"One of the most addictive aspects of jazz is the constant possibility for fresh discovery inherent in listening to the music. Over the course of the art form's hundred odd years of evolution countless musicians have heard the call and left their mark. The process of plumbing the continually expanding reservoir sustained in their wake can be a lifelong pursuit. Still, it's a relatively rare occurrence when an ensemble or individual rises to the top with something to say or a way of saying it that stands definitively apart. To my ears the Avram Fefer Trio belongs in this category."

"The playing and arranging of this debut offering is impressive, as is the selection of music. Staying true to the title, Fefer mines the fields of giants and uses what he unearths to color his own compositions. Revis and Foni are a rhythm team of uncommon sympathy; the bassist serves as both anchor and prime mover prefacing most of the tracks while the drummer deals shrewdly scripted patterns."

"True surprises in jazz may be rare these days, but the Avram Fefer Trio's ability to upset the status quo seems like a sure thing."

Derek Taylor (OneFinalNote.com)

"Three things strike the listener immediately upon hearing this recording. The first is the big tone that Avram Fefer projects on saxophone, particularly on the opening tune, an unusual version of Mingus' Orange Was the Color of Her Dress in which Fefer recalls the cavernous sound of Coleman Hawkins. The second is Fefer's sense of melody. The saxophonist has little difficulty exposing himself in front of only bass and drums, a risky business to be sure, but one in which he appears comfortable, in part due to his grasp of a song's essence. Which brings us to the third characteristic, his ability to take a familiar (or at least seemingly familiar) song and turn it inside out without emasculating its essence. Now, these factors alone do not in themselves make for a great recording, but when combined with some very fine improvising by all three members of the trio and a real sense of each player listening closely to the others, the results are sure to please."

Steven Loewy (All Music Guide)

"I have to come clean and say that I approached Avram Fefer's disc with low expectations. A trio of unknowns covering tunes by Mingus, Ornette and Don Cherry, alongside their own originals, screamed retro!, at me. After a mere 10 minutes, however, I'd completed a staggering volte-face and discovered one of my most played records of the year. Fefer and his talented cohorts have distilled all that is best from the free jazz of the middle 1960s - passion, lyricism, adventure - and given the music a stunning contemporary overhaul. Each piece starts with a hypnotic bass groove, serving as a backbone from which Fefer and drummer Igal Foni launch outward. Fefer has a huge Coltranesque sound on tenor and is a lithe altoist too. A welcome change to the predominance of high energy free jazz revivalism, and in decriminalising melody....."

Fred Grand (Rubberneck, Britain)

"Even though Avram Fefer has been performing on the periphery of public consciousness, he actually has been in the center of several important jazz scenes. As a result, he has absorbed strong influences and contributed to the development of new forms in several jazz centers."

"Fefer finally is stepping out on his own to claim the recognition he deserves....For Calling All Spirits does more than encapsulate all of the work that Fefer has done to date. It also stands as a unique creation of its own."

"All of the tracks being first takes, Fefer is joined by like-minded musicians who possess an instantaneous understanding of the other's musical nuances as they develop during a recording. The fact that Fefer's tone is adaptable to the exigencies of the music, even as it remains distinctive, eliminates the necessity for a chorded instrument. Rather, the trio of horn, bass and drums is more than sufficient to explore the tunes that Fefer presents on Calling All Spirits."

"Possessed of an undeniably spiritual feel for the music, Avram Fefer understands the importance of percussion for connecting with the human pulse, as well as the use of horn lines to express what the heart, in all of its complexity, feels."

DON WILLIAMSON (AllAboutJazz.com)

Calling All Spirits
Cadence Jazz Records
(2000)
Lucille's Gemini Dream
CIMP
(2001)

Avram Fefer--Saxes
Steve Swell--Trombone
Wilber Morris--Bass
Igal Foni--Drums

"Seattle-born, Boston-trained, a resident of Paris in the early 1990s and since then a Manhattanite, saxophonist Avram Fefer is one of the new breed of peripatetic musicians. Proficient on all the saxophones and clarinets as well as flute, he's a straightforward, straightahead player, most comfortable in what should be deemed the post-bop mainstream, if the neo-cons hadn't forced much of jazz forward to the past at the end of last century. Both of his discs, recorded 13 months apart, offer a cross section of soloing from all concerned that's never less than accomplished. But with each reprising three of his compositions, it could be that Fefer's future achievements could rest in composition rather than improvisation

"Each of the tunes -- African Interlude, Going Nowhere Fast, and Loss (for Flo)-- and some of his other originals here are rollicking, rhythm riffs that lope along at accelerated paces and sound instantly familiar after you've heard them once. In the halcyon days of working groups, it's a good chance that one or all of them would have joined lines by Gigi Gryce, Benny Golson and the like in every freebopper's repertoire. Even today, they should seriously be considered as add-ons by other musicians. Until that happens, we have to rely on Fefer's own interpretations."

"Although responsibility for its shape and elaboration rest mostly on the saxophonist's shoulders -- or more accurately his powerful, Sonny Rollins-inflected tenor work -- on the Cadence disc, it's the bass playing of Revis, who has worked with tenor saxophonist Billy Harper, that emphasizes its foottapping qualities. Here and elsewhere Foni impresses as well, mixing steady timekeeping with virtuosity on what sounds at times like an anachronistic riveted sizzle cymbal."

"From beginning to end of the CIMP disc, this mixture of trombone and saxophones brings to mind a sound midway between some of bassist Charles Mingus' smaller combos and Chicago's Ethnic Herritage Ensemble as well as the Shepp-Rudd partnership. Ironically Orange Was The Color Of her Dress Than Blue Silk, the only real Mingus tune, is performed with the trio."

"That cover, plus versions of pieces by Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry distinguish the trio session. So does Fefer's noteworthy interlocking sounds on overdubbed bass clarinet and tenor saxophone on Calling All Spirits, Calling All Poets, where he improvises so cleanly you wonder which track actually came first. Mechanical manipulation of that sort is anathema to CIMP, so the originals -- all by Fefer, except for one by Swell -- are heard pristinely, with the sound at the mercy of the instrument's position and dynamics."

"There's lot of like in both these sessions, with the Cadence, with its direct tributes, more of an apprenticeship disc, and CIMP, stuffed with originals, more of an artist's statement. But be fully aware that later label's quirky and opinionated engineering reduces some of its impact. Maybe for best effect, Fefer should record another session in a non-CIMP studio with Swell. There's probably a notebook full of memorable compositions the reedman could also bring along."

Ken Waxman JAZZWEEKLY.COM

Lucille's Gemini Dream
Avram Fefer Quartet (CIMP)
(2001)

"Avram Fefer's debut release, Calling All Spirits, on Cadence Jazz Records is that rare pedigree of disc- one that threw me for a loop upon first listen. Everything (from the playing and arranging to engineering) caught my ears and refused to relinquish them until the disc had run its course. Upon numerous subsequent listens the effect was so inescapable that the album is now an early entry in my Best of 2000 list. Gushing praise of this nature may seem like an inadvisable way to start an objective review, but Fefer's talents entreat such unqualified admiration."

"His sophomore effort pales a little in comparison, but it's still a thoroughly rewarding venture steeped in the vernacular of expertly rendered freebop. Adding Steve Swell's unctuous trombone to the group and trading original trio bassist Eric Revis for veteran string smith Wilber Morris the resulting quartet has a different dynamic, but is no less propulsive in impact. Though he doesn's fit as seamlessly as his predecessor did on Calling All Spirits, Morris still makes a solid go of the tunes, laying down the anchoring ostinatos that flavor Fefer's tunes with resiliency and aplomb. His facile and elastic counterpoint to the leader's soaring tenor on "Loss (For Flo)" is but one of many indications of the wisdom in Fefer's choice. Foni is a veritable Lon Chaney when it comes to shuffle beats; devising what seems like a limitless range of rhythmic guises. The drummer's contributions on the opener range from in the pocket syncopations to barely audible cymbal scrapes and back. In each incarnation they set up an early and instantly convincing harbinger of his mammoth versatility."

"As on the first outing Fefer isn't afraid to stretch out and track lengths allow broad space for group and solo improvisation. Foni again adds a wealth of textural accents and colors brandishing his sticks like a mad painter ready to storm the parameters his canvas. Perhaps most telling, no matter how far the players stray from the thematic groundwork of each piece, underlying elements and a guiding groove still tether them structurally. It's decidedly refreshing to hear a balance of freedom and formula so successfully reconciled. This is perhaps why Fefer's music strikes such a resonating and winsome chord. He weds the best from both the free jazz and postbop camps with alacrity and confidence and in the bargain comes up with a musical jargon that is wholly his own."

Derek Taylor (AllAboutJazz.com)

"Saxophonist Avram Fefer follows up the remarkable Calling All Spirits (Cadence) with the compelling, though quite different Lucille's Gemini Dream (CIMP).Opting for a quartet this time rather than a trio, Fefer keeps drummer Igal Foni on board and adds a second horn, trombonist Steve Swell. Wilber Morris replaces Eric Revis on bass."

"Fefer's tenor sound combines something of the gruffness and playfulness of Sonny Rollins with the searing intensity of John Coltrane. While Calling All Spirits had a freebop vibe somewhat reminiscent of Rollins' East Broadway Rundown,the new quartet release veers far more often into complete freedom. Three of the tracks, however, appear on both discs; they are Fefer's African Interlude, Going Nowhere Fast, and Loss (For Flo). Back-to-back listens of each contrasting version prove fascinating. (It's worth noting, for instance, that Fefer plays alto on both versions of Going Nowhere Fast.) The leader's hypnotic ostinato-swing invention Heavenly Places is another highlight, as is Steve Swell's angular medium swing line Cycle of Fits. Swell lays out on Ripple, a dark and somewhat mellower rubato piece. The title track is collaboratively composed by the quartet."

"While Calling All Spirits is a more effective showcase for Fefer's muscular horn, Lucille's Gemini Dream is also recommended, as it reveals other facets of Fefer's identity as a leader and composer."

David Adler (AllAboutJazz.com)

Few and Far Between: Live at Tonic
Avram Fefer, Bobby Few and Wilber Morris
(Boxholder Records) 2002

"The expatriate thing is an old, sad story in the jazz world. But our loss is Europe's gain in the case of pianist Bobby Few, best known in the U.S. for his work with the Steve Lacy Sextet. Few has made his home in Paris for the past thirty years, but he came back home to perform at Tonic back in June 2000, and Boxholder Records, fortunately, caught his performance with saxophonist Avram Fefer and bass man Wilber Morris that day."

"The disc features four extended tunes, one by each of the band members, and a nice classic wrap-up of Mingus' Nostalgia in Times Square. Few's hard-driving Continental Jazz Express opens the set --- a fifteen-minute runaway train. Downbound? Saxman Fefer with his jagged, wounded sound seems to want things to go there; or ascending the scales to heaven, Few's apparent goal; or somewhere in between: anchored hard on the ground, churning forward with Morris' solid, throbbing bass. A meshing of musical antagonisms that pervades the entire disc, making it so successful. The atmosphere darkens with bass man Morris' Chazz, a wee hours, smoky room blues, a continual balancing act between Few's delicate lines and Fefer's forthright, in-your-face blowing."

"Leader Fefer's Loss is perhaps the highlight of the set, a slow builder like Chazz with Few setting the delicate, sad atmospherics; Fefer moaning low and melancholic, bemoaning in restrained notes a deep loss, then gradually blowing his grief into the wailing and teeth-gnashing end of the spectrum, his sax sounding like a tenor band saw chewing its way through the hard, dark stained oak of a coffin lid, screaming upon its encounters with dense swirls of wood grain at the knots it encounters ... The nineteen-minute closer, Mingus' Nostalgia in Times Square, lightens the mood. A driver, almost jaunty, it acts as an up-tempo bookend to Few's train song opener. Fefer is more contained here, with some serrated edges -- he'd have fit right in with a Mingus band -- and the rhythm is tight, with some fine soloing all around."

"Another live gem from Boxholder Records, with sound quality as good as most studio dates."

Dan McClenaghan (Turbula.net)

"American pianist Bobby Few (who's played w/ Albert Ayler, Noah Howard and Steve Lacy) has, like many free-leaning players, finds a more artistically hospitable environ in France than here (a shame) -- yet he does make it to these shores from time to time. At NYC's Lower East Side Tonic club in June 2000, Few and his trio got to lay down this slab of gloriously bristly jazz du jour. Just because Few has made his rep playing "far out" does not mean he can't/ won't play "far in"--he can pound the 88's a la Cecil Taylor and McCoy Tyner, but he waxes beautifully rhapsodic on the (C. Mingus tribute?) Chazz and informs his rollicking, muscular drive on the Monk-ish Continental Jazz Express with stride playing (which was also a major influence on Monk as well). Avram Fefer plays in a rich, wild 'n' woolly, vocally inflected style that call to mind Charlie Rouse (Monk's right-hand man) with overtones of Sonny Rollins, Albert Ayler and Don Byas."

"Few and Far Between---a swell, lengthy (close to 70 min.) set of powerful jazz that's both uncompromising and accessible."

Mark Keresman (Turbula.net)

Few And Far Between (Boxholder)
Bobby Few/Avram Fefer/Wilber Morris
Few and Far Supreme ****

"Pianist Bobby Few is one of the most unsung of the unsung; a player of singular ability and vision whose own music has often been eclipsed by the titanic shadow cast of his many better-known collaborators." On Few and Far Between, the trio retakes sections of Continental Jazz Express and it sounds much bawdier and sure of itself here (as compared with Few's solo version), with tenorist Fefer topping Few's liquid lines with little exclamatory blues shouts while bassist Morris propels them ever forwards. This is great, gripping stuff, with the group at points sounding like one massive organism, shooting rainbow spurts of colour off in all directions."

"I was going to say welcome back, but I'm forgetting that Few has never really been away. All the more reason to start catching up."

David Keenan --The Sunday Herald

"Few and Far Between (Boxholder) finds Bobby Few working with longtime collaborator Wilber Morris and newcomer Avram Fefer in a fabulous opportunity to hear one of the great under documented elder statesmen of the jazz tradition working with a trio that lines up squarely in the American jazz tradition. Pulling from the blues to Ayler, the music uses the tradition as the starting point and evolves organically in broad fluid brush strokes as only masters of their instruments and the music can do; reminding us once again of the truism that there is no freedom without discipline."

Drimala.com

Shades of the Muse
Avram Fefer Quartet
(CIMP) 2003

"...the resulting record is a stunning, satisfying lesson in them: contrasts in dynamics, tonal qualities, tempo, and between controlled composition and open improvisation. I clearly remember the stirring intensity he exhibited in a live show with Bobby Few and Wilber Morris in 2000, his eyes half-closed as one snaking line after another peeled itself from his tenor with volcanic force. On Shades of the Muse, however, he tempers that quality by focusing largely on his clarinet work, as well as by choosing a unique group of cohorts--grounding himself with the rock-steady tandem of Ken Filiano and Jay Rosen, and putting the ferocious cellist (how often have you heard that phrase before?) Tomas Ulrich out front and center. The result is certainly meditative--infused with all kinds of hushed, hypnotic sonorities---but it is in no way inhibited."

"...the reason Fefer is able to pull off such a mature statement is the (seemingly) effortless facility he exhibits on the whole arsenal of his reed instruments. It is impressive not so much for any overwhelmingly unique voice he has developed (though on clarinet, in particular, he seems headed in that direction), but more so for the way there doesn't seem to be a weak one in the bunch. He has a great expressive range--he can move, within the course of one song--from a softly sighing, airy melodic development to intense, fragmentary bursts. He does this on the opening "Shepp in Wolves' Clothing" but on the later "Gates of Baghdad", he is equally capable of building his ideas around a group logic, working less to show the possibilities of tonal variation and more of structured--almost geometric--consistency, one that holds his volume and rhythm steady to focus instead on a hovering fulcrum around which contrapuntal and harmonic ideas swing. This is a testament to the qualities of shading and gradation mentioned above, and it is only possible because of the sympathetic abilities of his band mates."

"Hopefully Fefer and this group will continue to experiment with the broad range of sonorities they have begun to discover on Shades. They never shy away from the complex abstractions involved with the most rigorous improvisational tradition, but neither are they afraid to engage the listener with accessible, up tempo flag wavers. The result is an album that brings the listener in immediately, but never blesses them with an all-too easy resolution or too-simple truths."

Charles Walker (Sudden-Thoughts.com)

Shades of the Muse
Avram Fefer Quartet
(CIMP) 2003

"Firmly in the new tradition that welcomes new sounds, SHADES OF THE MUSE, is the fourth recent session lead by multi-reedist Avram Fefer. Here he's partnered by cellist Tomas Ulrich plus Ken Filiano on bass and Jay Rosen on drums, all experienced in the karma of exploratory playing."

"...SHADES OF THE MUSE is also a group effort, with each man contributing to the overall sound picture... the reedman has the knack of composing pieces whose themes stay in your head for a while after you're heard them. He does so in a variety of styles as well, without compromising his playing."

"Shepp in Wolves' Clothing, honoring saxophonist/educator Archie Shepp, with whom Fefer recorded in Paris, is a buoyant tune linked as much to Shepp's appreciation of Classic Jazz as his New Thing advances. A nearly 14-minute foot tapper carried on the walking bass and drum's shuffle rhythm, it features a polyphonic tenor line and blue notes from the cello. Sounding more like Rahsaan Roland Kirk then Shepp at one point, the reedist solos on both his saxophones at once, creating a growly semi-atonal tone from one and a strained, vibrated split tone buzz from the other."

"Cello and reeds voiced together means that a couple of the other tunes resemble the sort of bouncy West Coast pieces turned out in the mid-1950s by drummer Chico Hamilton's band, the first to feature a cello in the front line. Oblique Departures is most notable for Filiano's solo in a traditional Paul Chambers mode, while the balladic Love Crept In (Again) showcases Fefer's smooth, liquid tone on the clarinet."

"A fine effort, Fefer is definitely fashioning an unshakable identity."

Ken Waxman (JazzWeekly.com)