The Natural Flow: Stephan Crump's "Slow Water" at the Shea Theater

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 Whatever you call it: chamber music, new music, or jazz, what composer Stephan Crump has created with “Slow Water”, his 70-minute suite in celebration of H2O, is beautiful and evocative. Two days after performing it at Roulette in Brooklyn, his sextet: Patricia Brennan (vibes), Carrie Frey (viola), Erica Dicker (violin), Jacob Garchik (trombone), Kenny Warren (trumpet) and Crump (bass), shared the music with 75 avid listeners at the Shea Theater in Turners Falls, MA.

Inspired by “Water Always Wins”, a book by science writer Erica Gies about humankind's relationship to water, Crump’s work unfurled with unhurried majesty and a deliberate brilliance. The piece was largely through-composed with improvised interludes, and it showcased how much emotional punch you can pack into slow tempos.

The book, whose subtitle is, “Thriving in an Age of Drought and Deluge”, lays out the precepts of what Gies calls the Slow Water movement. In the midst of our ubiquitous built environment, the book asks the radical question, “what does water want?” Gies reminds us that water’s true nature is to flex with the rhythms of the earth: the slow phases absorb floods, store water for droughts, and feed natural systems. Figuring out what water wants—and accommodating its desires within our human landscapes—is now crucial for survival.

Without lyrics or program notes, the relationship between the music and the message was left to the individual. Song titles like “Sediment & Flow” and “Pooling”, shed some light on Crump’s distinctive melodies and deliberate rhythms. “Eager”, a lumbering paean to the critical role beavers play in directing water, was built on a series of pleasing two-note figures passed around by bass, brass and vibes. “Dusk Critters” began with the uneven pattering of Brennan’s vibes before the others entered with scurrying phrases.

Crump was at the center of it all. It was his concept, compositions and band, after all, and his bass lines framed each piece. On “Outflow” he played a series of simple, slowly formed notes that provided the basis of the music. Situated between the strings and brass, he cued the ensemble with his body language and facial expressions. His mic work with the audience was eloquent and engaging.

The concert largely conformed to Crump’s excellent 2024 recording on Papillon Sounds. (Violist Joanna Mattrey and violinist yuniya edi kwon are on the record.) The musicianship, all told, was outstanding. Frey, who is currently writing her dissertation on the Wet Ink Ensemble, and Dicker, who has performed throughout the world in various Anthony Braxton ensembles, are integral parts of the New York contemporary music scene. They are part of a growing number of instrumentalists who are high functioning in both the written and improvised music worlds.

Similarly, Jacob Garchik is comfortable in multiple music contexts. Over the last 19 years he has written hundreds of arrangements and compositions for the Kronos Quartet, and has performed and recorded with Miguel Zenón, Mary Halvorson, Anna Webber, Henry Threadgill and John Hollenbeck. He also co-leads Brooklyn’s premiere Mexican brass band, Banda de los Muertos. Born in Denver, Kenny Warren has lived in New York since 2002, where he is active on the experimental, jazz, folk, and world music scenes. His trio, Sweet World, with Christopher Hoffman and Nathan Ellman-Bell, will perform in next season’s Jazz Shares.

This was the fourth Jazz Shares appearance by Patricia Brennan, including her Quartet appearance at the Institute For the Musical Arts in 2022. As the music demanded, she put aside her note-bending pedals and jaw dropping technique and instead spent the evening distilling the musical essence of every note. She told me she loved playing that way.

Together, the ensemble breathed life into the written material.

In contrast to the complex, demanding compositions of say, Ingrid Laubrock, Steve Lehman or Matt Mitchell, Crumps’ “Slow Water” oozed with the direct, unfettered style of a Wendell Berry. It was uncomplicated, long form music and required patient listening, but the rewards were considerable. “If you listen carefully, the music is yours,” writes John Corbett in his handy book, “A Listener’s Guide to Free Improvisation”. I’m glad I invested the effort to listen with intent. I felt rejuvenated and relaxed after the concert, as if I’d just taken a walk in the woods.