Relationships

They say most popular songs are about love. We went to hear Trish Delaney-Brown and she sings and writes songs of love, but more mature, more established, more experienced. Maybe it's better to say that she writes of relationships. There's intimacy and honesty here, but it's tempered by experience and it's a pleasure. It was a pleasure all round, of, course. She's a wonderful singer with serious training and great skills. She was a foundation member of the Idea of North, formed from the Canberra School of Music (pre-ANU) back in the '80s. She was touring her recent CD and mostly the band was from it (I think just Brendan was a ring-in) and they are peak players, sharp and understated and capable of abandon when it fits. She sang a few standards, too. I was wary to hear a start on Blue Moon, but I didn't need to worry: this was far more adventurous that that opening suggested. There was swing, but also grooves of various types, always clear and understated. Was there a foot wrongly stepped anywhere by Nic or Greg? Brendan was the eminent bass that we expect and Jeremy was understated but could let go with energetic solos with just a minimum of effects or switch to finger-picked acoustic for that supreme ballad, Nature boy. There were several unisons of voice with guitar and later keys that were obviously scored, presumably for the album, and they hit me for six. Then some delicious grooves, one an arrangement borrowed from Dianne Reeves for Softly that let go into a devastating solo from Greg and a short followup from Nic, who otherwise displayed immense decorum throughout. Trish writes lyrics, too, of real profundity and considerable astuteness from her life. One lyrics was to a tune written by Dave Panichi for a young cousin, Ruby. Another told of the pleasure of picnics as simple feasts and yet another of relationships as The Game, and Neat surprise and Thousand stories. All originals with their stories. Then the driver, What ya got, and the hard swinging paean to Ray Brown, Face of the Bass, which placed its demands on Brendan (which he managed with aplomb) despite the jokes of which Ray Brown, that RB of Tuggeranong? And Softly and Nature boy and a superb reconstruction of a murmuration of starlings simply called Birds. Trish and her band were classy and mature and massively skilled and a deep pleasure. Loved it.

Trish Delaney-Brown (vocals) led a band comprising Greg Coffin (piano), Jeremy Sawkins (guitar), Brendan Clarke (bass) and Nic Cecire (drums) at the Jazz Haus. Trish Delaney-Brown, Greg Coffin, Jeremy Sawkins, Brendan Clarke, Nic Cecire

It comes to us all

It was the start of the 50th anniversary season for the Canberra Youth Orchestra and it was jazz. Well, jazz as crossed over via film and classics but close enough. The guests were The Idea of North, once formed in this very institution, now a seriously capable vocal quartet. They were backed by the orchestra for most songs, but did one or some parts alone. I liked them best then, when I could really luxuriate in the fabulously precise and complex harmonies. That's the great pleasure of a vocal group and it can be lost to some degree, from backing and from a necessary but intrusive PA. (I have learned that all PAs are intrusive to acoustic sounds; to my ears, only some mega-costly outdoor PAs have come very close to transparency. Not that I don't love PAs but that's another story). The orchestra was a pleasure even if it inevitably intruded on the sublimity of isolated vocals. They played with care and interaction and a good sense of swing, often playing the role of a massive big band. For big they were: ~77 players. But best from the orchestra was their solo spots, two from Bernstein, his Overture to Candide, but more so, the tragic and dramatic mix that is his Symphonic dances from West Side Story. WSS is a personal lifetime highlight, the film, the tragic and touching music, the fabulous dance, the mirroring of the Romeo & Juliet story, the politically-relevant themes. The symphonic work plays with this, calling up stories and images from the film (and presumably the original Broadway show), the rumbles, the loves, the losses. Tragic and touching, sentimental but real. I love it dearly and I loved to hear it live and they did it with gusto and a slightly rough edge at times. CYO came more to date with the Suite from How to train you dragon, but it's too late a film for my experience. Otherwise, the songs were standards, again some of my favourites: Secret love, Smile. A final Mas que nada, a '60s latin hit. A take on It don't mean a thing that was arranged by Naomi Crellin and conductor Leonard Weiss. Interesting and effective. Also a lovely take on Send in the clowns. But entertainment was never far from the surface; these are professional singers and they have to make a buck. So one song featured beatboxing vocal drumming from bass Andrew Piper. Another was a funny song mixing and contrasting F with F#. Not an easy mix, especially one line midway that wasn't just the tonics. And a encore on Isn't she lovely that had the audience and orchestra split into four parts singing harmony. The pitch suited me so I enjoyed that. And perhaps the quirkiest of all, the orchestra playing a Bach fugue, only to be stopped by IoN for them to play it on kazoos. I guess kazoo playing relies on vocals so it worked harmonically, if not so much tonally. So, lots of classy entertainment and a poignant and stirring piece of Bernstein. Nice.

The Idea of North and Canberra Youth Orchestra under Leonard Weiss (conductor) performed at LLewellyn Hall. Idea of North comprised Trish Delaney-Brown (soprano), Naomi Crellin (alto), Nick Begbie (tenor) and Andrew Piper (bass).

If you go

Trish Delaney-Brown was a founding member of a great Canberra - and School of Music - product: the Idea of North. They are a wonderful vocal quartet that I've heard many times on radio but seldom live. They visit often; the hip response is "my bad". This gig was Trish playing for the School's Winter Jazz Week. Trish was singing by herself out front, backed by faculty and friends. The tunes were jazz and popular, standards, latins, ballads, a few originals. Nothing unusual but beautifully done, and collected with a sense of entertainment as well as art. This is the mark of a working musician. My favourite things is from Sound of music so ridiculously well known. So is Hey babe ain't I good to you. But they weren't all like that. Out of this world was a swinger and So what if I don't was slowly swung and Better than anything was 3/4 but with a fast melody and swift triplets and dotted quarter notes over the three beats of the bar, bop-styled. Senor blues was a latin blues with life and The Frog was 32-bar AABA with latin feel and Impressions changes (if I got this right). But a few slower numbers mostly took my attention. Blue in green from Kind of Blues was played as a duo with Trish and Mike; Jobim's Dindi was a thing of floating beauty; best was a glorious take on a delicious but tormented ballad, If you go, as arranged for Shirley Horn. So, these were interesting tunes and some were lesser known; straight-ahead, lively music, not too daring, but so wonderfully played and swung with much drive. Miro's soloing on this straighter material was a revelation, on flugelhorn or trumpet, phrasing modally, moving through scalar degrees and anticipating and leaving phrases hanging. Mike's guitar was sharp and unaffected and simply expressive. Wayne ventured into dissonance most freely. Alec took just one solo, this one on double bass, with clear phrasing and beautiful tone. Mark was in good cheer, inviting Trish on stage at the start with a classic intro, settling then driving the rhythm with incredible solidity throughout, taking just a few solos that sat with aplomb. I guess Trish is alto. I was taken aback when she dropped to a low note with such perfect tone and technique, by classy articulation on fast passages and by some mobile scat. Such technical competence must be a requirement for a vocal quartet like Idea of North so I was mightily impressed but not surprised. But beyond technique, there was personality and purpose. This was a wonderful, hard swinging, nicely arranged and sometimes beauteous concert. Great stuff.

Trish Delaney-Brown (vocals) performed at the ANU School of Music Winter Jazz Week with Miroslav Bukovsky (trumpet, flugelhorn), Mike Price (guitar), Wayne Kelly (piano), Alec Hunter (bass) and Mark Sutton (drums).