SoundOut 2024 / 4

I feel more informed in this SoundOut festival and maybe understand it better.  I peruse the program and realise (I think I'm correct) that day 1 has the performers playing in their normal combinations and later session mix and match for more new combinations.  And like people who have played together for a time, you see the comfort of the known and the challenge of the new.  All interesting.  I often find I prefer the known, but I respect and the new.  Next session for me was Saturday session 2.  First up was Ellen Kirkwood, Guylaine Cosseron, Maria Moles, Mark Cauvin and Richard Johnson. This started with voice and voice remained a major lead throughout.  Guylaine is seriously expressive and capable with her voice, so numerous sounds, vowels, groans, whistles even multi-pitch harmonised, running through highs, climaxes, recoveries.  Then nice ears for harmonies from bass and sax, even with surprisingly similar solo concepts, occasional percussion then trumpet tones later on and a final note that sounded of air raid sirens.  Whoah.  Next up was Bonnie Stewart, Guillaume Gargaud, Novak Manojlovic, Rhys Butler and sit-in vocals form Tony Osborne.  An immediate start from piano and vocals, leading to guitar with even country twangs.  Then waves of intensity, sudden explosions, with perhaps percussion or gentle alto or vox in between, rolling strings from piano and damped guitar plucks through extensive solos.  Another discovery?  That this music is more about dynamics than harmony let alone melody or even rhythm.   Then Jodie Rottle, Josephine Macken, Jamie Lambert and Peter Farrer.  Opening with a bell, then more mild, meditative, pensive, flautic (is there such a word?) with flutes of various sizes from Jodie and Josephine, bell-like guitar and bowed and even some violin from Jamie and alto and percussion from Peter.

Peformers for set 1 were Ellen Kirkwood (trumpet), Guylaine Cosseron (voice), Maria Moles (drums), Mark Cauvin (bass) and Richard Johnson (tenor).  For set 2 were Bonnie Stewart (drums), Guillaume Gargaud (guitar), Novak Manojlovic (piano), Rhys Butler (alto) and Tony Osborne (vocals).  For set 3 were Jodie Rottle (flute), Josephine Macken (flute), Jamie Lambert (guitar) and Peter Farrer (alto).

Reflections

I once worked in the National Library and I was amazed by the microfiche collection, particularly one large set of the works of Isaac Newton.  What a resource it was; a treasure of multiple editions of his works available on this side of the world.  It's old tech now, and probably weeded from the collection assuming availability over the Net but these were pre-Net days (surprisingly only a few decades ago) and such materials weren't so available.  So it's nice to see the word still in use and a joy to hear the improv group memorialising the tech.  Microfiche the group came from a class on classical-improv for jazzers at the Sydney Con.  The lineup is fairly standard: piano, bass, drums, trumpet, alto and just a little skewed with clarinet/bass clarinet/viola.  They played two medleys in a single one hour set, each medley comprising two original tunes with an improv bridge.  The tune structures or melodies weren't too obvious, so the moves through tunes and improv was gentle and left pretty undefined and that suited the free style beautifully.  I was entranced by glorious harmonies that sat so purely at times, rippling intervallic piano, busy drums and occasional smiles from drummer Holly to bassist Alex, Nick just sitting on stage at the end and taking in his own composition (after some stunning solos).  There was much listening, closed eyes, gentle testing noises then more confident statements.  But the whole was not explosive or ecstatic like some free music, but big-eared and comradely, and if I can say it, intimate.  This is one to close eyes to, open ears and enjoy the freedom and colour and interplay.  Very much enjoyed.

Microfiche comprise Nick Calligeros (trumpet), Phillippa Murphy-Haste (clarinet, bass clarinet, viola), Sam Gill (alto), Novak Manojlovic (piano), Max Alduca (bass), Holly Conner (drums).