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Reviewed by Julian Cowley in THE WIRE
Issue 246 august 2004
Dutch saxophonist Ad Peijnenburg is best known as founder of The Six Winds, a reed sextet that has included John Tchicai . Much of Peijnenburg's playing has been with drummers ,including a regular outfit with Louis Moholo and Thebe Lipere . The rhythmic cunning required for both those contexts is a defining characteristic of his melodic approach to the baritone horn. He makes effective use of its gruffness and can be tremulously expressive in the course of this recent encounter in New York with bassist William Parker.
That said, there is no straining for unexpected effects. He evolves open patterns that Parkers's virtuosity enhances and elaborates. One track has Peijnenburg warbling on sopranino , his instrument of choice for street performances. It's good to hear the bassist in such an unassumingly creative context.
Review in NRC Handelsblad
June 22, 2004 by Edo Dijksterhuis
De Zes Winden or The Six Winds as this sextet is calling themself when playing outside Holland is a unique ensemble. It is the home of all members of the saxophone family from the tiny little biff the sopranino until the important humming bear the bass saxophone. In complex compositions the different voices are tumbling over each other. Especially during conserts the public hasn't enough ears to hear it all. That's why it is nice The Six Winds finaly have a live CD that has been recorded in Japan. It's good to hear again how my favourite things is smuggled insite the composition Saturn. Or how Charles Ives is put in the merry go around from Ann Street . However this well tought and figured out explosive music of this album Komoro deserves a better recording.
This goes lucky enough not for P&P from the Six Winds leader Ad Peijnenburg who recorded with free-jazz bassist William Parker. The Album is designed in a sober way and you can say that from the music as well. Parker is playing here in a unprecedent modest way you seldom hear, he plucks wobbly patterns which are ritme and melody at the same time. Peijnenburg takes his time to tell his story. Bass and baritone are finding each other in a faultless way, meeting together always at the end of a sentence. P&P is a dialogue in 'optima forma'.