It's Coming

A press release that was sent out with a promotional mailing of It's Coming stated that the death of pianist Tete Montoliu in 1997 left a major void in the Spanish jazz scene and that Ignasi Terraza is the man to fill the void. But such hype is silly because truth be told, no one can fill Montoliu's shoes — he was truly irreplaceable. Implying that Terraza is the new Tete Montoliu is sort of like saying that Phil Woods replaced Charlie Parker; no one — not even a saxophonist as undeniably superb as Woods — filled Bird's shoes. But while Terraza shouldn't be considered a "replacement" for Montoliu, there are some parallels between them. Montoliu was a blind, bop-oriented acoustic pianist from Barcelona, Spain; so is Terraza, whose It's Coming underscores the fact that he is a talented, appealing improviser in his own right. Terraza's swinging yet lyrical approach owes a lot to Red Garland, and other noteworthy influences (direct or indirect) including Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan and Oscar Peterson (whose inspiration he acknowledges on "Oscar's Will"). Forming a trio with bassist Pierre Boussaguet and drummer Gregory Hutchinson, Terraza is in good form on four originals compositions as well as interpretations of overdone standards like "Yesterdays," "My Ideal" and Duke Ellington's "Prelude to a Kiss." Thankfully, Terraza isn't one of those straight-ahead jazzmen who favors an all-warhorses-all-the-time policy. Terraza surprises us with an unlikely bop arrangement of the traditional folk song "Rosor," and the four original tunes let us know that he has a lot going for him as a composer. This 2003 session won't go down in history as the most groundbreaking or innovative jazz release of the 2000s, but it's a solid, if derivative, effort that paints a likable picture of the Spanish pianist.