Jazz is the music of big cities. Megapolises are swarming with jazz-clubs. Festivals of jazz music last for many days. Jazz faculties are organized in the music colleges. However, there are some exceptions, such as the old Tikhvin town, whose fame in the music world is connected with the name of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, who was born there. It looks rather curious, but this cosy town became the place, where the noteworthy jazz festival is held annually. It welcomes guests from Moscow, Petersburg, Petrozavodsk, Vologda and even New York.
The pianist Igor’ Volodin is among the ones, who organize this event. Frankly speaking, the festival itself became possible due to the true staunch jazz quartet, founded by Volodin himself together with saxophonist Vasily Katyshev. The Tikhvin quartet is brought up to the mark so as to match with numerous Moscow and Petersburg bands. Thus you see Tikhvin is filled with jazz music, it has performers and composers. This collection proves the mentioned situation.
The compositions by Volodin, forming the represented edition, are the greatest part of the Tikhvin quartet’s stock. Sometimes they are constructed as the melodies-themes with harmonic symbols (according to the jazz traditions), sometimes the piano score is introduced. Such themes have the chance to be borrowed by professional or amateur ensembles, for they have imbibed standard jazz rules. The piano scores are much more complicated. However, having deciphered them you’ll be struck by exquisite wrought harmony fluctuations, peculiar to Volodin, his striving for vertical constructions and polyrhythmical dramaturgic sense. I’d called his pieces the preludes, for they are quite accomplished compositions, useful for students at the lessons of jazz and variety music. The composer’s pieces are rather refined for to stick in jazzmen’s minds. Nevertheless, Volodin managed to blend with the personalities of the romantic jazz piano branch, deriving from Billie Evans, Herbie Hanco