Since 2016 pianist Benoît Delbecq has been leading a veritable supergroup that came into being in New York. Tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, whose solo career took flight in recent years, excels here with thoughtful melodic lines, like on his successful albums under his own name on ECM Records. The harmonic interplay of double bassist John Hébert and drummer Gerald Cleaver brings to mind their previous work with jazz piano legend Andrew Hill.
Benoît Delbecq has written compositions for these musicians and he edits their sound from behind the piano by means of live electronics. In a subtle way he picks up passages that reappear as ghostly beings. Gentle Ghosts is the fitting title of the quartet’s recent album, which was released by the French festival Jazzdor. Pianist Benoît Delbecq sets his own pace in French jazz, unaffected by trends. Since the 1990s he has performed on our stage in various line-ups with, among others, Fred Hersch and Han Bennink.
Benoît Delbecq piano, Mark Turner tenor sax, John Hébert double bass, Gerald Cleaver drums