The Moutin Reunion Quartet

The rhythm team returns to the Jazz Bakery fronting a venturesome ensemble.

By Don Heckman

Special to The Times

Twins are a jazz rarity. But the novelty that Francois and Louis Moutin are twin brothers fades into the area of intriguing background information after they begin to play. And their performance at the Jazz Bakery on Thursday night had less to do with their fraternal identity than it did with the quality of their music.

Two years ago, the Moutins startled Southland jazz listeners with their capacity to match the free-flying improvisations of pianist Martial Solal during his run at the Bakery. This time out, they have arrived with their own ensemble, which also features tenor saxophonist Rick Margitza and pianist Pierre de Bethmann.

It was apparent, from the opening phrases of "M.R.C." (a whimsical title for a work structured over minor-key harmonies of the song "I Got Rhythm" ˜ i.e., minor rhythm changes) that it was going to be an adventurous evening. Written by bassist Francois Moutin, the piece began with an arching figure doubled on bass and piano, with Margitza playing a disjunct melody filled with wide, leaping intervals as drummer Louis Moutin stirred up a caldron of simmering rhythm.

This was a pattern that surfaced frequently in other numbers, setting the stage for improvising from Margitza and De Bethmann that consistently skirted the edges of the jazz avant-garde. But no matter how complex the musical interchanges ˜ and there were times when they were very complex indeed ˜ the constant feeling of musical togetherness, of players deeply in touch with each other, brought everything vividly to life.

That contact was energized by the symbiotic linkage between the two brothers, by their sense of rhythmic flow, by improvisational ideas germinated and fulfilled together. On a duet version of "La Vie en Rose," for example, they began with an utterly deconstructed view of the familiar song, gradually pulling its pieces back into something resembling coherence but very different from anything that Edith Piaf might have imagined.

Like all siblings, the Moutins undoubtedly endured (and endure) periods of rivalry and competition. But, at 44, they have transformed their brotherly connection into an extraordinary and admirable creative partnership.

- Los Angeles Times - January 7, 2006

By Alain Drouot

Watching twin brothers François and Louis Moutin load their van after a gig at Chicago's HotHouse last June, one could hardly imagine that they both hold a post-graduate degree from two of the most prestigious French engineering schools. But music has been part of their life since they were growing up. "Our parents had an extensive jazz record collection covering all eras," François said. "They also had instruments and they would take us out to concerts."
As they shared a passion for math and music, their educational path was actually directed by bad music instructors and-great math teachers. In college, however, they got somewhat disillusioned with their classes and became more involved with music. After graduating, they met another pianist Jean-Marie Machado, and that experience convinced them that jazz was going to be their bread and butter. They quickly started to garner attention and were hired by reed player Michel Portal and pianist Martial Solal .
Louis is cautious for fear of being misunderstood when asked about a relationship between math and music, but François is eager to answer. “The most pertinent common attribute is intuition." he said. “When you try to solve a problem or elaborate a theory, intuition becomes an essential tool, and you also use your intuition when you try to create music or improvise". This is reflected in their hard-bop/post-bop, which is far from cerebral and is packed with emotion and energy.
Their current project is called the Moutin Reunion Quartet for a reason. Following the advice of musicians such as Carla Bley and Peter Erskine, François moved to New York in 1995. "I loved it right away”, he said.
During François' exile, the twins did not take part in too many projects together. "One day in 1999, my brother called me and played a new composition over the phone," François said. “Since I had several of mine in stock it became natural to start a group.
"Although the quartet is acoustic, its music occasionally suggests Weather Report”. I love that band." François said. “They created a language that hardly anybody has used since. They had a unique rhythmic approach to the melody and their music contained some harmonically elaborate elements."
Louis added: ''We did borrow their approach to composition, the way they structured a piece and how this structure leads to improvisation.''
While the two brothers co-lead the group, they do not co-write the tunes. However, the cohesion of their project shows once more what a special relationship they have. "If you listen to our music you can feel the differences," Louis said. "But at the same time, the music comes from the same vein and you can see a close kinship between our writing styles. We each have our own touch".
The group's line up also includes pianist Pierre de Bethmann and saxophonist Rick Margitza, who joined the quartet after sitting in on several occasions as substitutes. Their predecessors, saxophonist Sylvain Beuf and pianist Baptiste Trotignon, left as their own careers took a turn for the better. Without diminishing the contributions of these earlier band members, the Moutins feel that they have now the band they have been looking for. Their recent album, Something Like Now (Nocturne), is the first to benefit from a large U.S. distribution.
“We just want to play” Louis said. "Most French musicians don't get to perform outside of France. Playing all around the world with Martial Sold showed us that it was possible."


- Downbeat - Februar 2006

By Dick Metcalf

Superb sonics & excellent jazz composition will make this a reunion you'll wish you'd been there for... & with
this CD, you can (at least for a few) feel like you are. The recording has an "intimate" feel... not just the
playing, but the recording itself... I'm not exactly sure why it comes across that way, but it does. You'll want to
be in line on August 30th, 2005, when this is released in stores... it's that pleasant a listening experience.
Siblings Louis (drums) & Francois (bass) Moutin are joined by a most excellent pianist, Pierre de Bethmann &
sax player Rick Margitza. The majority of the tracks are all original, which makes the experience ever more
exciting for these ol' ears... totally fresh ideas that are expressed with total energy & will challenge your ears to
reach new plateaus. This is one of the best jazz albums I've listened to this year, & it comes MOST HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED for jazz buffs who want pure creativity flowing into their ears!

- Improvijazzation Nation,

MOUTIN REUNION QUARTET
Something Like Now
(Nocturne)
Rating: 7
US release date: 30 August 2005
by Robert R. Calder

If the brothers Moutin pay heed to such notices as this, they might be grateful to some of the irritations
attendant on the present reviewer's life when he began his attention to their new CD. I am extremely grateful
for their having put together a set of performances so wonderfully resolved. Things can work out!
Regardless of any information of a biographical order, explaining why this band is called "Reunion", or the liner
notes' reference to the other three guys but with a different pianist, this quartet is incredibly tight after a
fashion which raises the phrase maximum efficiency. I suppose they could play very well and flawlessly, on a
bad night for all of them -- the sort of thing Europeans have heard from a few outstanding ensembles on gigs
soon enough after landing to feature jet-lag.
This set was surely performed in more favourable circumstances, for what can happen with the too-recently
landed when jet-lag has been sweated out a bit, happens very early here. Especially the bassist co-leader,
Francois Moutin, loosens up within the consistent structure of the ensemble, and without any overall element
slackening he follows the warm-up chorus by adding things. Dave Holland's quintet gave me my biggest
experience of jet-lag management transforming into out-and-out brilliance. It's this sort of waking up the very
different Moutin ensemble conjures, waking the listener to hear something really going on.
"Something Like Now -- Part 1" is the opener, composed by the drummer Louis Moutin, the bassist's twin
brother. The piano (Pierre de Bethmann) and bass open like they were Siamese twins; in comes the drummer
(and the American in the band), Rick Margitza, and it's an ensemble, over a lot of bass work and a piano solo of
class. Quite where "Something Like Now -- Part 2" begins is hard to say. I can't be bothered scrolling back; I
heard no break and there was more magnificent bass. The tenor comes out of the ensemble, and by the time
he's established a forward line against the repeated pattern of the stomping thing the performance has
become, the drummer is laying about the cymbals. The internal balance is startling.
The brothers duet on the assemblage of Charlie Parker material which is the second track, and the only one not
credited to either of them (though the bassist is credited with arranging this). It stops suddenly and the pianist
comes in contrastingly with the drummer's "Take It Easy". Margitza has a softer tone, like some other
interesting post-Coltrane non-imitators. Like him, the melodically creative pianist sounds as if he's soloing
above a big band. The twins do a lot on bass and drums. Tempo changes are implied, the pianist's move to
Fender Rhodes, as the second tenor solo proceeds, enlists him in the formerly two but now three-man
semblance of a big band. Nice that he gets to open the track which follows with an unaccompanied section.
Bass and drums slip in with support and (for the moment at least) the foregoing turns out to have been an
introduction to a plaintive tenor ballad on which passion is tempered by a sense of vulnerability. The ballad
voice shifts for a little to the bass, and the tenor resumes, playing harmonics and eventually a delicate cadenza.
Lots of unpredictable things happen during this close to an hour of music. I can't really understand the title
"Tomcat". Still, the unison doubling first of a piano line with the tenor, and then piano with bass, is
characteristic of trompe l'oreille effects which can suddenly dissolve to allow the pianist freedom to solo, shift
tempo, be as simple and unflashy as he likes, all with remarkable bass support. Francois Moutin is the one
melody instrument player whose does any extended deliberately virtuosic performance, but that very often in
providing support. The theme of "Echoing", like the equally unshowy and reflective "Surrendering", comes in
late after a prelude, but then Margitza and de Bethmann are allowed remarkable relaxation. - Pop Matters

By Ed Trefzger

LIKE MOST OF you, I’d guess, I’m pretty much immersed in jazz, between listening to new releases and to the
radio, and catching as much live music as possible. Rarely, though, have I heard and seen a group whose
performance was so absolutely exhilarating as the latest incarnation of the Moutin Reunion Quartet.
Anchored by the telepathically taut playing of twins François (bass) and Louis Moutin (drums), the quartet adds
a new pianist this time, Pierre de Bethmann, to create one the most explosive rhythm sections around.
Saxophonist Rick Margitza glides above the fray as the group’s melodic voice, but equals the others’ intensity
with some fiery improvisational passages. All but one track – “Bird’s Medley,” a François Moutin arrangement of
Charlie Parker tunes performed as a duo by the Moutins – are François or Louis compositions, and there’s not
one that I wouldn’t recommend for airplay. Lithe, lean and muscular, Something Like Now is a lock on my list of
the year’s ten best. - Jazzweek

By John Kelman

When it comes to delivering some of the real surprises of the festival, the 4 pm Connoisseur Series is the one to
consistently deliver. The performance of Moutin Reunion Quartet will surely go down as not only a highlight of
this season, but of any year. Co-led by twin brothers Louis on drums and François on acoustic bass, the group
also features saxophonist Rick Margitza and Pierre de Bethmann on piano and Fender Rhodes. Margitza played
briefly with Miles Davis in the late ‘80s, and he's one of those players who slowly but surely just keeps getting
better and better and has, curiously, remained farther below the radar than his prodigious talent deserves.
People often talk about twins sharing a special connection, and the two brothers indeed demonstrated a
beyond-telepathic oneness during their 75-minute set. François relocated from France to New York City ten
years ago, and this quartet came about a couple of years back, when they decided they just had to play
together again. The incredible interplay between the two—especially highlighted three songs in, when they
performed a bass and drums duet that incorporated a number of Charlie Parker tunes, including “Donna Lee”—
was all the more remarkable in that, while Louis’ kit faced the rest of the group, rather than the audience, his
head was usually turned out, and so there was very little eye contact with François. The way that the two would
converge from the midst of unfettered free play into a single voice was nothing short of magical.
The compositions, written by Louis and François, are heavily in the contemporary post bop camp, with clear
respect for the kind of open-ended experimentation that defines the music of artists like McCoy Tyner and Tony
Williams, although their writing is often more complex. The title track, from their forthcoming third release,
Something Like New, is a prime example, with plenty of solo space, but adjoining passages found the group
navigating through a number of rhythmic feels and harmonic centres. Margitza, a creative musician who moved
from the US to Paris a couple of years back, played with the kind of conviction and a constantly-searching
aesthetic that constantly begs the question of why he isn’t better known. Both he and Bethmann performed
with the kind of imagination that breaks through more restrictive bar lines, creating solos rife with broader
narratives.
What made Moutin Reunion Quartet’s set so invigorating was their clear and uncompromising spirit of “going for
it.” As the group charged out of the gate, the audience knew it was in for something special from the first few
notes. François’ rich tone and harmonic flexibility—reminiscent of Dave Holland at times—along with Louis’
almost reckless Tony Williams-like abandon, created a relentlessly exciting and ever-shifting backdrop for
Margitza and Bethmann. At the end of the show, the audience seemed as paradoxically energized and spent as
the group itself. While there was no encore despite the audience’s enthusiastic response, the Moutin Reunion
Quartet’s performance couldn’t have been better. Satisfied yet at the same time hungry for more, everyone
was talking about this performance well into the evening and, like guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel’s performance at
last year’s festival, this will undoubtedly be one of those shows that everybody’s raving about long after the
festival has ended. - All About Jazz

By Gilles Laheurte

Every chance to see/hear the Moutin Reunion Quartet in New York City is precious. To this writer, this powerful
group should always be on everyone’s priority list when they are in town, especially since the city’s jazz
community does not have frequent opportunities to see this wonderful exuberant quartet “live” often… With
François in NY and Louis in Paris, their several “reunions” since 1999 have always been widely praised for their
incredible dynamics and interplay. With the incisive Rick Margitza on saxophones and with brilliant new pianist
Pierre de Bethmann providing a solid melodic support for the group’s many inventive directions, it was a
splendid way to end their 2005 North American tour (after Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania and
Washington DC), and a party celebration of their new third CD release “Something Like Now” (Nocturne/
Lightyear, distributed by WEA).
The evening started with no fanfare on a furiously fast tempo piece, “MRC,” and was sizzling instantly:
Lots of notes, lots of waves, lots of energy and lots of clever phrases. When the pianist quietly sat out, the trio
format gave Margitza a field wide open for atonal developments reminiscent of late Coltrane. Ebullient energies
were released through a series of colorful polyphonic choruses on a bed of blistering drums and fast descending
bass chords and counterpoints (mostly on the upper register of the 4th string), François’ first virtuoso tour de
force of the evening…
“Echoing” featured a long, slow, introverted bass solo, showing a soul totally absorbed in his deep inner
private world, gliding over the entire length of the fingerboard… a total contrast with the first piece. A very
moody piece, it enabled to appreciate De Bethmann’s subtle mix of left hand chords / right hand melodic
patterns, and Margitza’s soft poetic warped notes dissipating in half blown clusters, closing in great tender
beauty.
Both dropped out to make way for a splendid duo piece between the two brothers, showing their
profound empathy and great sense of humor over a Bird medley (“Confirmation, Donna Lee and Ornithology”).
Like two young cubs “challenging” each other (Louis using only his fingers and palms between snare, toms and
occasional cymbals), their fraternal interaction was great fun to watch: staring at each other’s sparkling eyes,
obviously enjoying their bold complicity, their private joyful game showed a happy communion between two
loving souls. “I told you he’s great!” said François of his brother… The fourth piece (“Take it Easy”) featured an
elegant solo piano intro made of smooth long phrases, and an exciting fiery duo between tenor sax and drums
with shifting modes and openly Coltrane’s overtones (polyrhythmic and polyphonic), bringing the group to a
splashing crescendo finale.
Although plagued by some sound problems that the club had some difficulties to resolve, the second set
was just as vigorous and colorful, at times funky and “Blue Note” like (“Tomcat”), at times mildly middleeastern
and exotic, at times pensive and mellow not unlike some 20th century “classical” chamber music of
Poulenc and Ibert (“Surrendering”), all in subtle shades full of intense emotions. Although each musician was
given ample time to shine -- in particular in “Surrendering:” a delicate introduction by Bethmann and Margitza’s
masterful control of soft polyphonic explorations in ending the piece -- it seemed to give more focus to the
brothers’ extraordinarily inventive duo interplay, especially in the second (“Africa”) and the concluding piece
(“Something like Now”). Each time, both pianist and saxophonist watched attentively, a radiant smile of
appreciation on their face, marveling at the twins’ buoyant bursts of energy.
With the incredible rapport that shines between the four of them, the Quartet revealed a magnetic
unified vision of its highly original compositions. Catch them next time they are in town! You’ll be glad you did.
© 2005 Gilles Laheurte - JazzImprov

issue: Jan. 19, 2006

By Josef Woodard

One sure sign that Santa Barbara is becoming a solid jazz
town, beyond its higher profile concert life, is the buzz on the periphery, the chance to
hear world class jazz on an 'off' night. Take the respected band Moutin Reunion
Quartet, who stopped by to light SOhO on fire, on a recent Wednesday night. The
group, with two impressive records out, is led by the stellar rhythm section of twin
French brothers, drummer Louis and bassist Francois Moutin. The siblings supply a
hot, tight rhythmic molten core over which pianist Pierre de Bethmann and the
underrated tenor saxist Rick Margitza stretch out, mostly on Moutin originals taking a
cue from cerebral post-hard bop and touches of Weather Report.
At SOhO, the band gave the crowd plenty to rave about. Margitza, in particular, is
ideally suited for the job. A Miles Davis alumnus who can blow up an elegant storm,
he brought his talent, range, and ferocity to bear on tunes like 'M.R.C.', 'Echoing'
(from the bandís latest CD, Something Like Now), and a feisty téte å téte with drums.
The quartet closed a power-packed evening with the charming yet brainy 'Something
Like Now', with its Zawinul-esque melody snaking beneath a counter bass line and
an all-over musical massage effect. Word has it the band may return in September:
Don't miss 'em. —Josef Woodard - The Santa Barbara Independent

By Bob Protzman

There are many things—besides the exciting, inventive way they combine straightahead and a sort of “neofusion’’
jazz —that make the Moutin Reunion Quartet a distinctive ensemble.
The band is co-led by identical French-born twin brothers—Francois (bass) and Louis (drums) Moutin. Louis
lives in Paris, while Francois has been a New Yorker since 1997, making the band bi-continental.
Each has an advanced degree, but neither is in music. Louis has a masters in math, Francois a Ph.D. in
physics. Both turned their backs on careers and almost certain financial security, in favor of one of the most
problematic occupations out there, a life in jazz.
“For us, music has always been fun,’’ says Francois by phone from Paris. “Then it became a passion, so we
knew we had to do it to be more in touch with ourselves, although we realized our lives would be less
comfortable.’’
The siblings played together until age 20, then separated to become sidemen with folks like John
Abercrombie, Albert Mangelsdorff, Michel Legrand, Martial Solal, Toots Thielemans, and Archie Shepp.
In 1999, they decided it was time to be together again, and formed a band whose current members include
pianist Pierre de Bethmann and ex-Miles Davis, Maynard Ferguson and Maria Schneider saxophonist Rick
Margitza.
Francois can’t say enough about Margitza. “He’s one of the few saxophonists who could handle what we’re
playing’’ he says, citing the saxman’s “poetic sense of phrasing,’’ and calling him “soulful and energetic, but
controlled.’’
The twins might not be too uncomfortable after all. They are enjoying considerable success—working often,
recording regularly, and getting generally excellent reviews for live shows and CDs.
Firmly established abroad, the Moutins and their band have for the past four years toured the U.S. several
times annually. The visits are paying off.
Their present trip will bring them to the Erie Art Museum for a Saturday night performance. Other stops include
Cincinnati, Louisville, Washington (at the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival on Sunday), and Philadelphia.
“It’s hard work, but rewarding to succeed on two continents,’’ says Francois. “In jazz, America has always been
considered the real thing, so our success in the U.S. makes the French and other countries proud and has
increased our notoriety there.’’
From the opening notes of the title tune of the quartet’s new CD “Something Like New’’ (Nocturne), the
experienced jazz listener will think, “Sounds like Weather Report,’’ in reference to the 1970s electric jazz
fusion band co-led led by keyboardist/composer Joe Zawinul and saxophonist/composer Wayne Shorter.
“Yes, we did connect with them in those days, but if you listen closely, I think you’ll notice that the similarity is
mostly in the writing (done primarily by the brothers), rather than the sound of the group,’’ explains Francois.
Moutin makes it clear, however, that he and Louis learned jazz and its history from growing up listening to
their parents’ exhaustive record library and playing the music from age 5, so that they’ve incorporated
elements from many great figures.
The result? Their music—mostly acoustic, except for the occasional use of electric piano--is high-energy, freewheeling,
yet also lyrical, and terrifically interactive.
However it is labeled, Moutin says the band’s music is about “intimacy’’ and “sharing our emotions’’ with one
another and listeners. “After all,’’ he says, “music expresses life.’’ - Erie Times News - Sept 29 2005

By ASHLEY KAHN

What do you get when you combine twins separated by an ocean-bassist François(in New York) and drummer Louis Moutin (in Paris)- with expat saxophonist Rick Margitza and young firebrand pianist Baptiste Trotignon (both In Paris)? A band with feet on both sides of the Atlantic that ably defies distance, manages to remain creatively in sync and employs long distance phone lines to compose material.
Moutin Reunion Quartet's music might be called acoustic fusion because the band uses structural devices and sonic elements reminiscent of various '70s groups. In performance, improvised mini-suites - with smoothly executed interstitial passages - are the group's trademark. At times the syntax seems slightly off: solo, head, drum and bass dialog, head, solo and out. But the Quartet never loses the compass. The group consistently shows instrumental confidence (François' bass prowess is a marvel in itself) and a unified approach rare even among groups with all its members residing in the same postal code.
Born on Christmas Eve and raised in Paris, Louis says the brothers "shared the energy of all those jazz records at home and together we found how to play François was good with things like chords and harmony, and for me it was rhythm. I came to play piano, he came to play guitar and then went to the bass. Then way after that I went to drums." That they would form a rhythm unit seems inevitable. By the late '80s, the brothers became the go-to backup team in the Parisian jazz scene for both the established (like Martial Sold) and the up-and-comers (pianist Jean-Michel Pilc.) They formed their first group to critical acclaim but disbanded when François relocated to New York City in 1996. But in 1999 the brothers were talking on the phone, as François recalls: "Louis played for me a composition he had just written. That's when I went, “Hey, we need to do a band again.” So we got these two French guys - the sax player Sylvain Beuf and Baptiste Trotignon on the piano - and that went really great. Actually, the composition my brother played to me – “Sailing Through the Clouds” - is on our new record." With Margitza replacing Beuf, the MRQ stand poised to win American praise. Their new album Red Moon (Sunnyside) - the group's third - received veteran production input and guidance from George Avakian, is elegantly packaged in a striking, die-cut case and is filled with compelling musical moments. "Elle Aime” - a pun on Louis' and his son's initials - skips along lightly and smartly. The opening of "Apollo 13th" and the title track both conjure the fusion era. "Sailing Through the Clouds" receives its first recorded outing.
François "All the tunes that are here we work on by ourselves -" Louis: "- and in the three months before we went into the studio, we played all these tunes in 20 concerts or more. François "On the road we talk about it, play them and change them. Actually the more we change them the more they become open and the more you can feel the influence of Baptiste and Rick on it. "
Revising and recording Chick Webb's "Stompin' at the Savoy" was, according to Louis, "Typical François. He loves to do kinds of things like that - he's the guy who has those ideas on standards."
If one tune serves as a fraternal emblem, the bass-and-drum treatment of Charles Trenet's classic chanson "La Mer - replete with Louis' hands-on-snare drive and François' voice like exhortation of the melody - fits the bill and also contrasts their supportive role for the band's other half. Says Louis: "You can find our relationship in the first track -" François: "- and it's not about that tune specifically. It's more about the interaction between us when we are free to play together. That track is very representative of how we can really work in telepathy almost." Louis: "But on the rest of the album, we are just like the rhythm section that is comping beside those two marvellous guys, who are not twins. I mean, they are marvels. Baptiste is so great and so young, and Rick's way of playing - the sound he's got, and the phrases he plays - it's so poetic." Asked separately to describe how Red Moon stands out from past efforts, Louis answers, "I think that we are - how can I say it? - a little bit more in the center of ourselves." , François echoes, "On this one I can hear that we have reached a certain style, some kind of center." Se centrer is the French verb both were referencing, they later admitted. In English, the verb translates to finding one's spiritual - possibly musical - identity. In the far-flung world of Moutin Reunion, the creative center - to paraphrase an old spiritual saw - lies within. ASHLEY KAHN
- JazzTimes Magazine - Februar 2004