




Listening to Branford Marsalis in conversation is

like hearing an accomplished improviser take a












     

      
      


 
      
    
      
      
    

 
  
       
        
 
 
 
 
    
 

       
 

                

 
      
 
 

      

        
  
  
                 


         





 

   





 

    
     
              
       
            
          
 

      


 Bassist Eric Revis and pianist Joey
  Calderazzo, both longtime members
  of the Branford Marsalis Quartet,
 each contributed two songs to The
 Secret Between The Shadow And
 The Soul (OKeh/Sony Masterworks).
 Revis’ “Dance Of The Evil Toys” is
         a piece that was inspired by Russian
 
        particular,” Revis explained. “It came
 fairly quickly.” He described his
 other contribution, “Nilaste,” as “an
 extended tone poem.”
      Revis wrote the songs during a
         2018 residency at The Jazz Gallery.
 “Usually, my process is to write,
              revise, and write more—but this was
        
two weeks of no distractions,” he
 
said.
       
In contrast, Calderazzo had been
 
       
playing “Cianna” and “Conversation
      Among The Ruins” with his trio since
          2016.
             “Branford and I did ‘Cianna’ as a
        duo, too, and I said, ‘This will work
        good in the quartet; it’s not a real-
      ly great trio song,’” Calderazzo
       recalled. “There’s a way, when
      Branford plays the melody, I kind of
 play it with him, and we do things to
 stretch out a little. We actually play
  the melody different every night, but
      we do it together.”
       Calderazzo’s other ballad,
 “Conversation Among The Ruins,”
  originally was titled “Free,” and has
 been reworked with a new arrange-
          ment for the quartet. Calderazzo
  recalled, “I’d played it with Eric, and

he said, ‘You should bring this to
      
Branford—it’s the perfect song for
       
him.’” —Denise Sullivan
 


 




      

      




       
       
   

       
     
         




         

  
    
 

 
       
 
  
  
                 

 

 
       
               
               
         
                        
  

         
    
        
  
   
  
    
  
 
      
 
 

  
               
         
 
           



        
  
 
 
 
      
 
         
        
  
      
        
      





        







        




        


 

       






















 

