David S. Ware

With a tsunami-strong saxophone sound, David S. Ware's 50th year of playing is documented on this nine-track disc, to invigorating effect. While the passing year has been marked by serious health problems and a kidney transplant, Ware's indomitable spirit has sufficient wherewithal to make the exhausting demands of a tour de force like "Wheel of Life" sound almost matter-of-fact. Any saxophonist could tell you that playing that way, even for a few minutes, leaves one flattened. Onecept finds Ware playing his usual tenor, but also saxello and stritch, all with strength and utter commitment. Long-time bassist William Parker and the splendid Warren Smith (drums and tympani) read his every move and are uncannily attuned. "Desire Worlds" uncoils in swirls of soaring saxello, upwards and outwards, all three men reaching into themselves deeply, communing on a vibrational level. Smith's tympani bring a wonderfully haunting quality to "Savaka", "Astral Earth" and "Book of Krittika," opening up the bottom end of the sonic spectrum evocatively. All the pieces were freely improvised and Onecept is a testament to how well these artists know themselves, each another and their music.