A century of jazz women

I'd booked this one on our side o town for an easy park for Mum and me.  We arrived to find a delightful casual but attractive bar with a generous outdoor space out back and what seemed like 1800s storehouses.  The wine bar was Ern Malley's with a copy of the classic painting and a claimed establishment date of 1943.  Sounds about right; another hoax?  But a lovely spot, dark and decorated.  This fringe show was Offbeat with the Molly Silvy quintet celebrating decades of female jazz singers from 1920-2020.  We arrived to chat with Molly's grandmother at the door then guitar and drums at the bar.  The band comprised students, ~second year of jazz degrees at the Con, Molly on vocals with guitar, tenor, bass and drums. Molly introduced various singers and interestingly, styles and techniques, and not just the obvious and not exactly each decade.  Ella and Esperanza (Spalding) were mentioned in the description.  Neither ended up on the program, but we did get some classics, some interpretations, a few female composers and daring choices, in all a fascinating outing.  No more blues / Carmen McCrae; These foolish things / Billie Holliday; Green Dolphin Street / Sarah Vaughan; all with intros and chatter of vocal ranges, twang, belt and cry, jazz vocal techniques.  And some more obscure finds: Bernie's tune / Tierney Sutton; Lawns / Carla Bley as influenced by Kristen Berardi; Colours of my dreams / Judy Bailey arranged with borrowings from Olivia Chindamo.  Then an encore which they didn't have ready, but an excellent choice: Centerpiece / Lambert, Hendricks and Ross.  It's still going round in my head.  Some nice, capable, informed, young playing.  Molly did an inviting job as the central expositor and I particularly noted Daniel on very fluent bass and Johnny on a responsive, subtle, aptly dissonant tenor.  The audio balance wasn't perfect but the respect and ongoing studiousness was clear and propitious.  A very promising next generation.  But it was not just the music and the fabulous bar setting and mild evening.  We met and chatted as one does at a jazz gig and happened to sit with a committee member of the Southern Jazz Club.  So small world; small venue.  And to end, I was not alone in praising bassist Daniel's recent haircut that looked all the world like early Paul McCartney: nothing better for a bassist!  Lovely night and well done by the  band.

Molly Silby (vocals) led her quintet with Johnny Turner (tenor), Hugo Evans (guitar), Daniel Cavallaro (bass) and Micah Capin (drums) at the Ern Malley Bar for the Adelaide Festival Fringe.

Works on walls

I had some time to kill but it was in the morning.  Pre-noon is not a time for concerts or theatre but it is for art on walls.  I chose two exhibitions that sounded interesting and were likely parkable.  First up was The Mill, a place of 70+ artist studios plus gallery, theatre space, a recording studio.  Welcomed by a friendly staffer and intrigued by a few displays and looks into at least one impressive studio.  Juliane Brandt's was the studio with deliciously detailed small sculpted heads with occasional bodies.  Hasta la raiz (to the roots) was a photographic exhibition by Carmen Alcado, Spanish migrant of ~4 years, with various complex images referring to her roots, the implications of the migrant experience for family and personal history.  Nadia Rasulova merges impressions of handwoven Uzbek ikat with the colours and movement of Australian and Central Asian landscapes.  Christian Best display was 36 of a planned 1,000 photos of friends, acquaintances, housemates and  more, to create a story of community and friendship around the world.  Then off to another galley, the Pepper Street Arts Centre, this supported by Burnside Council, near the old Penfolds winery, up Magill Road, in an intriguing area of old cottages, presumably serving the earlier, then much more extensive winery.  The exhibition as Waste to Wonder, "an exhibition of artwork with a recycled and upcycled theme" by ~40 local artist working in textile, sculpture, mixed media, more.  Some delightful, some jovial, many quirky, inviting, even exciting.

Carmen Alcado, Nadia Rasulova and Christian Best exhibited at The Mill.  Amongst many, Juliane Brandt held a studio at The Mill.  Various artist displayed at the Pepper Street Arts Centre.

Chelsea NYC

I'm in Adelaide and it's for family not for festival but I collected a string of related promotional publications and I was stunned.  I shouldn't have been.  I'd seen last year's and it was of a similar size, but it still overwhelms.  1,500+ shows from 8,000+ performers at 500+ venues.  And there's the Festival itself too, even if no Writers' fest this year after a stunning and newsworthy misjudgment.  A friend had seen an 8-hour drama performance a the festival called Gatz (with breaks!!) from NYC about an office where the Great Gatsby story happens around a reader. She spoke well of that.  I just looked for a few odd Fringe shows to give me some exposure and that I could fit with family matters.  The first was See me at the Chelsea Hotel, ~90mins of songs by once residents at the famed artist hotel in NYC and telling some stories around the tunes.  All performed by an a capella vocal trio, two females, one male, and a folkish duo of male and female with guitars and ukelele.  The duo was Tin Can Alley; the trio was Heaven Knows Acapella.  TCA were more raw, louder, even reaching to Hendrix on dirty strat and then Bob Marley-fied.  Fun.  HKA was sweeter, more precise rather than jovially raucous, wonderfully accurate in harmonies and voices.  I did like that.  Sometimes the five played together; sometimes each group played individually or one sat in with the other: the mix could be informal.  But the story was intriguing and spoke of a prime artistic location and famed names.  Names going back to Mark Twain, Dylan Thomas and through a string of others, some mentioned here, some not.  Dylan, Mapplethorpe, Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, Nico, Arthur C Clarke and Stanley Kubrick, Mapplethorpe and Warhol.  We heard songs and/or stories from many of these as well as The Band, The Ramones, Janis Joplin, Patti Smith, Tom Waits, all associated with this hotel. There's much more (Corea, Spungen / Sid Vicious, Carole King) that didn't appear on the day.  Suffice to say this was worthy of a listen and inviting to a further read (Inside thee dream palace / Sherill Tippins was suggested).

Tin Can Alley and Heaven Knows Acapella performed Meet us at the Chelsea Hotel for the Adelaide Fringe Festival.  TCA comprised Jacquy Stoddart (vocals, ukelele) and Cliff Stoddart (vocals, guitar).  HKA comprised Jayne Hewitson, Meredith Mardun and Christopher Koop (vocals, variously guitar and melodion).  

Something else that evening

Our Ornette-enacting duo was in the afternoon and the evening was something completely different, although playful and rhythmic as before, if from another era.  This was four harpsichords playing Bach and more at Wesley with a string quintet accompaniment.  The promise of John Ma the Wednesday before.  The main work of the day was the final piece, Concerto for four harpsichords Amin BWV1065. This was not nearly so well known as BWV1060 and BWV1062, played by two harpichord pairs earlier.  Thees had us just beating and beaming with grins in our seats.  They are hugely popular, played with gusto and many smiles, and a joy to all.  Other pieces were an overture-suite La Bizarre Gmaj by Telemann and a Sonfonia no.4 Amaj by Solnitz.  This second was somewhat obscure and to add to confusion was played attacca into BWV1065 which ended the peformance.  We'd heard so much, with so much joy, so much attention and screeds of notes and love that I was surprised to see my watch showed only a one hour concert at the end. But with Bach one hour can be eternity (in a good way).  All that intricate and playful interaction between parts, those falling sequences and quaver to semiquaver accelerations are such joy.

Harpsichord divas was a performance at Wesley by Arianna Odermatt, Callum Tolhurst-Close, Marie Searles and Marko Sever (harpsichords) with string accompaniment comprising John Ma and Lauren Davis (violins), Brad Tham (viola), Clara Teniswood (cello) and Hayley Manning (bass).

Something else

James and I enjoy our occasional duos at Gundog at Gundaroo.  Piano and bass is such an open sound with such an opportunity to hear and respond and hopefully invent.  I guess because neither steps on the other in frequency and the lack of parts just allows concentration and comparison.  Whatever, I was a little surprised to have Ornette called, I thought pretty daring for such a venue, but this was The Blessing and we'd played it before and it's got a groove if interrupted that works.  So Ornette for comfy venues.  I checked the Allmusic review for Something else, the album The Blessing appears on and an old fave I haven't heard for a while and the argument is that "in its angular, almost totally oppositional way, it swung and still does".  Couldn't agree more!  As for the award-winning riesling, something special.

James Woodman (piano) and Eric Pozza (bass) played at Gundaroo.

Lucky with our locals

John and Marie are our locals but I pinch myself when I say it.  Like many who spend time studying and performing in European music circles, they are wonderful, informed and skilled but they are here and super friendly and helpful and open.  A concert with John is a fireside chat with delicious music.  He joked at one stage of changes of movement between styles of music, from modern through to early or vice-versa, but that they had settled on baroque.  And baroque it was.  Early 1600s to later 1700s with CPE Bach.  All played with skill but also knowledge and joy.  What a pleasure.  So today it was CPE Bach to start, then going back in time to Schmelzer, Telemann, Uccelini and Fischer.  A few movements dropped to fit in the time allotted, which they admitted to sometimes overreaching.  This was just a casual Wednesday lunchtime concert, with a grand performance 4-harpsichord-and-strings feature coming on Saturday.  Expect no less from our much loved John and Marie.  BTW, the program also said that Marie is also studying jazz piano.  Enquiring minds!

John Ma (violin) and Marie Searles (harpsichord) performed at Wesley.

John and Maruki

It's somewhat strange but lovely that a principal from the LSO and violist from a significant string quartet formed the Maruki Community Orchestra with its invitation to all to take play, regardless of expertise, and to take on major works.  But that was John Gould.  My first Maruki concert was my second orchestral concert and it featured Beethoven Symphony no.5.  I will always remember how John would recount stories of famed conductors and performers through practice.  But John died sometime back and now we record his loss with a musical biography from PC (Paul) Hubbard, now conductor.  The book was launched over the weekend with a film, String Quartet, about his Carl Pini String Quartet, a discussion with author Paul led by Andrew Leigh, and a short violin play by Winsa Daniswara on  John's old violin, now Paul's.  I have yet to read the book and I look forward to it but the discussion already was informative.  Interestingly, Paul used AI in writing the work, so that too will be intriguing.  A mark of respect for John.

John Gould and the Maruki Community Orchestra was written by PC (Paul) Hubbard and launched with a film, discussion and short violin recital at Lyneham High School Performing Arts Centre.

Discovery 8 Wrapup

Well, these things come to an end.  Just a few final notes.  The last show was essentially mostly just songs from Chantelle Delaney and Thomas Armstrong-Robley fronting the Resident band in the theatre.  As for performers, I will probably remember the drummer and guitarist from the resident band, both professional, correct and able to let go when it fits, but never when it didn't, and the lead guitarist from Rhythm Jive, Ivan Cabreros.  Rhythm Jive is a covers band and they impressed immensely with a sets of various styles, but I was taken aback when they did Pink Floyd The Wall late on the final night.  Daring, I thought.  A whole side of an album with a guitar solo that was so correct.  Then listening more for the solos, they were all just as on the records.  Stunning.  I enjoyed this mob.  Otherwise, I had my moment of fame with another passenger choir.  More a singalong in unison or octaves, but fun.  I have done a SATB choir on board before but not with so few practices.  Then off at Sydney in a supremely ordered disembarking procedure.  This is big business and very professional.  Then, of course, a war and closed air space that must have numerous passengers stranded in Sydney.  Back to the real world, I guess, and none too hopeful.

Discovery 7

There's more of course.  A cruise ship is an indulgent mass of entertainment, food and drink if perhaps not an intellectual fervour.  But it is interesting to speak to different cultures.    This ship has masses of US, Canadian, UK citizens.  Its a challenge to get all the states and areas.  French Canadian, French now US in Houston, pro-/anti- whoever might be in power, listeners and self-listeners (I try to train myself to the first, but none too successfully).  Aussies who don't continue around the coast.  All manner surprised by the chilly NZ summer but the weather is all over these days.  Three more solo acts to mention: Colby Green, guitar strummer with hat, playing country-ish but also Cold Chisel and more and features shows on Dylan and others;  Douglas Berti, solo piano with standards and vocals; Robert Deans on solo piano with endless medleys of jazz standards played with an individual style and fascinating linkages.  He spoke of once knowing 500/600 but now just improvising 100 easily from memory.  Then another few shows.  Rock edition, a rock'n'roll retrospective by tenor Thomas Armstrong-Robley with the Resident band behind (slightly altered: 2 violins, no horns, as I remember).  Then TA-R with a full stage show, the Rock Opera, with 4 singers (2 male, 2 female), dancers (6 female, 5 male) and the resident band.  This disappointed a little: I could see no story to hold it together; more a capable and exciting but meaningless Voice extravaganza.  Perhaps my fave tune was the Nescafe theme from Carmina Burana (I could look it up but you know it), oddly out of place amongst belter operatic and rock styles, like Sounds of silence, Total eclipse of the heart, JC Superstar, I don't know how to love him.  There's another show tonight.  I was not the only one who found Spotlight Bar the best and most inviting stage show, with its tunes and dances that told a story of one night of love and loss and friendship in a local US bar.  Maybe expect a final to finish this series.