Inside Out in the Open
VARIOUS ARTISTS
(ESP-Disk )
No American music confounds people more than free jazz. Inside Out in the Open, an hour-long documentary by filmmaker Alan Roth, attempts to explain the rationale behind the discordant improvised music that's largely dismissed as mere noise. For the most part, the DVD succeeds, via interviews with some top names in the genre and footage of free-jazz ensembles skronkin' out to their hearts' content. Most importantly, the film puts the lie to the idea that free jazz is just a bunch of undisciplined primitives making their own racket in their own worlds. It requires practice, study, emotional openness and deep, deep communication with other musicians. 3.5 stars
This article appears in Feb 27 – Mar 4, 2008.