The Ghost, the King and I featuring Scott Hamilton & Strings [Pure DSD]

This is a release filled with energy, warmth, and exceptional musicianship. It is also one of the most remarkably natural and true-to-life recordings I have heard.
Saxophonist Scott Hamilton is a phenomenal artist, heard here at his most reflective and emotionally direct. Backed by the trio of Rob van Bavel, Vincent Koning, and Frans van Geest, and joined by the Salon de Musique String Trio, the album unfolds as an ongoing musical conversation among artists who listen closely to one another and respond naturally to the enthusiastic audience invited into Studio 1 at MCO Hilversum in the Netherlands for this recording session.
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Recording engineer Frans de Rond creates a soundstage that feels intimate while presenting a precise and believable sense of each musician’s location within the remarkable acoustics of Studio 1. His approach begins with a Josephson C700S stereo microphone placed at the center of the ensemble, with Scott positioned just behind it. Spot microphones are then added with great care, preserving the integrity of the primary stereo image rather than replacing it.
The result is a delightfully natural recording. We hear the authentic ambience of the hall surrounding each instrument, complete with the natural bloom and decay for which Studio 1 is so highly regarded. At the same time, every instrument retains its full tonal character without ever drawing attention away from the ensemble as a whole.

This album brings together three countries and three musical traditions. Dutch Swing meets American Jazz lyricism and Korean Classical refinement. Rob van Bavel’s arrangements weave these worlds together—blending swing standards with intimate ballads—while the Salon de Musique strings add unexpected colors and depth.

When the trio first played with Scott Hamilton in 2024, the chemistry between the four was so strong that they immediately decided to record the collaboration, Fortunately, they did so, allowing a wider audience to enjoy the result. The recording took place at the renowned Studio 1 on Heuvellaan (MCO) in Hilversum.

This superb album comprises eight fine compositions and boasts excellent sound quality.

This recording documents Scott Hamilton at a moment where introspection and scale converge. His playing is marked by a rare emotional candor, less a display of virtuosity than an ongoing process of self-examination. Each improvisation unfolds as a deliberate risk, shaped by a willingness to engage uncertainty and to articulate his inner states without mediation.

There’s a time and place for everything, including displays of virtuosity. The Ghost, the King and I, featuring Scott Hamilton has an amazing trio of Frans van Geest (the Ghost), Vincent Koning (the King), and Rob van Bavel (the I), yet they show beautiful restraint in service of vibes and music.

There’s a reason Van Halen’s track Eruption is well known, but not found on a ton of playlists. It’s guitar virtuosity and creativity at its best, but Eruption doesn’t pull at the heartstrings, give anyone the warm fuzzy feeling, or tell a story that takes one’s mind away from reality for 1:42. Scott Hamilton and this trio take listeners on a journey with a rainbow of sonic delights, in a way showing even more virtuosity by showing restraint, in order to make music, not mathematical formulas in sonic clothing.

Track two, Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar is my favorite, although I always start with track one and listen from start to finish. I like albums as a whole piece of music.

Another great album from Frans du Rond. It should be purchased in Pure DSD 256 is one wants the original master.

Soothing swing ‘n’ strings from Holland’s finest and Great Scott

The music of Scott Hamilton has always gone down well in The Netherlands, not least because of cooperation with prime Dutch musicians, notably pianists Rein de Graaff and Rob van Bavel. Van Bavel is part of The Ghost, The King & I, a drum-less trio featuring guitarist Vincent Koning and bassist Frans van Geest dedicated to refreshing the American Songbook.

A high-quality coupling with Hamilton, our veteran with a sound as warm as the smoldering heat from the embers, a way of phrasing that equals your balanced steps on and off dune hills. Old-school art of the tenor that alternates warm-hearted ballads with mid-tempo swingers.

It’s always a joy to hear Hamilton build a story with ever-increasing tension, non-spectacularly in the good sense of the word, with Ben Webster-ish wit and heat. He’s matched by Van Bavel in I Want To Be Happy, who’s doing with two hands where others need four.

Great Scott and (Korean) strings has come off as envisioned by Van Bavel, a marriage of sophistication and romance, lemon and custard. All in all, top-rate mainstream stuff.

The Ghost's new album, The King and I with Scott Hamilton and Strings once again shows why this trio has occupied its own place in the Dutch Jazz landscape since its founding in 2008. Pianist Rob van Bavel, double bassist Frans van Geest and guitarist Vincent Koning together form a group with a distinct aesthetic, rooted in the classical jazz tradition.

The collaboration with the American Tenor Saxophonist Scott Hamilton, no stranger to the Netherlands since the 1970s, makes it clear how smoothly Hamilton's warm, lyrical tone blends with the transparent group sound of this trio.

Rob van Bavel has maintained a strong bond with South Korea for many years, where he regularly plays, teaches and collaborates with local musicians. That connection eventually led to the collaboration with the South Korean string trio, Salon de Musique, which is an essential part of the timbre on this album.

From the first seconds, that trust is fully justified. The trio, Hamilton and the string trio interlock in a self-evident way. It's a synthesis that you expect to work and in that respect the album offers no surprises, but that's exactly the power.

Everything slides in warm and glowing, with a clarity and tranquility that is only possible when all the musicians involved know each other's breath and intention. The album is not an experiment in pushing boundaries but a celebration of refinement, balance and expressive simplicity.

The entire album is a beautiful example of craftsmanship, unparalleled live recorded in Studio 1 of the Broadcasting Music Center, entirely in one take. You can hear that choice in the natural flow, the concentration and the vibrancy of the performance. This is music that breathes, music that lives in the moment and music that is played by musicians who know exactly what they want to say and do so with warmth, clarity and elegance.