10+10=~14

It was only at the last minute that I noticed two dectets, from Melbourne and Sydney, coming together to play at Smiths.  After 10 Part Invention, this was a shoe-in.  I love a little big band and what it can achieve and these were young and adventurous and playing original music.  It a bit hard to get everyone to travel so the two dectets covered each other, mainly Melb covered by Syd and a few local Canberrans, and despite charts and and decent readers, it's always nice to have played the tunes a few times.  And there was a singer who was just asked days before by Syd to cover a song and did one for Melb as well.  Not surprisingly, Miro was a further sit-in with Syd, after a workshop with 10 Part Invention.  Syd leader Lee also mentioned several other players who were first timers.  I guess this is the way with any large ensemble: it's hard to gather them all together at specified times and harder for a tour.  The bands were Mosaic from Sydney and Woolgathering from Melbourne.  As an aside, Lee's surname is Orszaczky so links to a certain Sydney bassist came into several minds, but I met his Dad (in the loo!) and Jackie seems to be distant if a relative.   Whatever, these were two impressive bands.  Mosaic writing its own material and also commissioning from composers aged under 25, so seeking new sounds; Woolgathering mostly writing its own material.  M has a very successful first album under its belt and it was touring their new work, album no.2.  W has recorded an EP with Melb Con support and has a history of sellout shows at JazzLab.  So these are precocious players.  W was more sedate on the night given so many sit-ins but still lovely with brass colours and flute melodies and melded brass and wind solos and a few Canberra locals helping out on drums and guitar.  M was more vibrant although with variety including a contemporary ballad, again lovely horn fills and favours and some driving solos, notably a blow out from drums at the end, some intriguing floating piano at times and a very sturdy bass with nicely broken beats.  So some fabulous original Australian music with convincing complexity and colour and chops from a next gen.

Mosaic toured from Sydney and Woolgathering from Melbourne to play at Smiths.  Listed players for Mosaic were Lee Orszaczky and Cailey Soon (trombones), Braden Clarke (flugelhorn), Sarah Morrisson (trumpet), Ravi Trachenberg-Ray (piano), James Watt (bass), Noah Meija and Leo Marland (saxes) and Matt Simmonds (drums).  Listed players for Woolgathering were Ava McDermott (vocals), Adam Davidson (piano), Jack Smythe (double bass), Patty Walkter (drums), Yael Zamir (flute), Christopher Rozakeas (trombone), Brandon Bartholomeusz (alto), Elly Blackham  and Thomas Coleman Bell (woodwinds) and James Morrissey (bass clarinet).