No one can accuse
Savina Yannatou of not taking chances. On this live recording (with the pristine sound quality one associates with everything on ECM), she not only goes through Mediterranean and Sephardic music, but also some Celtic and a healthy dose of Arabic. Her band,
Primavera en Salonico, keep things close to the edge, as on "Madonna de la Grazia," which skirts the avant-garde (or the end of "Jaco," for that matter). On "Balio Dardo," they all prove that you can make electrifying noise without electricity. On several of the Arab-inflected tracks, singer Lamia Bedioui joins the group to sing (or in the case of "Close Your Eyes and See," recite) while
Yannatou adds improvised vocal accompaniment. Mostly, however, this album is about the songs and the way the modalities connect the genres.
Yannatou seems most at home on the Greek and Mediterranean material, but also acquits herself well on the songs that are more of a geographical stretch. It's a step forward for her, daring and satisfying.