Eri “Limelight”

"Limelight"

(3361BLACK) 2004

Eri – Vibraphones

This lovely recording of vibraphonist Eri playing solo (or duet with two tracks) vibraphone showcases not only the depth of her harmonic sense, but her ability to create a mysterious beauty from her instrument. The echoing, resonant tones of the vibraphone are not easy to manage. Perhaps that's why there are so few masters of such an inherently lovely instrument. Eri, though, has captured an elegant feeling for how the vibraphone can interpret a thoughtful selection of tunes.

Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage" is perhaps the most complete example of how she marries tone to tune. She hits the vibes and often just lets the resonance linger. Many players would hurry through, racing to hit as many notes as possible inside the tune's open modal structure, but Eri knows that this tune has great feeling as well as freedom inside it. On "Django," too, she lets the vibraphone tell its tale in its own way. Her solos flow with a natural energy like a stream splashing and gurgling at its own pace.

Two traditional tunes, "Greensleeves" and "Scarborough Fair" show more of her arranging sense. She captures all the folk tension in them, but smoothes out the rough edges. Likewise on two Piazzolla tango tunes, she keeps the intense dance rhythms, but doesn't hurry the pace or overdo the jumpy back-and-forth feeling. Instead, she plays the tango as it might be over one last drink in the early morning hours, with a sense of reflection, awareness and satisfaction.

Grieg's "Morning Mood," though, becomes rather jazzy in her hands. She swings the very complex harmonies nicely, with plenty of energy and a loping bass line, even adding a few bluesy touches here and there. Complex though the composition is, it flows just as powerfully as the other energetic cuts.

The recording is mastered extremely well. You can really hear the tones and overtones. I thought two vibraphone tracks would be disturbing, but she manages to do it so smoothly that it seems only a small extension of her natural ability. Most overdubbing tends to divide into two distinct characters, taking the bass or harmony as one, and then working on the melody with the other. Eri, though, blends the two overdubbed tracks so it is almost impossible to separate them.

One of the marks of an excellent musician is how well they know their instrument and what they can do with it. What Eri does with the vibraphone is create very lush and very beautiful music.