GREG ABATE QUARTET, In the Moment

Some jazz musicians spend a lifetime refining a sound. After five decades of recording and performing with various ensembles, Greg Abate is determined not only to continue mastering his vibe but keep pushing its possibilities forward. On In the Moment, his latest Summit Records release by the Greg Abate Quartet, the veteran saxophonist and flutist surrounds himself with pianist Bill O’Connell, bassist Harvie S and drummer Steve Johns, a tightly knit unit whose collective chemistry seems to draw fresh dynamics from his playing as he enters yet another phase of his relentlessly exploratory musical journey.  

The collective spark is apparent immediately on “Realization,” a high-spirited swinger Abate originally wrote in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. Its “Living the Dash” concept—making meaningful use of the space between birth and death—is rendered not through solemnity but extraordinary vitality. Jumpy piano, thumping bass and drums, and Abate’s lyrical yet percussive alto ignite a freewheeling bebop exchange filled with twisting lines, ascending phrases and joyous improvisational abandon.

“The Little Men,” originally written for Abate’s sons as they entered adulthood, delivers another fast-moving showcase for the quartet’s collective prowess. O’Connell’s percussive piano, Harvie S’s increasingly animated bass and Johns’ muscular drumming create a spring-loaded foundation for Abate’s alto, which darts through the arrangement with warmth, velocity and flashes of high-register intensity.

One of the album’s most intriguing qualities is Abate’s generosity toward his colleagues. He especially values musicians who listen closely, support one another and understand that a great performance is about more than individual solos. Tunes like the explosive, hard swinging “Black Sea” make that especially clear. Composed by O’Connell and inspired by the energy of Wayne Shorter’s “Black Nile,” it gives the pianist an extended first solo that builds from sparkling lines into a full-throttle improvisation. When Abate enters, he doesn’t compete with that momentum; he absorbs it, answering with an imaginative, increasingly emphatic tenor statement. The music feels less like a series of solos than four musicians instinctively conversing with and responding to one another.

“Kerry’s Song” reveals yet another side of Abate, who switches to his equal virtuosity on flute for a breezy samba dedicated to his wife. His lyrical melody floats above the rhythm section with an almost Brazilian lightness before the improvisation becomes more animated. Harvie S then steps forward with a thoughtful bass solo, demonstrating the melodic sensibility Abate effortlessly brings to his playing. After all that velocity, the expansive nine-minute title track “In the Moment” provides the album’s necessary exhale. Smoky alto, brushed drums and spacious piano create an intimate, lingering atmosphere, with the musicians leaving enough room for each phrase to breathe.  

“CCA,” written in honor of Abate’s late father, settles into a buoyant, blues-inflected shuffle that lets the quartet stretch without sacrificing its melodic character. A brisk bass-and-drum pulse supports Abate’s warm, midrange tenor, which moves from an easygoing theme into increasingly inventive improvisation before O’Connell answers with sparkling high-register piano figures.

“Angelic,” his melodic portrait of his daughter, reveals a gentler side, opening with shimmering piano over a supple mid-tempo groove before Abate’s smoky soprano enters with a lyrical, almost romantic tenderness. A brief, understated bass passage and featherlight percussion create an intimate interlude before Abate switches to a brighter upper-register voice for an explosive improvisation.

Then “Into Somewhere,” a contrafact built over the changes of the jazz classic “Out of Nowhere,” brings the album charging back into classic bebop territory. Descending piano chords, a driving marching groove and Abate’s agile alto create immediate momentum, while his increasingly intricate lines, O’Connell’s dazzling solo and Harvie S’s extended bass feature keep the performance in constant motion before the quartet surges toward its triumphant finish.

After decades on the road, Greg Abate isn’t simply preserving a tradition. He is still listening, still questioning his own playing, still searching for the next musical challenge. In the Moment captures precisely that spirit: decades of mastery meeting an enduring appetite for discovery.