Evolution By Tim Neumark

 

Evolution

By

Tim Neumark

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

The subject of evolution is one of my favourites, the sheer magnificence of it all is amazing, the ethos of progression is another form of evolution, and a veritable epoch of change can be felt on this new release by one of my personal favourite piano composers in Tim Neumark, every aspect of the word can be explored in a wonderful reflective narrative entitled Evolution.

The opening piece is remarkable; the tonal delights are of a quality that many would only hope to achieve, on the opening offering Runner. This composition grows, expands and lifts itself into a powerful opus by the midway structure, and then flows like a soundtrack till its conclusion.

The following narrative Traveler has a waltz styled progression to its overall early tendencies; the subtle fluency is there again, always allowing room for the listener to explore the empty rooms of musical magic, in this dance like opus, in a breath taking fashion.

On Younger we have a memory filled piece that seems to pull me back in time whilst listening; the melody here was lush and textured, the tempo alterations were so passionate, as Neumark pulls from his magicians musical hat, a track made from heaven, and for some reason one that reminded me slightly of my dear friend David Lanz, and his epic Cristofori's Dream, his legendary manifestation.

Flour was a horse of a totally different colour, with raised energies and elevated notes; the track was like an unstoppable train, this powerful creation calmed into a softer pastiche as an almost dream like sequence occurred. This in my view was one of the most emphatic offerings from the album, and should be saluted as a fine example of pure solo piano at its very best.

That sway is back with the midway piece entitled Greener, there was a certain charm about this track that was truly palpable, firm strong passages were juxtaposed by a pristine touch and softer segments, from a wonderful fluent opus.

Evolution is 12 tracks of some of the finest piano work around, offerings like Vulture manifest a reflective essence and a memorable touch, while creations like Darker, a gentler feel on the keys can be found, on this quite moving tonal delight, and one I thoroughly adored.

Down the dark streets of a dusty town on the long road to know where can be found, a track filled with desolation and hope, and called Beggar, a charming tale can be unwoven here by the listener, the performance by Neumark is beseeching in tone and powerful in its construct, this is one for a movie in a scene guaranteed to make you cry.

Renter gifts the erstwhile fan an opportunity to once again invest in the tone and timbre of a superior work, whilst on Loaner a more calculated offering can be heard, one that trades lightly as it goes.

Winter is one of my favourite times of year, living where I do summers are packed with tourists, so winter is a time of being able to enjoy the spaces previously occupied by them, in a quietness explored in this piece by the artist, the deeper tones are matched well by the more ponderous vistas, in a homely offering of great passion.

The concluding narrative is called Speaker; this is a clever way with which to end the album by the artist, one that leaves more questions than answers, but its meditative and natural arrangement gives us all a moment of peace filled bliss to enjoy, partnered with a long look over the shoulder of the journey just taken.

I have known Tim Neumark musically now since 2007 and his release Biography, since then and onward, he has been a constant high achiever of great quality, technique and style, and on this latest album he manifests probably his most thoughtful and emotive work thus far. In today’s solo piano micro obsession, Neumark has to be applauded for giving us his loyal listeners well over fifty minutes of quality piano, a guaranteed hit with ease surely must be had for Evolution.