Unity Variations

Unity Variations is an album by British jazz saxophonist Evan Parker and German pianist Georg Gräwe, which was recorded in 1998 during the Empty Bottle Festival of Jazz and Improvised Music and released on Okka Disk. Before this live performance, they had played in duo just once before at the 1991 October Meeting at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam.^[1]

Unity Variations
Live album by Evan Parker and Georg Gräwe
Released	1999
Recorded	May 9, 1998
Venue	Unity Temple, Oak Park, Illinois
Genre	Jazz
Length	54:46
Label	Okka Disk
Producer	John Corbett
Evan Parker chronology
Monkey Puzzle (1997) Unity Variations (1999) Chicago Tenor Duets (2002)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[3]

In her review for AllMusic, Joslyn Layne states "This excellent performance showcases the very complementary interaction of the duo, the sort of interaction that often becomes a feat of close listening even while playing without pause."^[2]

The authors of the Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings commented: "something rarefied and remote in these relatively short improvisations."^[3]

A reviewer for The Free Jazz Collective called the album "a glorious pan-tonal spray of notes, covering the entire range of their instruments."^[4]

Track listing

All compositions by Parker/Gräwe

1. "Unity Variations 1" – 24:33
2. "Unity Variations 2" – 15:42
3. "Unity Variations 3" – 10:37
4. "Unity Variations 4" – 3:54

Personnel

• Evan Parker – soprano sax, tenor sax
• Georg Gräwe – piano