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Psalter: Themes for Peace is a jazz suite based on texts from the Biblical book of Psalms, conceived and composed by Tim Boniface for a special concert in St. Alban’s Cathedral in January 2024. Exploring numerous ways in which peace emerges throughout this ancient spiritual poetry, Psalter is a journey through strength, rest, desperation, celebration, protest and hope. Each of the six movements is based upon a different verse that mentions peace, each from a different Psalm. Peace, various Psalms tell us, is a blessing, something to be pursued and deeply hoped for, as well as part of our experience of restful sleep. But peace can also be spoken about deceptively, or can seem like an indifferent silence from the perspective of those who are suffering while others ‘hold their peace’. The texts are chosen to reflect this enormous variation, and make for a varied musical journey.
Involving, as jazz tends to, a composed theme and subsequent improvisations on that theme, the suite offers both a composed response to the texts and an exploration of them through collaborative improvisation – a circular movement between text and music that is never finished and can be re-entered each time the work is performed. This way of hearing improvisations on a composed response to a text can open up familiar words afresh, and remind us of the similarity between collaborative jazz improvisation and the way communities of faith read sacred texts. Although each movement has a particular musical character to it that reflects the composer’s own reading of the text, none of this can be sealed as ‘the meaning’, nor do any of the pieces aim to offer anything authoritative in relation to the text. They are an open-ended invitation to explore the multi-faceted theme of peace in a new way through the rich sound world of a jazz quartet.
Tim Boniface is a jazz performer and composer, a priest in the Church of England, and Chaplain of Girton College, Cambridge.
Boniface, as well as being a swinging and highly accomplished saxophonist and meaningful composer is also an ordained priest and chaplain at Girton College, Cambridge hence the seemingly religious aspect of the titles. However, this wasn't Boniface's intention he sees the six movements as an exploration of the very different ways that humanity has understood and reflected on peace.
With the media continually spreading doom and gloom at the prospect of war - this time around countries really do have 'weapons of mass direction - the release of such an album as this is both timely and comforting.
The compositions, all by Boniface, are based on texts from the Biblical Book of Psalms which, as any ex-chorister will tell you, is known as the Psalter. The themes of the leader's compositions have a familiar feel to them that leads to instant accessibility. Enhanced by the cool sounds and angular lines from both of the Chaplain's saxes even the faster movements are relaxing.
James Pearson: Artistic Director of Ronnie Scott's and Musician in Residence at Girton proves his worth with piano solos that make the moment live. Pianistic perfection.
Creese and Ormston keep the peace even when soloing. A tastier rhythm section you couldn't find anywhere on the road from Frith St. to Girton even if you'd taken the long way round via NYC.
Beautiful. Lance
1 comment :
Anonymous said...
I have listened to this album almost every day since receiving an advance copy and I love it more with every listening. A truly remarkable work played by four wonderful musicians. I first heard Psalter: Themes for Peace at its premiere at St Alban's in early 2024 and it had a profound impact on me. The recording explores different aspects of the composition. Each time I hear it I pick up something new. Each take on a different meaning of peace makes perfect sense. Truly wonderful.
Friday, June 06, 2025 11:38:00 am
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