Jake Hertzog

Longing to Meet You

Self-released

Guitarist and composer Jake Hertzog has performed and composed across multiple genres and served as musical director for pop stars. For Longing to Meet You he convened a jazz quartet comprised from their mutual time attending the Manhattan School in New York. They are altoist Matt Woroshyl, bassist Perrin Grace and drummer Joe Perl. The album is inspired by Hertzog’s experiences with IVF and the birth of his daughter. He composed all nine pieces, and the album was recorded at The Bunker in Brooklyn.

The opening title track is suspenseful with long drawn-out guitar lines and even a sequence near the beginning and toward the end of the piece that mirrors that annoying beeping of the monitoring machines heard in just about any hospital room. It evolves into more joyful tones, especially when Woroshyl’s expressive alto blends the joy with a sense of longing. “A Dream Fades Slowly” is a bit more ethereal, ECM sonic-like vibe, spiked with heated moments. One of the first impressions through these two pieces is the remarkable tone the guitarist and altoist coax from his instrument. The latter, as previously stated, is an especially strong emotive player.  After reaching the peak of his solo, he hands of to the leader who picks dazzling lines that connote a combination of excitement, anxiety, and impatience, like the worried expectant father just walking back and forth in that boring hospital corridor. Perl’s kinetic kit work continues to reflect the same.

“The Attempt” is softer and lyrical, featuring some terrific harmonics in the unison lines from the guitarist and saxophonist with steady work in the ‘engine room’ by the bass-drum tandem. The emotions vacillate throughout, reflective of his (and by inference many others) experience with IVF. “A Room with No Doors” is both gloomy and agitated with Herzog improvising an unpredictable path. Bassist Grace makes a declarative statement as well.  “Loss” reads like one caught in the gloomiest stupor with Hertzog playing more long reverberating notes and chords as opposed to flurries of notes while “The Last Time” is a reawakening, a huge burst of both energy and hopefulness along the musical journey with uplifting solos from the two front-liners above a polyrhythmic current. Woroshyl, who had previously been mostly lyrical, gets fierce and aggressive, soaring on his turn. “Interlude” signifies change and the moment at hand, the tones growing more optimistic through the melodic tones of “Whisper You” to the sheer jubilation of “Arrival.”

Hertzog and his quartet have crafted a deep emotional work. Even apart from the heartfelt experience, the music would stand well on its own. Knowing the intent though, only furthers the respect for what he and his quartet rendered.

NOTE: Longing to Meet You is the first in a trio of recordings by Hertzog, each vastly different as one will be a concerto for guitar backed by big band and strings while the other is a project of Ozark folk music. (Herzog has a degree from the University of Arkansas, as well as from Berklee and the Manhattan School of Music).

• Jim Hynes

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