Berlin calls home

This was something special.  It's not every Wednesday we have a Canberran returning for a visit from Berlin where she's been playing for 10 years in various European chamber groups, and improv collectives.  But accompanied by the cream of Canberra's players, CSO and the like, just added to it.  Alexina Hawkins played a lovely, period Carl Stamitz followed by a 20th century contrast in a Bartok viola concerto.  Then an added string quartet playing Haydn.  That wasn't on the menu/program but was a lovely thing.  These were not full works but movements, given available time, and at least the first two played by Xina from memory,  With glorious, woody tone and lithe, always expressive interpretation.  Edward Neeman provided accompaniment for the Stamitz and Bartok and was exemplary.  Just recently I've noticed how much more you take in up close, after a string of masters at close quarters.  This too was enlivening and enlightening.  Then a lovely unexpected, unprogrammed  Haydn string quartet to offer an opportunity to play again with old Canberra mates.  I knew the Stamitz so enjoyed that with great intimacy, anticipating every note.  The Bartok was new, twisted and mangled and indicatively C20th strife-filled; Xina suggested industrial or even romantic/poetic, presumably in response.  And the Haydn was just lovely, of course.  So a memorable and special Wednesday lunchtime concert flown in from Berlin.

Alexina Hawkins (viola) performed Carl Stamitz and Bela Bartok with Edward Neeman (piano) and Haydn with Douglas McNichol and Pip Thompson (violin) and Samuel Payne (cello) at Wesley.

Where in the world is Ben?

Ben Francis gave a broad exploration of the world of classical piano with a Beethoven sonata, a Chopin nocturne, some Debussy impressionism and two Rachmaninov preludes.  Ben is preparing for his L.Mus exam later this year and these are on his program.  All nicely done and a fascinating collection.  And all played from memory and with significant interpretative variations, slow largos that had you sitting on the edge of your seat then quick allegros that whizzed past in nimble lines.  But as much as the music, I was amused to read his interest in exploring the world with Google Street View.  I have done the same and it can be fascinating but he's taken it to another level.  Apparently there's a game called GeoGuessr and he's invited to the World Cup 2025 Asia-Pacific competition in Tokyo this very weekend.  The game dumps you somewhere unknown in Street View and the challenge is to find out just where you are, I guess before your competitors.  So fascination is in many fields and I must say I like both of those that Ben has found.  And he seems to do them both very bloody well.

Ben Francis (piano) performed Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy and Rachmaninoff at Wesley.

Another Tuesday, venue 2

It's Tuesday night so if venue 1 is Smiths then venue 2 is Molly.  Of course Molly is the unmarked timber door in the lane just behind Smiths and up the stairs on Tuesday night is a string of some of the best local jazz you will hear in this town.  And tonight was a doozie: Tom Fell leading a trio with Chris Pound and Nick McBride.  I came in at the end of the second set but there was a third, and it was a hard biting outing.  Tom was all movement and involvement and a pretty free concept of soloing over the chords with occasional hints at the melody and sometimes relaxedly standing as a head is passed back to him and always fascinating and adventurous.   He was playing a storm as leader and this trio supports it.  Chris was superbly fluent, quick and solid, rather than flighty, wonderfully clear throughout the range and well into thumb positions, and just inventive with his conceptualisations.  I think of Alone together as my song, but he floored me with his take on it.  Nick would solo in fours or more open formats and always sharp and correct and interesting.  These were just standards, but fascinating as modern takes on standards can be, if not always are.  I came in to a sax solo that I recognised from a few melody snippets as Have you met Miss Jones.  Then a break and a return for a final set with Take the A train, a blues, Alone together and another standard.  I've played them all even if I can't recall all the titles.  But this was exciting, busy, outgoing yet inviting, noisy and adventurous.  Just a great band playing standards with joy and chops.  Fabulous.

Tom Fell (tenor) led a trio playing standards with Chris Pound (bass) and Nick McBride (drums) at Molly.

Another Tuesday, venue 1

Tuesday can be a great night for jazz in Civic and this was one example.  First up was the ANU Jazz Society Open Mic night in the upstairs bar at Smiths.  This is not just a collection of Jazz School students, but they obviously make a significant part of it.  And it was very much ANU students and not at all an older crowd.  First up was a karaoke session featuring one bloke, Paco,  singing two songs by a recently deceased Taiwanese R&B singer.  Interesting; finally I see karaoke and the voice and choice was decent.  Then presumably ANU jazz students, the Oliver Djurkovic Quartet, playing Coltrane's Love Supreme album, at least the four tunes with recognisable improvs if shorter than the original.  I did enjoy this one and I wondered how comfortable any following bands would be feeling after this.  Very impressive.  Then an older female singer-songwriter, Rowley?, singing with guitar about a lost love, as singer songwriters often do, but obviously a emotionally charged tunes.  Then the Aidan Herstik Octet shrunk to a trio on the night doing a take on Cissy strut.  And a final few tunes with changing female singers fronting the House Band.  Entry was cheap and free pizzas were generous, so a very different outing.  The ANU Jazz Soc has a page on Facebook with a string of posters for various events, jam sessions, open mics, jazz'n'paint, trivia, karaoke and more over the last year or two.  Nice. 

I didn't get all names, but Oliver Djurkovic (tenor) led his quartet with Micah Knight (piano), Shivi (Shivansh) Vachaspati  (bass) and Oliver Stott (drums).  Aidan Herstik (guitar) led a trio with Connor Moloney (drums) and Shivi (Shivansh) Vachaspati  (bass).  I didn't get names for the House Band.

Neat flight

Volant was touring and they were playing at Smiths as their penultimate gig before a final outing at the Milton Festival.  Volant is fronted by Matthew Ottignon but interestingly it's otherwise a trio of women which still remains less common although there are now plenty of female jazz instrumentalists out there.  This was a delightfully precise and careful band and it was playing acoustic and at a very moderate volume.  I felt I was in a studio given great precision and restraint and correctness and I put it down to the membership, but I was wrong.  The penultimate tune of the second set got louder as they played on and the final was a blower and it sounded just like any similarly competent band of whatever composition.  But these were competent all round.  Hannah's an old mate and also a bassist so I especially watched her playing.  Just so reliable and apt and unpretentious and deeply serving the tune.  Serving the tune is a great skill and I loved this.  Matt was similarly careful and precise, although as the sax out front, he had a more outspoken role, but still very neat.  Lauren on piano played restrainedly, too, but there was a good deal of adventurousness there too, some dissonance, various interpretations or melodic takes in solos.  Hayley was mostly quite understated, lightly played, heavy on cymbals and hi-hat and kick, but then she too let go with sticks on skin and drama and drive.  So, I feel comfy in my concepts of second-wave feminism, that we can all do much the same thing in similar circumstances and we should have the opportunity.  But my-oh-my did I enjoy this calm precision.  Just lovely.

Volant performed at Smiths.  Volant comprised Matt Ottignon (tenor, alto, minor percussion), Lauren Tsamouras (piano), Hannah James (acoustic bass) and Hayley Chan (drums).

Voices through ages

This was a world premiere of a vocal quartet and it was quite lovely.  And not unexpected given the known history of these singers.  The group was called Arcenciel presumably Arc-en-ciel, French for Rainbow.  Amusingly, I looked up YouTube and found a Japanese metal band with that name playing Madison Square Gardens.  This was another, obviously.  Our Arcenciel was pure, SATB, glorious often challenging harmonies, with music from a range of composers from Purcell and Bruckner to Bobby McFerrin and languages from Latin to Latvian with some English. It started with lovely religious music, Psalm 23 and Thou knowest Lord and like themes, but then onto jazzy styles, soprano over African grooves or vocal bass lines with complex interplays of melodies and ostinatos through the higher parts and wonderfully difficult echoed lines and harmonised interplays in The Shore then a final The Bee by Frank Bridge, written in 1913 but with a surprisingly modern sound.  So a fascinating and satisfying program, lovely and pure up front then more modern and fun towards the end.  It can only bode well for this choral quartet in its premiere concert.

Aracenciel performed their world premiere concert at Wesley.  Aracenciel are Rena Li (soprano), Olivia Swift (alto), Henry Bonanza (tenor) and Lucus Allerton (bass).

Crossovers

I last saw Helen Svoboda at SoundOut 2024 and this year she appeared at CIMF with Timo-Veikko 'Tipi' Valve, principal cellist at the Australian Chamber Orchestra.  SoundOut and ACO?  It's an unexpected pairing but thus is CIMF and thus is one of its strengths.  The concert was inspiring.  Helen and Tipi had just met an hour before the concert so this was more a sharing of personal performances, seemingly with time allocations for the unscripted improvs, but it worked a treat.  Helen on double bass, all spacey bowing and harmonics then a lovely voice improvising over the established context.  Tipi blended in with a few JS Bach cello concerto movements which are inevitably known and always loved, and a few written pieces which more matched Helen's improvised offers, one by Kate Moore and another by Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti.  Then an interval and a virtuosic piece by the Finn who must be played, Sibelius Variations for cello.  I loved Helen's improvs but especially her lovely voice, unexpectedly appearing over the bass.  I sat just feet from Tipi and learnt a ton from his bowing and fingering and interpretations, and could do no less than be stunned by his commitment made evident  by his breathing.  What you see up close is dazzling and revealing and so much more intense than the experience in a hall.  This is no work-a-day outing.  A final, stunning concert from CIMF and such a pleasure and honour to be able to record 5 of the concerts.

Timo-Veikko Valve (cello) and Helen Svoboda (bass, vocals) performed form CIMF at the ACCC Chapel.

Interlude no.2 Choral

This is a busy time for recording but it's great pleasure: a string of CIMF concerts and jazz and choral.  The choral was the locals, Canberra Choral Society, presenting Handel Dixit Dominus and Arvo Part Berliner Messe at St Paul's.  A wonderful location and one that suits my gear ... mostly.  Arvo Part was pretty minimalist as, is his want, although with some considerable complexity, as I heard from the mouths of singers and instrumentalists.  Parts that interacted unpredictably, both in voices and in strings.  This was a mass, so the structure, at least, is known.  Often quite odd to hear, too.  Handel seems much more friendly, recognisable, although even here I heard singers speaking of unexpected interplays, perhaps given this is such an early work, written at age 22.  If we could all do such magic at that age!  But this was a competent choir, if lacking in tenors, and similarly capable instrumentalists, led by John Ma, and five very capable singers, so a lovely, all-enveloping, enriching paean to faith with not a few exquisite fugues.  A choir singing Handel and the like is one of my favourite musical experiences and CCS did it great justice.  As for "the venue suits my gear", the audio was great but that light in mid-late afternoon just streams in on performers and cameras alike.  Great for a religious experience but problematic for a video.  But a great joy, nonetheless.

Canberra Choral Society performed Handel and Arvo Part at St Pauls Manuka under Dan Walker (director) and John Ma (orchestra leader) with soloists Josephine Brereton (soprano), Rachel Mink (soprano), AJ America (mezzo soprano), Tom Hallworth (tenor) and Alastair Stretch (bass-baritone).

Interlude no.1 Jazz

In the middle of recording CIMF was a jazz recording and despite the immense satisfaction of classical virtuosity, it was a welcome change.  Michael J Brady had invited me to record his trio's visit to the Drill Hall, on tour to promote their recent album.  They'd managed a session in the ArtSound studio and this was also being documented, with video and audio.  Support was our own Ueber Gang led by Liv Uebergang.  I could only praise the name.  First up Liv, proud to be playing a first performance gig after very many bar gigs.  Expansive in her guitar playing sounding richly of effects, perhaps chorus or echo or both maybe more, she led on a series of classic modern jazz tunes and a few originals with offsiders Harrison Whalan and Sean Kirk.  Some nice, extensive solos from Harrison and a few from Sean but also a presence and structure to the band, not least to locate Liv chatting to the crowd.  This was like a performance not a simple gig and it showed.  Then MJB in guitar trio format with Oscar Peterson and Alex Inman-Hislop.  This was original music, neat and adventurous but remaining very welcoming and lyrical, not overly jazzy, but expansive around other styles, indie or folkish melodic, often quiet and meditative then into gentle grooves and unpretentious solos over a freely interpretive rhythmic backing.  Really quite lovely and considered.  So quite a difference but equally a gig of satisfaction.

Michael J Brady (guitar) led a trio with Oscar Peterson (bass) and Alex Inman-Hislop (drums) at the Drill Hall Gallery.  They were supported by Ueber Gang featuring Liv Uebergang (guitar), Harrison Whalan (bass) and Sean Kirk (drums).

The time I stood

Two takes on Satu Vanska in one day, and this one in the wondrous brutalist space of the High Court foyer playing Shostakovich and the like, for which I have a new awareness and love, and with a fellow hugely capable pianist.  I think I was the first to stand for an ovation and normally I never stand.  Oh, and front row, close, getting a seat as the recordist for the session.  What's not to like.  But it's more than like, of course.  This is powerful, challenging, unrelenting, mind-altering, in its time dangerous music which makes for much of its power, no doubt.  Konstantin Shamray and Satu Vanska performed a program called Echoes of the Iron Curtain with music by Galina Ustalskaya, Shostakovich, Arvo Part and Prokofiev.  We heard of Shostakovich's love of Galina and this work as perhaps her response (suffice to say negative).  I was struck by relentlessness note patterns as a harmonic underlay and unexpected flourishes and the demands of the whole, although perhaps more from Ustvolskaya and Prokofiev than from the Shostakovich, which here seemed more melodic, and the Part.  The program was Galina Ustvolskaya  Sonata for violin and piano, Shostakovich selections from preludes for violin and piano op.34, Arvo Part Fratres for violin and piano and Prokofiev Violin sonata no.1 Fmin.  Just overwhelmingly capable playing, huge sound, imposing space, challenging music, exceptional seating.  This just had it all and I remain in awe.

Satu Vanska (violin) and Konstantin Shamray (piano) performed Ustvolskaya, Shotakovich, Part and Prokofiev for CIMF at the High Court.

Finland's further fields

I didn't particularly know what to expect, but with one past and one current and renowned member of the Australian Chamber Orchestra I had high hopes.  Suffice to say they were fulfilled.  This was called VIULUT and the performers were both violin or viola and they were both of Finnish extraction, presumably Finnish citizens.  It was held at the Finnish Embassy, so comfy and a fairly small audience.  Quite intimate, always something special.  Erkki Veltheim seemed to gather or direct the event, indulging in all manner of alternative viola and violin, even e-violin, playing, with a pedal board worthy of a rock guitarist, sometimes improvising to his own recorded backings.  And it was fascinating, tuneful, capable improv.  I could hear some jazz lines, but mostly a form of melodic classical improvisation perhaps over moving chordal structures, as famed players of the past could.  Not just adventurous noise.  But he was no slouch in the standard repertoire, occasionally backing Satu Vanska's voice for a Finnish tradition song (translation: There is my sweetheart) or playing with Satu for several pieces from Finnish composers or just sitting while she blew our minds with various cadenzas.  There was one Sibelius, of course, as required, but mostly, I guess, more modern.   Satu was just disarming, playing with such fluency, ease and clarity that had me chuckling at times at the rapid fire scales of immense clarity or the purposeful readings.  But all round this was Intriguing and adventurous and perhaps homely and always  hugely capable  Loved this one.

Satu Vanska (violin, voice) performed with Erkki Veltheim (violin, viola, electronics) at the Finnish Embassy for CIMF.

Youth and death

A return to Albert Hall for old some old mates, Australian Haydn Ensemble, performing in string quartet format behind baritone David Greco.  Incredibly in a front row centre seat necessitated by my recording setup: a mic stand between my legs, no less.  It was an interesting amalgamation of a series of Schubert lieders interpersing the four movements of a Mendelssohn string quartet (op.81) and with some introductions by David for several of the lieders.   Schubert lieder is a difficult and depressing thing to my ears, not for the performance, which was emotional and effective and very impressive, but for the themes and concerns of the age and the heavy, sometimes morbid lyrics.  David touched on that, a time of disease and difficulties, so perhaps understandable.  Apparently Schubert died at 31 (older than the 27 Club, rock stars who died at 27, including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Brian Jones, and Jim Morrison).  So the song of the much loved son dreaming of the Erlking, who died in his father's arms and the difficult lives and loves of Youth and death and Winterreise and the Hurdy-gurdy man and the Death of the maiden.  Serenade was nicer.  But regardless of Schubert this was very well done, quieter and more emotional, and the Mendelssohn more restrained but still delicious.

David Greco (baritone) led the Australian Haydn Ensemble in string quartet formation with Skye Macintosh and Matthew Greco (violins), Karina Schmitz (viola) and Daniel Yeadon (cello) at the Albert Hall.

Flinders and mates

It's a different Canberra International Music Festival for us this year.  No driving or hosting which I will miss somewhat as an opportunity to chat with some performers.  This time Megan is out of town and I am recording a series of smaller concerts. Thus a string of concerts and tons of background processing.  Thus my excuse for short CJ posts: time is limited.  First up was the Flinders String Quartet at Albert Hall.  They played Beethoven (no.11 op.95 'Serioso'), Brahms (no.14 op.105), thus 2 out of 3 Bs, and an impressive if shorter modern Australian composition, Deborah Cheetham Fraillon Bungaree telling the story of the Aboriginal man who accompanied Flinders on his circumnavigation of Australia.  I enjoyed the welcoming presence of the group, the friendly stories from cellist presumably spokeswoman cellist Zoe and some lively, mobile, committed playing.  Much enjoyed by both performers and audience.

Flinders String Quartet performed at Albert Hall.  FSQ comprises Elizabeth Sellars and Wilma Smith (violins), Helen Ireland (viola) and Zoe Knighton (cello).