising device number '4' where for the first time a crank connecting rod system is used. The crank is considered to be the most important single mechanical device after the wheel, by 1206 this is found fully developed in Jazari`s machines predating Francesco di Giorgio Martini by three centuries. 'For Al Haytham' is dedicated to the great polymath genius who wrote the great book on vision, the first person to give us a true understanding of how we see. 'Lubb' is an Arabic word meaning innermost consciousness whilst to conclude proceedings 'Done' is loosely based on a well-known standard."
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