Diversity

Bob Sedergreen is a Melbourne jazz piano name that we know well but I've only caught hima few times. The latest was at Eric Agaye's Jazz Haus playing with Eric and Mark Sutton. Bob has a long history so it was apt that he presented a history of jazz piano. Well, really only a string of tunes by various pianists in jazz history with a little commentary and some very nice playing. The whole band was great. The style easily suited Mark and Eric. Fourteen tunes, one each from Earl Hines, Fats Waller, Monk, John Lewis, Horace Silver, Bobby Timmons, Duke Ellington, BIll Evans, Herbie Hancock, chick Corea, Keith Jarrett, Jo Zawinul, AC Jobim, Abdullah Ibrahim, and, as an encore, an original by Bob himself. It was a romp. Plenty of known tunes - 500 miles high, mainden voyage, Waltz for Debbie, Mercy3, Django, Jitterbug waltz, In a mellow tone, others. Some interesting stories, about Cannonball Adderley's pianists, Monk's Australian visit , Ellington's band selections, Herbie's interests in maths and engineering, Rocky Mountain music. Eric told a great story of meeting up with Stanley Clarke as a teenager and being invited to the first gig of RTF at the Scientology headquarters. I particularly enjoyed the story of Aldullah Ibrahim's (once Dollar Brand) music and how phrases have meanings. So a fascinating night for the stories and the great playing all round, especially from Bob who had to play such diverse pianistic styles.

Bob Sedergreen (piano) introduced and played the music of a string of famed jazz pianists with Eric Ajaye (bass) and Mark Sutton (drums) at the Jazz Haus.

Gareth and the Demographix

Miro joked about the demographics when he introduced the tune, Old folks, at the Gods. There was a knowing chuckle that passed around the room as most people recognised themselves. Excepting Gareth. Bob made a few mentions of Gareth. This is bassist Gareth Hill, ex-Music School and CSO and now a successful player in the Melbourne scene. He was playing with Bob Sedergreen and Ted Vining in TV's trio and I've heard him with these players before. These are seniors of the artform but strong contenders still in the modern-mainstream scene. Gareth's long hair may contrast with some thinning in band and audience, but he joins in with verve and skills and some wonderfully busy and expressive solos. Bob, too. I call this mainstream because it's less dissonant, the tunes tend to American songbook more than jazz tunes (although they appear too) and there's a real melodic nature it all. Bob's a master of playing with these tunes, chordally but especially with his wonderful playfulness of twists and discoveries and quotes and even tones. One solo was scat pure and simple, from keys: never seen that before. No shortage of smiles. The music is a platform and he's diving with twists and turns but always with relevance if with wiggled paths. Great stuff. Ted lays down beats, divides the time. He soloed increasingly regularly into the second set, with cymbals and colour or toms and rhythm. The first set was the trio for Naima, Waltz for Debby, Secret love (bass laying down the A-section melody), a traddie, some originals and others. Then Miro sat in for the second set for Stella, Milestones (really nicely done and interesting, perhaps laying a query against my mainstream description), Old folks, Alone together, Footprints and a final blues. This was not all out and floating, but deeply capable and experienced. Mainstream as you like to hear it.

Ted Vining (drums) led a trio with Bob Sedergreen (piano) and Gareth Hill (bass) at the Gods. Miroslav Bukovsky (trumpet) sat in for the second set.

Studio to stage

Blow sounded more like a recording than a live band. The horns merged into notes like brothers and the whole was unhurried, unfrantic, even though there was plenty of energy and action. Peter's sax had a tone that was full and he'd sit long on notes then respond with a simple line or a flourish, but never, ever out of place. His phrasing was a lesson in modernity. Ian's flugelhorn could blow like bop and it did sometimes, but it could also drop into rubato and verge on free. The era suited this, modern cum post-bop, some fairly obvious changes, some ostinato-based tunes, some standards of the era, You don't know what love is, Naima. I immensely enjoyed a Jobim tune, known as Double rainbow or Childrens' games or Chovendo na Roseira (it appears under all these names on YouTube). Also a final tune that was floored me with understated beauty, a floating rubato feel with closely felt melody played by the front line. I've never called anything spiritual here (too new age for me), but this was pretty darn close. The first set was more solid, post-bopish, ostinato bass; the second more open and perhaps adventurous. Their You don't know what love is started as a tenor ballad with a bridge of Coltrane swells, then moved to flugelhorn playing fleeting staccato against drums and piano. Bass entered and the band moved through various feels - swing, cacophony, rubato, double time swing, some latin comping and more - finally into a final piano solo of octaves and another cacophony. All right on the night, I expect. All very comfortable but musically daring. Ian explained he had played with James for 25 years, sleeping on floors, playing daily for hours. Ted and Bob had played together longer. Our Canberra intern, Gareth, is the newbie but was neat and evenly solid toned and often unobtrusive and modally exploratory in solos. Ted's drums were deceptive; open your eyes and they seem unspectacular; close them and they sometimes writhe, otherwise sit with intent. Bob's piano was probably the most bubbling, irrepressible instrument on the stage, not so much with comping, which was wonderfully rich in colour and modal movement, but more in solos or some single note backings that were as much concurrent soloing played busy and mobile. I liked this band. It's an era I love and I could close my eyes and it sat with studio-like discipline but also artistic intrigue. It takes years to sound this comfy. These guys had it.

Blow are a Melbourne institution. Ted Vining (drums) leads with Bob Sedergreen (piano), Peter Harper (tenor), Ian Dixon (flugelhorn) and Gareth Hill (bass).

Two women, two violins, two singers

Two women; two violins; two singers; a largish band formed by a very long-timer who I’d hardly heard before; a sunny afternoon concert in the park. It’s not the recipe for an avant-guard, but it can be entertaining. I tend to come at these event with some trepidation, but it’s what most people know as jazz. And given the company and the easy afternoon and the touch of modern music and the well-played standards, I got won over. This was Bob Sedergreen’s Stonnington Jazz Showband and they featured two female singer/violinists, Fem Belling and Heather Stewart.

They played two sets, each with a few numbers from the band and a few from each of the singers. Their theme tune was a short take on Chicago’s 25 or 6 to 4, and from these first exciting lines my ears perked up. Then Miles’ Nardis. Nardis was a bit lumpy and heavy, but this is a band that gets together, without rehearsal, three times a year for these gigs. So said Bob. The band’s later tunes included Herbie Hancock’s Butterfly and it was lovely: uncommonly heard and delicate and relaxed. Bob introduced his saxist as leader of the Army band at some stage. That’s a very good reference. I liked his playing: tonal and slightly austere and harmonically precise; just the right riffs played just right. Very nice. The guitar also struck me as neat and sometimes touching on abandon, and trom was bell-like and well intoned and clear in solistic intention. Same for Mal, I guess Bob’s brother, who initially sounded clarinet-like but laid out some nicely sinuous soprano later. Perhaps it was on Sonny Rollins’ Oleo. Again, well known but also loved by the modern set. Bob himself divulged into dissonance at times, but he seemed mostly concerned with arranging the band in real time, eyes always looking around, never on the keys. Bass was e-bass so loud and proud with plenty of straight-forward, high pitched melodic solos and then third woman on stage, Sonja, drummer, was strong and steady and a ready soloist. I liked her insistent and apt playing.

They were hardly performing for the cognoscenti, so the singers presently easily popular tunes, but they remained authentic and attractive for anyone who likes swing. Heather opened with What a little moonlight can do and a lovely cut-time oldie, After you’ve gone, with clarinet and trad-ethos. Fem’s first set was Ellington’s signature Take the A Train and Dizzy’s Night in Tunisia which was later stylistically and more excitable aurally. The second set was Fem with a very challenging calypso vocalisation and then Ellington’s easily swinging Do nothing till you hear from me. Then Heather with No moon at all and Them there eyes. Then a finale with two violins on Zawinul’s slow funk standard, Mercy mercy mercy, and an old throwaway blues, Swinging shepherd blues. How interesting was this, to see these two together. Both are wonderful singers, both are classically trained, but how different are they! Heather is a lower and fuller voice (alto, I guess) presenting melodies with simplicity and a gloriously apt ‘20’s/’30’s tone and interpretation. Fem is higher pitched soprano, more busy and embellished and improvisatory adventurous. So different, but both so good. Even their violins were different: Fem’s is a 5-string Yamaha electric (low C); Heather’s is standard 4-string acoustic.

So, a warm day in the sun, a big free concert for the locals, a decent repertoire that was mildly educative and touching on adventure. You couldn’t ask for more in such a circumstance. Nice one. The performers were Fem Belling (vocals, violin), Heather Stewart (vocals, violin) with the Stonnington Jazz Showband comprising Bob Sedergreen (keyboard), Dave Palmer (trombone, vocals), Mal Sedergreen (alto, soprano), David Gardner (tenor sax, clarinet), Myles White (guitar), Jon Chidgey (electric bass) and Sonja Horbelt (drums).