Touring to the big smoke

Later in the night, after the book launch, is not so late for jazz these days.  We must be an ageing cohort.  Whatever, Ben Lerner was playing at Smiths at 7pm with his quartet on tour before recording an album with ABC and they were something pretty special.  The others were Steve Barry, well known and big handed with busy, rich, arpeggiated solos; Max Alduca, for some time trained locally, of solid groove with busy syncopations and some quick fills up the neck; and Alex Young, new to me but again syncopated, intensely grooved, sharply snared and creatively responsive.  They were all a pleasure, with Ben's lithe and expressive alto over, playing his compositions.  I reminded me of bop, heads and solos and groove, but not neo-bop.  That was conservative; this was more creative, open to broader stylistic influences, far more varied in chordal structures and not all 2-5s but you could still hear those pentatonic or other solo patterns that were just so effective from the alto and the heads were intriguing and often unexpected while the intensity and drive remained up.  This was some fascinating music and it's not at all surprising that Ben is off to NYC and Manhattan School of Music.  We can only wish him well but he's got a great start.  In the meantime, I look forward to mixing his gig at Smiths and later hearing the band's take from whatever ABC studio.

Ben Lerner (alto, compositions) led his quartet at Smiths comprising Ben with Steve Barry (piano), Max Alduca (Bass) and Alex Young (drums).

Face to face

There's always music before the chat although this chat was different.  First the music.  Host Jeremy led his band with Steve Barry, Noel Mason and Alex Hirlian in a quite professionally prerecorded setting.  These are very good players and this was a very satisfying modern jazz outing.  A wonderful drums entry from Alex, into a plaintive tenor melody, then a response, all in an 8-feel, then stops and starts on  a bridge and an end head and into a tenor sax solo.  Nice, punctuated, syncopated bass, swapping 8-bar piano and sax solo passages, then into piano with long 8th note lines, sax triplet drops, driving, busy, then some concurrent soloing, busy drums and a fade to end.  Really nice, but not the topic of the chat.  Instead that was Jeremy and Zoe Haupmann, artistic director of SIMA, talking of various things: the effect of COVID on musos and clubs, the use of streamed concerts, the intimacy and centrality of playing live with others and to an audience, engagements with live streaming, prerecords and struggles with tech.  The fact that you don't have to leave home.  But as Zoe said, she'd done enough gardening and surfing.  They talked of coming albums, coming shows, coming bookings as musos and as venue.  Talking hopefully of audiences also dying to get out to hear music live and happy to give support to venues and players.  Noting that Melbourne and Wangaratta jazz festivals were cancelled this year while Europe and the US is picking up for shows and tours.  Zoe has bookings to record with Ian Moss and festival gigs booked for next year with Missy Higgins and Ian Moss.  She spoke of the joy of bookings being received; "good to have hope" despite multiple reschedules.  But also of fears of lost musos and venues.  And of the particular demands for early/mid career musos and their limited opportunities for networking.  That always there is "no substitute for that live experience" and how we've learnt these things through COVID.  I learnt that the old (not original!) Basement is now Mary's Underground.  The performative ritual of musos and the concert experience of sitting still without checking phone as a liberty, some thing special, a sense of community, as something spiritual.  These are special moments and aren't forgotten: a feeling, unique and rare, precious.  Reminiscing on old time gigs with hubby Evan.  "Can't wait [for gigs to return]"  said Zoe.  And this chat also launched of the Jeremy's Face to Face video series, but it was not much discussed.

Jeremy Rose (tenor) performed with Steve Barry (piano), Noel Mason (bass) and Alex Hirlian (drums) then chatted with Zoe Hauptmann (artistic director of SIMA, bass) for the Earshift Festival.

Connections

I chatted with drummer Ko Omura about the Japanese tea ceremony and I thought later that the dignity and precision that's part of that ritual was also on view in his band's performance at the Band Room. Orbiturtle is an artists' community; this incarnation was a quartet composed of two Australians and two Japanese players, formed out of a visit by Steve and Dave to Japan a few years ago. Piano and alto are Australians; bass and drums are Japanese; both pairs played together regularly before Orbiturtle was formed. In format, it's a standard jazz quartet; in music, it's quite familiar, too, with tunes written by at least three members, but maybe it's that precision that so impressed me. They write some devilishly complicated heads, some of which are contrafactuals - melodies written over pre-existing changes. Ko also write a few tunes, and they were similarly interesting: congrats to a composing drummer. The band featured bassist Yoshio "Chin" Suzuki, veteran of NYC and a string of artists, not least Getz, Rollins, Blakey, Liebman, Konitz: a true jazz veteran. But the band was not onesided. This was seriously satisfying and deliciously carefully played. Steve Barry has a huge ability to design lines and follow through with ever perfect connections: chordal, melodic, arpeggiated, substitutions, extensions, polyrhythms, all there and all melding into an exquisite whole. Dave Jackson played with such a sweet and even tone, soft and supportive in the background or clear and stated in solos, always precise but not pushy, easily playing a simple solo line, then doubling and doubling again for flourishes, but again, carrying ideas through, always in easy control and with consistent tone. Chin sat at back, seemingly understated, but brilliantly melodic solos with lovely turnups to finish lines with clarity and some humour and always interesting walks. Interestingly, Chin is from the Suzuki method family (his uncle, I think) and the Suzuki awareness of musicality was evident. And Ko played richly varied drumming - sticks, brushes, a lovely gong that often finished several tunes - with impeccable underlying time that made this all sit with great poise. So, all round good compositions and impeccably precise and satisfying playing. The tunes were mostly from their recent CD (Sakura, listen on Soundcloud) and all original. Orbiturtle are touring the Eastern states with concerts and workshops.

Orbiturtle comprised Steve Barry (piano), Dave Jackson (alto), Yoshio "Chin" Suzuki (bass) and Ko Omura (drums).

Befores and afters

Just a note and some pics. Vista Needle were in town and performing at the School of Music. First up were a few workshops, at ANU but also a drum workshop at Groove Warehouse. I got to the first band workshop, at ANU, with hosts Steve Barry and Tom Botting. Two bands passed through the gaze for masterclass comment. "You guys can play" was the first comment then into discussion of energy and communication and dynamics, and count-offs as setting the scene, solo structure (where's the peak of the melody), approaches to improv (as an exercise, state a melodic cell and manipulate and develop), solo accompaniment (esp. behind those hoary bass solos), laying out (ask yourself, "is what I'm doing helping?"), approaches to bossa and use of various approaches (pedal point was mentioned).

Then, after the gig that night, I caught a snippet of a rehearsal for Mendelssohn Elijah by Llewellyn Choir, soloists and players on the stage in Llewellyn. Looking forward to the real thing on Saturday.

Steve Barry and Tom Botting gave a workshop at ANU and Llewellyn Choir rehearsed Mendelssohn Elijah.

Various twentieth centuries

Vista Needle is a new project of Steve Barry and Daniel Susnjar with Tom Botting on bass and they are touring the Eastern states. The spiel talks of influences of Paul Hindemith and Federico Mompou so I was a bit surprised to hear them warm up, before the gig, with a supremely delicate take on a sentimental standard, When I fall in love. But what pleasure. Then the first tune of the night was another standard, Everything I love. Both played with piano trio delicacy, great awareness and subtlety and flexibility by Tom, wonderful inventiveness by Steve, enjoying the sound of notes, then playing a flurry or colouring with all manner of chordal or scalar fills, and Daniel present but quiet and playing time and, at times, playing with time. I was thinking this is more Bill Evans than Hindemith. But the concert was mainly originals and some takes on the early 2th century composers. Early on, a Hindemith fugue that was a minimal, single chord, groove with a dotted crochet feel. It sat with slight variation, more promising than delivering after the clarity of a few standards. There were two pieces by Catalan Mompou (not known to me), both from his Musica Colada (=Silent music). No.3 was given a Monk treatment with various time signatures. No.15 was more flowing, haunting dissonant melody. But VN is also a vehicle for originals. Steve provided three. One with that common title, Untitled, started quietly in three with finger percussion from Daniel, then developed to a strong middle with deep syncopation and determined solo from Tom and a gloriously modern-styled piano solo. I'm thinking this is bliss. Then Steve's At the moment (Organic melody no.1), which was much more open, time indeterminate, free-styled. Daniel provided a tune with dedication to several renowned Catalans (Mompou, Dali and Gaudi were mentioned), more a pensive mid-tempo jazz tune. Another great bass solo and Daniel's first of two drum solos. I heard both his solos as intelligent dissection of time within a neatly overarching development to climax. Then a final tune by Steve, great solos all round, testing syncopations and unison lines, driving in 4 but heavily subdivided. So, really inventive and capable playing all around and some really effective originals and those explorations of Hindemith and Mompou. A fascinating and deeply satisfying concert.

Vista Needle is a project of Steve Barry (piano) and Daniel Susnjar (drums) with Tom Botting (bass). They played at the Band Room at ANU.

New to me

Contrafact was a new one on me, but it's there, in Wikipedia. It's a new melody over existing chords, a common compositional technique in bop because melodies are copyrightable but chord sequences aren't. I'd never hear the term, contrafact. Alex Raupach introduced it for a few tunes at his gig at Smiths, with Steve Barry, Alex Boneham and Mark Sutton. This was one great band. Again a winner. Alex is playing with much maturity with unrushed lines, often extended, nicely structured and unpretentious. Steve's lines can be like a column, unrelenting, long, hinting at quotes but not quite, with solos building from even but sparse, doubling time then doubling again, always logical, sequenced, neat but also intriguingly bent. Alex will be swinging or ostinato, mobile over the neck, low to high, wonderfully formed strong tones from a firm right hand technique (see that finger bent over a string, feeling the weight, taking the pressure) and solos that spelt out clear sax-like intervallic melody, not easy on the doghouse. Mark a powerhouse, driving, brushes, sticks or flipping the stick to mallet, attacking the fills or driving the rhythm. I often find I concentrate on one player ona night. Mark was that for this night, although I did take a few glances at the others. The music was not too practiced, but their skills and reading drove through it. They soon get the feel of the tune and the ability shines. They'd played a standards night at Hippo the night before; apparently this was loud. Smith's was more the concert performance, original music, contrafacts from Lee Konitz (Thing-In on the chords of All the things you are) and Alex R (Tower condition on Isfahan). Ron Carter's 81. A range of originals by Alex R, often melancholic, and one by Steve Barry, Sahara. Interestingly, a few references to poet Dorothy Parker "Some beautiful things, even in change, wondrously remain the same". Alex sang some lines against the final tune. It's an interesting expansion on instrumental jazz; I like it lots. An involving night with some wondrous playing and substantial tunes. Last visit was in February. I can only hope this becomes habit.

Alex Raupach (trumpet) led a quartet with Steve Barry (piano), Alex Boneham (bass) and Mark Sutton (drums) at Smiths.

Bowties

Steve Barry and Alex Boneham arrived in white shirts and bowties. I felt underdressed. They had played at the opening event for a new suburb. A musician's life is a string of diverse experiences. They were there to play with Alex Raupach and Mark Sutton. At least they looked casual. Not that the music is casual. As expected, this is deadly serious, even if with a jazz nonchalance.
The dress sense gradually dissipated, but the music didn't lose a beat. They started with Ron Carter's Eighty one. It's just a blues, but with a luscious Milesian floating feel with a sudden flourish in the head. Then a few standards and a few originals from Alex R. There were walks in some standards, but also interpretation that grew out of but almost concealed the underlying tune. Alone together was introduced with a bass solo, presumably in the D min key but it was some time before I even recognised this old favourite. Also Just friends and Wayne Shorter's Fall from Miles' album Nefertiti. Steve took an early solo with a long-sustained right hand 8th note line that ran on and on through choruses and gradually grew in dissonance. I was wondering how he'd escape. Eventually he doubled time for a few choruses on 16th notes then dissolved into chords. Fabulous. He set a bit of a theme for the night. Alex B had played a perfectly melodic and richly phrased solo earlier, but then dropped into his own sustained 8th notes on bass, although for one a few choruses. Ales R had a go later, too. Otherwise, he felt more Miles ethereal or sometimes boppy. Mark just laid out lovely steady grooves with tasteful fills and embellishments, always precise and neat. This is just so nice to play with: driving and unpretentious. I only remember one drum solo, of swapped 8s or 16s, again sharp and precise and free of flash. This is professional stuff and I'm in awe. I looked around out the windows at Smiths a few times, expecting the passersby to be peeking in in awe. Some do look; some come in. But too many just pass by on their way to bars or moshpits. Sad, that, but thus is the state of our rich and varied and too often too commercialised civilisation.

Alex Raupach (trumpet) led a quartet with Sydney visitors Steve Barry (piano) and Alex Boneham (bass) and local Mark Sutton (drums) at Smiths.

Again so soon

Twice in one week ; another stunner although a very different concert. This was Steve Barry playing a trio set with Alex Boneham and Tim Firth. I heard this as contemporary original compositions and a few standards; long right hand solo lines from piano with sparse left hand chordings; richly effective syncopated feels from bass with exciting drums of flow and dynamics and gushing fills; several long and tortuous written heads played unison by piano and bass; dynamics that moved gradually to surprise with their intensity.
Steve had written one tune from two favourite standards, Conception and East of the Sun West of the Moon, and two tunes influenced by books, Plato's Republic and Kundera's Unbearable lightness of being. Joe Henderson's Inner urge was just a hard swing workout at considerable pace. More than you know was one standard more than I knew and they played it with slow, heavy, unrelenting walking eight-to-the-bar swing. The standard rewrite of Conception/East-West reimagined with a contemporary latin-ish bass. I asked the barrista how she found it. She was obviously not a jazz freak but she responded that she liked it, as she does all good music. I'm more one-eyed. This was a technical tour-de-force and I can't compare with contemporary indie or other, despite a good feel or intelligent lyrics. This was music pure and simple played with abounding skills. Twice in three nights; great! This trio is going in the studio later this month to record another album. It will clearly deserve a listen.

Steve Barry (piano) led a trio with Alex Boneham (busiest bass) and Tim Firth (drums) at Smiths.

Residency

When he played at the Gods, Steve Barry described the three concerts in Canberra over the last week or so as a residency. The Gods was his first “residency” gig and I wrote that up. I missed the second when they played with David Jackson at the Loft. I got to the third, and thought it would be relaxing: no need to write this one up. But just a few notes.

It was a small audience, so intimate, and it showed. The trio played with an abandonment and self-satisfying purpose that was special. From the first notes, this was tight and hard playing and obviously well-practised from the tour. It felt different for this but even more for the instrumentation. The Loft has a Yamaha grand piano and that’s what Steve played. It’s stronger, more defined, less wishy-washy than a Rhodes, and I felt it made for more explicit solos and more immediate playing all round. Steve’s solos and comping were probably similar to that at the Gods. Certainly the repertoire was almost the same. Admittedly I was close, but I heard his contortions, sax-like solos, passing dissonances and substitutions with sudden clarity. I can understand his awards. Tom and Tim remained in character. Such well-formed, muscular notes and accurate and quick interval jumps from Tom. And snappy, dynamic, syncopated drums from Tim. I was amused to see his kit from head on and to realise there’s not a touch of movement, of stands, snare, almost not even of those three big cymbals. Just Tim moving over this rock-steady kit, all busy feet and snappy hands. It’s virtually all original material that they have toured, so I was just a little surprised by a beautiful Stairways to the stars to end. How incongruous. I think Tom felt that, too. Great gig.

Musing on trios

I hear a mix of professional and community activities in music and otherwise, but the full-time, well-trained, professionals are really where the skills are. I was thinking this at the Gods, watching Steve Barry’s trio, but it’s evident with lots of visiting artists or trips to the Opera House and the rest. A life committed to music, as with any art, may be challenging but it’s the way to really get things together. Given some reasonable talent, of course.

Steve’s trio are young guns with chops and something to say. I’d expected a quartet with guitarist Carl Morgan but he’d been called away overseas. So this was a Rhodes piano trio. The tone and even the era is somewhat set by the Rhodes piano, so I wasn’t surprised to hear a Herbie Hancock cover, but mostly this was original music written by Steve. It’s not obvious head/solos/head format, although essentially it’s structured like this. It feels different because there’s more fluidity in the modern approach and styles. The tinkling Rhodes is pretty constant in volume and dynamics, even if mobile in harmonies, against an improvised syncopation in bass and some driving and oft-swelling drums. I was seated where I could easily follow the drum parts, each arm and each leg, and I was entranced. Each part splits the rhythm independently, but it makes an understandable whole. That’s the nature of drums, of course, but seeing a capable drummer lay it out was a pleasure. I mentioned his quick feet to Tim after the gig nd he said he likes to dance. This was certainly nimble footwork. The double bass is by nature big-footed so slower and demands a different approach. I love that syncopation of implied beats that is a feature of this jazz, as I love walks that are shared with earlier eras, but it was the solos that took my attention. Tom played perhaps three longer solos, mainly in the second set. They were not so much conspicuous virtuosity as thoughtful investigation. That’s good. Long ranges, right into the high thumb positions, big drops to open strings and neat phrasing. The band ended with the standard, I’ll be seeing you, and I felt Scott LaFaro and Bill Evans here. I’d recorded and was surprised to find only three tunes in the second set, so this was generous with time spent with the tunes. The first tune after the interval must have been getting on to 20 minutes, but there was structure and crescendos and decays and changing features and a constant buzz of interaction, so the interest is easily maintained. Chris volunteered that this is his preferred style of jazz. I initially thought of European jazz (Chris likes Euro-jazzers), but I heard it more as an American style. I wondered about the piano trio as a democratic format. It’s a lovely ensemble to play in, without the outwardness of the sax or trumpet (not that I don’t enjoy that, too). Perhaps it’s also the intensity of rhythm, because piano is a percussion instrument. Piano has a sustain pedal but a piano’s sustain is nothing like a horn. Perhaps it’s the open sound of hard attacks and quick decays, or the spaciousness of just three instruments. I enjoyed this concert, thrilled with some great skills and it got me thinking. Thanks to Steve, Tom and Tim.

Steve Barry (piano), Tom Botting (bass) and Tim Firth (drums) played at the Gods.

A thesis in dots?

I was interested to hear that Steve Barry is reading for his doctorate in music. His thesis concerns classical music and improvisation. It’s not a common association although I’ve written of it several times here recently. I was chatting to Alex in the break and he was talking of classical bassists and hand shapes and fingerboard technique. Jazz, and perhaps all creative music, is a magpie art (“Good artists borrow, great artists steal", supposedly Picasso) so I shouldn’t be surprised. So what of Steve’s take?

Someone mentioned classical influences but I felt this was clearly out of a jazz tradition. I thought of Brad Mehldau with his truncated lines and current sensibility but I heard just a spot of Chick Corea’s harmonic sense and unison melodies and perhaps some longer Keith Jarrett lines. Steve’s compositions were strong on chords, there were latin and rock rhythms, there were unexpected fillips of time or missing beats. I also felt his playing defined left and right hand roles of chords and melody, although there was an easy modal freedom in that melody and the lines easily played around the underlying bar structures. Classic contemporary jazz, not bop styled and seldom swung. I was interested in how a changing chordal structure is relegated to feel almost unchanging, but I expect this is the end result of 50+ years of modal jazz. And I was intrigued by the very busy but unharried playing of the whole band. There were lots of ideas, lots of commitment and un-affected variation here, but it felt settled with like long crescendos and occasional change. And long tunes, up to 30 minutes.

I’ve heard all these guys in Canberra in recent days and it’s been a pleasure. Steve with Jess Pollard; Alex with Mark Lockett; Tim with Liam Budge. How different can these outings be? Alex was again clear in thought, adventurous in intent and accurate in technique. I marvel at his big well-intoned interval jumps. I found his sound a bit podgier on this night, perhaps a bigger low-mid, but what expansive inventiveness and entrenched groove in these solos! Quite stunning. Tim excited me, again with an ease of presence, but with perfectly accurate and sharply rendered fills and embellishments and rudiments. Steve led with his own compositions and the lyrical freedom I mentioned above. I liked that they played a single, long set, ~90 minutes: more involving, more relaxed for after-gig chatter, and shorter for a workday evening. I reckon that’s something jazz could learn from rock showbiz: play long and hard, don’t rest too soon. There’s a lot of understated change here: piano to bass solo to drums against ostinato and the rest, but malleable and undemonstrative although clearly planned. The tunes were originals, and Wayne Shorter’s Taru. One was entitled Parks and dedicated to pianist Aaron Parks. Changes was a love song from a distance. Vintage was a right hand melody with syncopated left hand chords and contrapuntal bass. Listening to the CD as I write, it seems strong and forceful. On the night, I heard it as more internal, busy and outspoken but complex, conversational and inner directed. Whatever, it was complex and satisfying and virtuosic. How I like it. Great stuff. Steve Barry (piano) led a trio with Alex Boneham (bass) and Tim Firth (drums) at the Loft’s last gig for the year.

Release

Liam Budge launched his CD last night. We were at the Abbey, with its earthy timber and imposing organ and arrayed PA and an impressive audience for a Sunday night. But still this was intimate.
Liam’s voice is plaintive and neatly controlled and often improvisational and here it was wonderfully close and present. The balance suited; voice and emotions and words matter here. The tense rhythm section under Liam was melodically restrained, but vehement like a compressed spring. This was powerful and emotive stuff, and it’s just the thing for a jazz vocalist. There’s been a reflowering of jazz vocalists in recent years, including several who are huge commercial successes. Most are female, but there are males too. The difficulty must be to retain authenticity in the commercial scene. Liam is certainly doing that. This is entertaining and intimate and thus sellable, but it’s more. There’s meaning is his words and originality in his arrangements and improvisations. He sang scat and it worked and not just as a period piece. This was effective, dissolving into echo and other effects – particularly impressive at a live concert. This was tradition and jazz chops but it was moulded with a Gen-Y ear. The tunes were a mix of originals and covers. The feels just sat ready to explode. I’m listening to his Bye bye blackbird on CD now. It’s a great song but not usually one for modern ears, but I’d heard it before at the Loft and it’s a killer. It sits, aroused but with a restrained surface, Chris’ bass holding things, Tim’s drums full of energy and sharps taps and rolls, Luke’s piano bouncy in chords and lithe in solos. This was the feel of the band. Not loud; controlled and careful but tense under the skin. This is black and white, film noir, suspense and longing. There will never be another you was similarly rearranged by Liam and Luke. Here’s it’s all medium-up swing and smooth trumpet but head and tailed with an accented, interrupted melody that retells the original then drops into a canny, hip vamp. These are common standards but manicured for an audience of lounge or tea room or grand stage. Liam’s intro to Stop this Trane was amusing. It’s his response to a John Mackey class in Giant steps and it’s well clear of Coltrane changes. Farewell was a slow ballad, bass solo, unison voice and flugelhorn; “we will begin, for you, to turn to”. San Diego serenade was a Tom Waits cover and an unexpected touch of light Californian rock with a pleasing jazz structure. Bettina was for his girlfriend, a ballad of touch and candlelight, intimate and quiet, accompanied by just bass and flugelhorn. They didn’t play This could be the start of something big, although it’s a jazz standard, but this concert may have been. Luke’s got amiability and feel and jazz chops and for singer’s it’s a world of opportunity. I’ll be watching and I’ve got a signed copy of his first CD. Break a leg, Liam. Liam Budge (vocals) led a band with Luke Sweeting (Rhodes, piano, organ), Ken Allars (trumpet), Chris Pound (bass) and Tim Firth (drums). Tom Sly (flugelhorn, trumpet) sat in for two songs.

We only caught two final songs from the opening act, Jess Pollard and Steve Barry. This is a Sydney pair, singer and keys, with some witty lyrics, curt phrasing and a delicious tremolo that wheedles its way into the high notes. Not enough to report on but I wish we’d heard more. Jess Pollard (vocals) paired with Steve Barry (Rhodes).