01 November 2022

End of eight

It's the end of a series.  A series of eight concerts with invited players from interstate, run by Alex Raupach Verity Lane.  I've got to the last three only, but enjoyed them immensely.  Let's hope the series reappears.  It reminds me a days a decade back when musicians and bands toured though Canberra, Syd>Melb or vice versa, with workshops at the ANUSOM.  Good days.  These were great concerts.  This last night was pianist Wilbur Whitta, again one with Canberra connections but also a Masters from the Royal School of Music, just beside the Royal Albert Hall, that Albert Hall in London.  Impressive as was his playing.  He teamed with Chris Pound and Micah Heathwood for the night, and a few tunes to finish with Alex and Tom Fell.  We caught the second set only, with a bopper then a few possible originals, then a longing trumpet tune, and possibly a Miles of late'70s vintage and a finish on a rarer standard, You stepped out of a dream.  I found Wilbur as expansive, lightly phrased but complex, rich in substitutions and dissonances.  Lovely.  Chris again solid and richly toned but exploratory.  Micah busy and driving and forceful.  A worthy end to a challenging series.

Wilbur Whitta (piano) led a trio with Chris Pound (bass) and Micah Heathwood (drums) at Verity Lane.  Alex Raupach (trumpet) and Tom Fell (tenor) sat in for a few tunes. 

No comments: