CD review time.

Kenny Wheeler's Music for Large & Small Ensembles is a fascinating two-disk set issued in 1990. At the time, Mr Wheeler was a regular associate of Dave Holland, the brilliant bassist and band leader. This was a time when Mr. Holland's small groups were playing jazz at a remarkably high level, with Mr. Wheeler contributing the odd composition as well as on trumpet. Here, Mr. Wheeler is the leader and Dave Holland plays the bass on this recording, but this is not just a continuation of the Holland group under a different brand. Kenny Wheeler is a substantial composer and soloist and this recording is proof.

As you might have guessed, the album opens with a substantial helping of big band, but has several small group settings based on members of the larger ensemble. "Big band" might not be the best description of the larger groups, "large ensemble" is definitely a better name. The bigger groupings are arranged for color and harmony and you won't find much roaring hard-swinging traditional big band stylings--and a notable difference is singer Norma Winstone singing a lot of the leads for the group. This isn't the first time a band has used a woman's voice as a lead instrument, but I've always found it an odd combination, if not unpleasant. It would be nice to hear a full-throated lead trumpet now and then to add some contrast.

The soloists on the disk are uniformly strong, although John Abercrombie's guitar sound and soloing style are a poor fit for the large group. I'm a big admirer of Mr. Abercrombie (check out his work with Jack DeJohnette's New Directions group from the 1980s), but he's best in intimate settings. Mr. Wheeler's solos are so good that one of my big objections is that he's such a generous leader who shares ample room for other soloists, we don't hear enough of his superb work. In fact, on the second disk he leaves drummer Peter Erskine and pianist John Taylor to their own devices for a series of engrossing duets, so it's a little hard to complain with such an embarrassment of riches. Outside of the minor quibbles of missing contrasts of some fast and loud, plus the oddly judged guitar work, this is a fabulous double album.

8 out of 10.

CDs listened to today:

• Arild Plau: Concerto For Tuba and Orchestra
• Paul Hindemith: Concertmusic for Piano, Brass, and Harps, disk 2
  
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• Bill Watrous: Manhattan Wildlife Refuge
• James MacMillan: Veni, Veni, Emmanuel
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