#underpool

Fumero’s playing is wonderfully warm and full and, on this recording, entirely pizzicato. Some of the tunes, such as the opener “Golondrinas,” move along at a brisk clip while others, such as “Seu Lorenço No Vinho,” are more contemplative, but all of the tracks display inventiveness and flawless technique, developing the fairly straightforward melodies into thrilling excursions up and down the fingerboard. The source material remains evident in these interpretations, providing the basis for variation and improvisation.

The first solo upright bass album seems to have been Barre Phillips’s Journal Violone, released in 1968. Conceptually, such recordings are inherently challenging as what is usually considered a rhythm instrument, with the lowest range among commonly played stringed instruments, takes center stage. Phillips made use of effects such as tapping and arco playing to expand the sound of his pioneering recording, and other solo bass recordings often follow suit. Fumero adds variety to this recording through the judicious choice of material and by including two duets, “Tordo” with Rita Payés on trombone and “Chajá” with his daughter Luciá Fumero (with whom he has recorded as The Fumeros) on piano, as well as some inspired tapping on “Chacarera” and recitation of the lyrics on Atahualpa Yupanqui’s “Los Ejes De Mi Carreta.”

Solo Bass Songs is a delight from beginning to end, and not just for bass players. The listening experience benefits from the high quality of the recording, which captures the richness of the low end, the buzz of the thick strings, and the interplay with the accompanists on the tracks where they appear. Once more, the Underpool label has documented the dynamism of the jazz and experimental music scene in and around Barcelona.