Monday 16 November 2009

Jim Hart's Gemini - 15th November 2009

Thanks to Paul Smith for the photo.

Jim Hart's Gemini played the Clare Cellars to promote their excellent sophomore album Narrada. Their two forty-five minute sets consisted of original songs from their album as well as a rendition of Wayne Shorter's 'Infant Eyes' and a new unpublished track. The quartet features Hart on vibraphone, Ivo Neame (who is better known as a pianist) on alto sax, with Jasper Hoiby on double bass and Dave Smith on drums. The group is emblematic of the precociousness and diligence of the young London scene, its members are concurrently up-and-coming and firmly-established.

The vibraphone is an oscillating electric percussion instrument which resembles a large xylophone in appearance and timbre. Hart's style is influenced in particular by vibes legend Bobby Hutcherson, a seminal performer and composer in the 1960s 'out' movement, which was an abstractive development of bebop. Likewise, Smith's explosive polyrhythmic drumming resembled that of Tony Williams, another key player and innovator of the era.

Smith began 'Dark Moon' at a furious tempo, extracting fabulous tones from his kit. The group pounced on the number - the consistently melodic and contemplative Hoiby went up a gear and started to strum-pluck his bass as Neame tore into the tune with a John Zorn like intensity. Towards the end, drums and vibraphone were left to play the head in perfect unison, Hart's mallets scuttling up and down the keys as Smith stabbed the toms like a boxer hitting a speed bag.

The musicianship on display was simply outstanding as the group meticulously unlocked Hart's challenging compositions with unostentatious virtuosity. But the extent of the their success derives from the fact that they thrilled and entertained a largely unknowing audience, playing songs with shifting time signatures and obscure harmonies that never seemed broken-up or contrived.

The combination of the delightful ambience of Clare cellars and the consistently strong programming of its jazz night is always a hit, so it was a pity to see a poor attendance. Next up on 29th November are two home-grown acts: the double trombone ensemble Hip Bones with support from Spare Bed Trio.

Thursday 12 November 2009

Mark Perry Quintet - Jazz At Johns - 30th October 2009

Thanks to Amir Behrouzi for the photo.

Jazz at Johns is held three or four times a term on Friday evenings in the Fisher Building of St John's college. It is extremely well-run, with a large committee drawn from across the university and numerous friendly helpers. The lack of parochialism, relaxed atmosphere, and cheap bar always prove the catalysts for a strong attendance. The setting is functional, rather than charming, and allows for guests to either relax and chat a little further away from the action or sit intently in front of the stage.

Supporting the Mark Perry Quintet was Cambridge alumnus Sarah Tandy and her accomplished piano trio, playing a set consisting mostly of classic standards. Tiago Coimbra's metronomic walking bass and Rick Hudson's varied, shifting rhythms anchored Tandy's advanced, Herbie Hancock influenced piano playing. The group were tight and well-rehearsed, pausing and reentering in unison to underscore key moments. The high quality of the support was impressive considering the £4 entrance fee.

After a short break the Mark Perry Quintet filled out onto the stage for the first of two sets of original numbers. The quintet's rhythm section of drums, acoustic bass, and fender rhodes keyboard were at the back of the stage while the horn section of trumpet and tenor saxophone led at the front. Containing some of the nation's most promising young jazz musicians, in particular drum prodigy James Maddren, the band commanded the attention of the willing audience.

The quintet crafted music that was complex and forward-looking, yet gripping and pithy. Sam Leak invoked the spirit of the electric Miles Davis period as he summoned swampy chords from his rhodes before punctuating the gloom with shrilly oscillating right-hand runs. As Perry's cool-toned trumpet and Josh Ison's jagged saxophone took their turns to solo, Leak picked out and echoed key notes and phrases. Maddren's sense of rhythm was immaculate, tapping out polyrhythms in which the omitted beats were more significant than the accented. Along with the always impressive Empirical bassist Tom Farmer, the rhythm section was formidable. Out front, the horns sounded individually inspired but slightly disconnected - both from each other and from their colleagues behind.

The contrasting expressions and temperaments of the musicians were fascinating to behold: the laconic trumpet-gripping frontman, when not conveying an air of artistic detachment, gave off a slightly perturbed air; saxophonist Josh Ison had a giddy look of excitement, bouncing and nodding to his partners' solos; slack-jawed Maddren seemed utterly relaxed yet deep within the groove, occasionally exchanging mischievous glances with Farmer.

Individually, the quintet were captivating but as a unit sounded slightly inchoate. The band will surely benefit greatly from more time performing together, away from each member's duties with their other bands. Jazz at Johns has provided exciting new jazz at a thoroughly reasonable cost and in a lively setting. Next on the bill is the John Randall Quintet on the Friday 13th November.

Friday 6 November 2009

Shakespearean Sonnet - 2008

A twitch? Or did the corners of her lips
Contrive to meet (and since rebuffed, fall slack)?
I join green eyes in gazing at these tips
Of toes that bow, as if they fear attack.
I came to speak and say it all, a rock,
But now, a pebble in the turning tide,
My course reversed, I wait, take breath and stock,
Then flee with silent words left unreplied.
The moment's gone, and yet I see it still.
'Twixt past and present the future's never found.
I trust one day that I will have my fill,
And from the bonds of yearning be unbound.
To risk and lose, my boy, will serve you best,
Omission's sin resolves if you confess.

Norma Winstone - Kettle's Yard - 17th October 2008

The elegant untempered 1960’s modernism of Kettle’s Yard, the preserved house of the Tate Gallery curator Jim Ede, serves as an ideal backdrop for sophisticated jazz, with its beautiful baby grand piano and a number of paintings that wouldn’t seem out of place on Blue Note LP sleeves.

The Norma Winstone trio started their set at 7.30 and played for 2 hours, with a half an hour interval during which concert goers were free to wander around the gallery space. The music was grounded in the early 20th century classical tradition and mixed the sound of Scandinavian post-bop with European folk melodies. Some songs took the form of jazz ballads, others were reworkings of folk songs and even Erik Satie.

The end product was lyrical, calm and contemplative, a tasteful convergence of a timelessly classic sound with certain progressive elements - Venier’s piano string plucking/muting a nod to the likes of Cecil Taylor and Gesing’s didgeridoo-like circular breathing bass clarinet tones and noisy valve clamping reminiscent of Eric Dolphy. Winstone’s vocal effects are very much her own; she pushed her voice from rich sonorous lows to strained but taught high-pitched yelps and covered the spectrum in-between. The rhythm was mostly straight with lots of rubato, but at two moments the piano and sax momentarily joined together and swung strongly and ecstatically.

The musicians played unselfishly and as a unit; they never sat back or indulged in cliché and weren’t afraid to pause rather than get stale. This meant that the music contained a great deal of space and felt unhurried and considered. For the piano and voice duet on the ballad 'The Heather on the Hill', Venier adopted an Evansian approach, fluidly interspersing graceful melodic lines with rich and nuanced chord voicings. This created an ideal backing for Winstone’s singing and allowed her to show why she has proved to be such an influential and recognized voice in the jazz world.

Considering the quality of music and the unparalleled setting, the predominantly middle-aged audience was a shame. Hopefully there will be a few more young faces taking advantage of the student concession for the Roger Mitchell Trio at the Junction on November 7.