Enlightened

It’s called Enlighten. It’s certainly not Enlightment but it’s entertaining. We enjoyed our leisurely stroll around the Parliamentary Triangle. There were decent crowds, at least in a Canberra sense, although they are spread over a large area. There were more photographers than you could imagine, the serious ones hogging the best spots with tripods. There was lots of varying colour and some gentle and harmless humour. Not much seriousness here. The closest that we saw was an art work by George Poonkhin Khut at the National Portrait Gallery where visitors were invited to measure their body using a finger electrode and watch it on a PC screen and I think listen in headphones. It seemed oddly like auras but perhaps more authentic, or at least scientific. Also serious was standing by the fire at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, although strangely the fire was attended by a white guy with no ATSI blood but with sympathy for the cause. Otherwise, there was music. We caught just a few Real Book tunes by the trio of Clare Dawson, Caleb Wearne and Simeon Staker. That was background but very capable; I enjoyed the gentle but lyrical soloing. They were playing to a chatty crowd in the foyer of the National Library for their temporary speakeasy called the Red Letter Lounge (the Bookplate seemed to have transformed into a child care centre). We also caught some cajun/bluegrass with Dr Stovepipe who were strangely perched on a stage above the La’ Toush café. All very odd but entertaining and nicely played: two- and three-part harmonies, good rockabilly slap-bass and a jokey presence. They had plenty of kids and a few mums up dancing, although they were fickle and ran off to follow the Group D Creative Collective’s deep sea anglerfish bicycles when they passed by. They were cute (and friendly: no fish I know has ever offered to stop for a photo) but I preferred the Stalker Theatre Company’s Phospori cyborgs: three women on stilts with images projected onto body suits roaming with a distant presence. And I enjoyed the two Apollo 11 astronauts who just moon walked around the place, ignored by more-worldly adults but enjoyed by the kids. And did I mention the cameras and tripods? We managed three hours of colour and projections and idling. Given ee are not ones for public entertainment, I reckon it was pretty decent.

Enlighten is a festival of projections on buildings and public entertainment held around the Parliamentary Triangle. The bands were the Clare Dawson Trio, featuring Clare Dawson (piano), Caleb Wearne (bass) and Simeon Staker (drums) and Dr. Stovepipe with Jim Sharrock (guitar, banjo, vocals), Gillian Cosgrove (fiddle, vocals) and Ed Radclyffe (bass, vocals). The performers were the Group D Creative Collective and the Stalker Theatre Company and their Phospori. George Poonkhin Khut presented electrode aura portraits at the National Portrait Gallery.

Pollards or sands?

I didn’t expect to return so soon, but this week it was dinner at the Pantry and Liam Budge, Caleb Wearne and Andy Campbell were performing under the heavily pollarded planes. The Pantry is a busy hub in a strangely quiet lane at the moment. It’s obviously January in Canberra, with pollies out of town and bureaucrats at the coast: this particular lane can be a busy hive, but not these evenings. Liam’s is a brooding voice with a pensive presence, wallowing in mellow takes on the great ballads like Body and soul and Nightingale sang in Berkeley Square, so perfect for this setting. Andy and Caleb fitted with a stylish accompaniment: smooth, sleek, but also interesting with lyrical solos and clear, ringing tones. But it was not all ballads. They could also be livelier but still subtly swinging with Night and day, a bit tongue in cheek with Fly me to the moon (who could take that one seriously?), playful with the great witty standards like Ain’t misbehavin’ and Gee babe ain’t I good to you and my favourite of the night, Love for sale. This is the great standards repertoire done with the humour and style of the era they were written for: suitable accompaniment for some boutique beers and great local wines. The sand at the coast may be enticing but I prefer this.

Liam Budge (vocals), Caleb Wearne (bass) and Andy Campbell (guitar) performed at the Urban Pantry in Manuka.

Under pollarded planes

Pollarding is a type of heavy pruning used in Europe to limit tree size in urban environments. I ran across jazz under the pollarded Planes last night in Manuka. Caleb Wearne, Sally Greenaway and Natalie Magee were playing Jazz on the Manuka Lawns at the Urban Pantry. It was nice, relaxed jazz on a calm and warm evening: very pleasant given a decent beer. All three are old friends of CJ, of course, capable and well-trained performers. Caleb’s hands and solos were finely wrought; Sally’s solos were broad and cinematic; Natalie’s singing was intially uncomplicated but I thought she’d dropped into a more detailed style when we passed by later in the evening after dinner. We were only at the Lawns for pre-dinner drinks, but I expect the musical style would have continued into the night. They played standards and latins including some of the more interesting melodies: All of me, April in Paris, Bye bye blackbird, Dancing cheek to cheek, Dindi, East of the Sun west of the Moon. Natalie’s repertoire starting at A, I guess.

You learn something new every day, like pollarding. I knew they were Plane trees at Manuka with their mottled trunks but I’d always wondered about the heavy pruning they underwent. Also new to me was Jazz on the Manuka Lawns, outside Urban Pantry. It’s in its second year with light jazz 6-9pm each Friday evening through Spring and Summer.

Turossing it (Moruya 2011/3)

Duck was unexpected and refreshing band: guys just having fun and music you just hang out to dance to. Josie led this funky, R&B outfit playing’60s tunes like the Stylistics and the classic political protest song, What’s going on. This was deadened thumbed bass, off-beat drum fills, beaming synth solos and an overdriven guitar solo at the end that gave me goosebumps. And Josie, cool and contagious out front. The only goosebumps I had all weekend. Duck comprised Josie Jensen (vocals), Callum Stewart (keys), Matt Dixon (guitar), Caleb Wearne (bass) and Sam McNair (drums).

I caught a family outing in two bands: father David Lole led a quartet performing mainstream featuring Melbourne saxist Roger Clark. His daughter is ANU student Rachel Lole who led a band playing delightful interpretations of the standards repertoire. David Lole (piano) led a quartet with Melbournites Roger Clark (tenor) and Alan Richards (drums) and student Caleb Wearne (bass). Rachel Lole (vocals) led a quartet with Clare Dawson (piano), Jared Plane (bass) and Henry Rasmussen (drums).

Rain, rain go away (but not forever)

Are tropical rains the idea of north? It was certainly wet and soggy at the Art School for this year’s ANU Summer Reception, but there was still a decent crowd for Idea of North performing a short set and the Liam Budge trio playing as support. I luxuriated in the lovely voices and the vibrant presence of the North. Changing front line singers with tasteful backing lines, grooving to steady vocal bass lines and occasional solos (this set had a vocal harmonica solo from tenor and a drum solo from bass). I wondered if the singers were SATB. They confirmed they are, but a jazz SATB is rather different from a classical choir of the same format. The bassist is the most different, taking on genuine double bass-type syncopations rather than low-pitch vocal harmonies, and sometime beatbox drums. And other players performing occasional “instrumental” solos, or at least the tenor did in this set. It seemed they all took time in the limelight, someone coming out front for each tune to feature as melody. There was a bit of friendly patter on stage, and constant movement for these front lines changes and a huddle between songs (I guess this was a pretty informal gig for them) and the grooving and moving that singers do when there’s a good beat going. And the beat was good. I really felt comfortable with the bass. Andrew is described as “bass / percussion” and he certainly carried the groove with aplomb. But then he’s been doing this for 17 years. They only sang one set, and I didn’t hear it all, but these were popular modern numbers done with great skill, great groove, wonderfully accurate voices and sharp arrangements. One tune was Aretha Franklin; another (with the harmonica solo) was Stevie Wonder’s Isn’t she lovely. Just fabulously classy vocals and great entertainment. Would love to have heard more.

I also caught Liam Budge fronting Caleb Wearne and Callum Stewart with nice vocal interpretations of the standards and a nod to his teacher, Vince Jones. But a university reception is mostly everything but the music. It’s chatting with friends, spotting the academic celebrities, battling for a bite, checking out the latest student art and enjoying free grog, so just few words on the music.

Idea of North are Sally Cameron (soprano), Naomi Crellin (alto), Nick Begbie (tenor) and Andrew Piper (bass, percussion). Liam Budge (vocals) sang with support of Caleb Wearne (bass) and Callum Stewart (piano).

Pilgrimages (Moruya 2010)

It must have been a weekend for pilgrimages. Obviously, the big one was for Mary McKillop at the Vatican, but for me it was my annual jaunt to the Moruya Jazz Festival. It’s usually a bright, sunny, warm outing, but this one started with unseasonably wet and cold weather. By the end, it was pleasant despite a gentle but cool breeze in the Monarch Beer Garden. The usual contingent from the ANU Jazz School was there, as well as lots of names that appear most years. (It’s not just a pilgrimage for me, it seems).

Eric Ajaye noted that this was the tenth straight year that the Commercial Ensemble played at Moruya. They were hot and one of the festival stars for me, but then I like the harmonies of a larger ensemble. It was a different band this year with Liam Budge out front with his youthful vigour and visage (and male voice) and searching approach to singing the melody, and the addition of percussion from Namchoon Kim, (who has studied in Cuba, no less) enlivened the tonality. Percussion is not a common instrument at the Jazz School. Eric Ajaye noted that many bands he’d played with in the US had percussion, and certainly it adds a patina to the sound and complexity to the rhythm that greatly enhances many musical outings, and it sat well with a funky outfit like the Commercials. They do a nice cover of Steely Dan’s Ricky don’t lose that number with constant changes of style, rock, swing in the B section. That was interesting. But my favourite was a deliciously intoned ballad which they played at the first performance only. The horn-line intonation was spot on, so this just sang, and amongst the other lively numbers, it was a big contrast. Beautiful.

The stars of the show (at least for the followers of more modern styles) are always the faculty of the jazz school. This year it was Mike Price, Eric Ajaye and Col Hoorweg performing as the longstanding Mike Price Trio. They performed fabulously smooth and rich treatments of a few standards. How interesting were these renditions: a listening audience in a dedicated but casual venue makes a big difference. They played two sets, and both were well attended and closely followed. I was particularly taken by Eric’s strong and determined fingerboard work and I’m perplexed at the moment by that stroking right hand action, but then I’m a bassist new to double. Miro’s band was in the program, but couldn’t make it one the day, so Luke Sweeting performed Miro’s sets with Eric Ajaye and Aidan Lowe, and with some students occasionally sitting in. I caught just a few tunes, but the uncanny ability of Luke to stray from the straight line was inspirational.

Another band that impressed and entertained was the little big band funk/reggae outfit called Mahooud. Lots of laughter and display and obvious joy on stage, and it was infectious for the audience. Rachel Lole led the band from the mic stand, interestingly with another female singer, Sophia Christoper. Six horns out front, and a strong rhythm section I particularly noticed Caleb Wearne, e-bassist (also appearing in another outfit on acoustic) who set down some eminently funky and solid rhythms on Cissy Strut and the like and guitarist Victor Rufus. There were screams of delight when funk turned to reggae at one stage, but the feature was the final polka-cum-klezma paean to drink, with indulgent lyrics and punctuated playing and starts and stops and Eurofolk changes of tempo. The band was loving it and so was the audience. This was a winner.

Otherwise, there was a font of interesting stuff. DJ Gosper with her entertaining professionalism, great voice and relaxed swing. Jan Preston with hard core boogie-woogie blues. Matt Thompson with his very cool accompaniment. Dirk, Graham and Lachlan presented their normal smooth, mellifluous sax-based performance as As Famous as the Moon. Liam Budge in his own band with emo presence and busily inventive vocals, and always a great collection of fellow travellers around him. Not sure with whom, but I remember guitarist Joe Panucci letting go with some extraverted, screaming, sweeping solos. The Recording Ensemble were more introspective and minimalist this year. The Ax Long Quintet presented some early Miles-cool playing. I was quite fascinated by some developing but intriguing soloing by Tom Fawcett. Peter Henderson’s Turner’s antidote was there as usual, playing Tom Scott and similar '70s funk. They obviously enjoy this outing. Kooky Fandango were playing their lighter funk style, sharp and practised, and with Cam Smith’s classically trained trumpet playing some very nice and authentic jazz solos. There was more, of course, some of which I saw, and some I missed, bands and even venues and they are obviously coloured by my mood and interests. After years of attending Moruya, it feels like a family affair with the assortment and affiliations and changes over the years as the kids grow up and leave home. Maybe family picnic fits better than pilgrimage.

And BTW, I was there with a new band, but I have indulged myself elsewhere about that.