For those unaware, Tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman and trombonist Ray Anderson distill their proven chemistry heard in the quartet album Molten Gold (FSR 03|2023), here on their latest album 12 Stages of Spiritual Alchemy.

What they bring forth are twelve concise, alchemy-titled improvisations, which feature Perelman’s elastic lines and altissimo edge intertwining with Anderson’s plunger color, slide glissandi, and buoyant phrasing to forge vividly conversational miniatures of texture, tension, and release.

1. Separation [3:10]
2. Calcination [3:59]
3. Putrefaction [0:57]
4. Dissolution [3:07]
5. Coagulation [4:51]
6. Conjunction [5:45]
7. Sublimation [8:05]
8. Exaltation [7:53]
9. Projection [9:42]
10. Multiplication [1:28]
11. Fermentation [2:55]
12. Cibation [3:29]

A rare, high-caliber duo of tenor sax and trombone, this new recording opens on the jauntily staggered Separation and the Gothically-imbibed Calcination and they are backed by the charged, albeit short Putrefaction, the engaging Dissolution, and then we are brought forth both the expressive Coagulation and the organically fluent Conjunction.

Along next is the joyfully melodious, laughing-hued Sublimation and the fulfilling rhythms that drive Exaltation and they are backed seamlessly by the subtle, more rounded notes of Projection, the controlled, yet inquisitively fluid Multiplication, the set rounding out on the playfully flirtatious Fermentation, coming to a close on the divaricate Cibation.

Musicians:
Ivo Perelman, tenor sax
Ray Anderson, trombone

Official Purchase Link

Ivo Perelman @ Facebook