His demanding approach can mostly be seen in the way he gathers around him exceptional musicians who, without him, might never have crossed paths. Alongside him, we find: the Franco-Brazilian Nelson Veras, undoubtedly one of the great inventors of the guitar today. He radically redefined its foundations and pushed the limits very far. Ben van Gelder, a Dutch saxophonist and long-term NYC resident, whose grounded discourse in tradition is elaborated with an extraordinary sense of the moment, so drawing the contours of a bright future. This approach does not contradict the adage of Gustav Mahler, which could concern all the members of this exceptional group: “Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.” Antoine Pierre is a Belgian drummer-composer who embraces styles with ease. His playing is imbued with a very particular concentration and an indisputable sincerity. He has been one of Zurstrassen’s long-standing partners. His sessions reveal the many facets of British pianist and organist Kit Downes through their recordings for the ECM label, his immense culture – which places Jazz and classical music at the same level of excellence – makes him an essential catalyst for this music in perpetual motion.

As the leader of the group NOVA, Zurstrassen stands nobly in the right place to showcase compositions full of surprises and detours, specially designed for his brilliant companions through subtle bass playing – like delicately directed whispers. Here, he acts like a stage director that chooses and reveals talents, without necessarily choosing to say much; his music speaks for itself.

As a child of the ball, Félix was very early on exposed to the complexity of rhythm and harmony. Nourished by these elements, he has created a world whose melodic force offers listeners the perfect sesame. They are then swept away by a music made up of surprises, like so many decors to he discovered, flabbergasted by so much invention, carried away by the masterful cohesion of an ideal European group of staggering maturity.

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