THORMODSAETER, MAGNE - L'ARTE DELLA PERSUASIONE (LP)

To many, the worlds of jazz and classical music may be parallel lines, but they don't ever converge. Magne Thormodsæter's aptly titled L'arte della persuasione is quite literally an attempt to convince you otherwise. A 35-minute story told in five acts; it pits a high-caliber classical ensemble against a jazz group to observe the outcome. The result is captivatingly unclassifiable. As much a compositional tour de force as an experiment with uncertain outcome, ECM-alumni, bassist, and in-demand session musician Thormodsæter has created a magical fusion defying the laws of theoretical gravity.