Come up with a sentence that includes the words "trumpet," "classical," and "jazz;" and the name of Wynton Marsalis is sure to arise. Marsalis definitely exercised an influence on Torontonian Suresh Singaratnam during his student days; but it is clear from his recent recording, Lost in New York, that, in spite of its title, he has found a unique voice that builds on a wide variety of listening experiences and sets off in new directions. At a time when it sounds to the serious listener as if there is too much aimless noodling on the jazz scene, there is a straight-ahead spikiness to Singaratnam's compositions that appreciates the legacies of bebop, hard bop, and Miles Davis without idol-worshipping any of them.
The key members of his combo (Jake Saslow on tenor saxophone, Fabian Almazan on piano, Frazer Hollins on drums, and Lee Pearson on bass) follow the constitution of a Miles Davis quintet, to which the electronic guitar work of Jesse Lewis adds a contemporary sound decidedly distinct from anything that emerged from Miles' "electric" period. Most important is that, in the spirit of the above influences, all voices have a strong sense of independence, organized around relatively minimal points of reference. While Singaratnam may provide those points of reference in his capacity as composer, these performances are not so much about his music as they are a celebration of the "organized chaos" of the days when bebop turned embellishment into new melody and ran its rhythms along the rails of a wild roller coaster ride.
Is Singaratnam really "lost" in New York? Since I do not live there, I have no idea what sort of gigs he is getting; but it is a bit disconcerting that there is no mention of them on his Web site. He is, of course, up against a lot of competition, however unique his offerings may be; but that Web site is designed to provide ample opportunity for the curious to get a taste of his style. Perhaps some of those curious ones will provide the impetus for a tour through which his music can be experienced in performance, rather than just on recordings. Those of us who like our jazz with more than a little backbone would be more than willing to give such performances a try.
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