The 2008 Rochester International Jazz Fest is in full swing, and this page has been taken over and re-dubbed for the week.  If you are looking for other RIJF goers who seek virtual and face-to-face interactions, check these guys out:

•  Jazz Rochester
• Fretful Porpentine
• Krazy Barrister
• The Refrigerator
• Rochester Music Scene

I’ll add others during the week as I find them.  I’m always looking for discussion, argument, and reflections on one of my favorite weeks of the year, so please e-mail or comment, and maybe even say hello at a show.

On Monday night I was lucky enough to catch a good seat for Cindy Blackman’s first set (She is a monster!) at the Harro and a little of Dan “The Festival Guy” Quilty hoofing at the Jazz Street Stage.   While one occasionally hears snickers and giggles when Dan is around, I have to say that his lack of self-consciousness and his ability to freely be himself is at the heart of the jazz ideal. 

I was thinking about Dan after seeing both of the Dr. Lonnie Smith sets last night.  Smith was so at ease on stage.  He responded to some inattentive audience members by upping the ante and playing at a level that could not be ignored.  His old band-mate, Lou Donaldson displayed the same ease the night before to play a set that elicited a similar response from a vocally appreciative crowd.

Another thing that I saw on Monday, and then again last night was post-set interaction of the artist with the crowd. Cindy Blackman took time after the set to talk to many of the audience members who lined up to shake her hand or grab an autograph. Bill Tiberio did the same thing last night. Most of the musicians that I have the pleasure to interacting with have been generally appreciative and accepting of the interactions. It is one of the really appealing aspects of this festival.

So, I noticed that every time I took pictures of Lonnie Smith his hands were blurry.  Surprise.  Surprise.  So today, instead of writing a bunch of stuff that no one wants to read, here are some pictures of the good doctor’s hands. 

Technorati Tags: RIJF, Rochester International Jazz Fest, Jazz, Lonnie Smith

 

Well, I wrapped up the 6th Annual Rochester International Jazz Fest sitting outside the Montage with Jason, Ken, Greg, and Jane after the 10:00 P.M. Avishai Cohen set, which was the best I saw at the festival.  The performance was so good, it kept me from going to the after hours jam at State Street because anything more would have been anti-climatic.  Cohen knuckled his bass, wrestled it, and even sucker punched it a few times as he lead his trio through standing ovations and thunderous applause. 

If you missed it, I feel bad for you.

The latest version of the RIJF has been by far the best.  I was here for all nine days am still decompressing.  If you have been reading this page, or some of my friends pages mentioned above, you know we spend quite a bit of time down here.  I can’t speak to why they come down, but in my case it is an exercise in economics.  I want to squeeze every cent’s worth out entertainment out of my Club Pass dollar.  What did I get for my $99.00?  Here is a list of the 36 acts that I saw over the nine days.

1. Dave Rivello Ensemble
2. Ballantyne, Sicotte, and Weiss Trio
3. Esperanza Spalding
4. Peter Asplund Quartet
5. The Shuffle Demons
6. The Bob Sneider Trio
7. Scott Goudie
8. The Mambo Kings
9. Zanussi 5
10. Los Lonely Boys
11. Fred Hersh Trio
12. Lalo
13. Lotte Anker
14. Mr. Something Something
15. Gene Bertoncini
16. Robin Eubanks EB3
17. 4 Brothers 7
18. Midaircondo
19. Hanna Richardson
20. Bonerama
21. Time Pieces Quartet
22. Matt Wilson Arts and Crafts
23. Christian Scott Band
24. Ilmiliekki Quartet
25. Jason Moran and the Bandwagon
26. Zapp String Quartet
27. In The Country
28. Corey Harris
29. Don Byron’s Ivey Divey Trio
30. Omar Sosa
31. Andreas Petterson Quartet
32. Toots and the Maytals
33. Bill Frisell Trio
34. Jens Winther European Quartet
35. Soul Rebels
36. Avishai Cohen Trio

Not bad, eh?

I have been on Jazz Street so much that I have the feeling one gets after having been away on a long vacation, and is preparing to re-enter one’s life.  I have lots of work to catch up on, but before I put Cup O’ Jazz away for another year, I wanted to take the time and list some of my observations about this year and ideas for next year.

• I read this in the D&C this morning:  “We’ve set it up to keep the same numbers (next year),” said Nugent. “Growth means a lot of different things. I’d rather see the music expand in scope.”  Both John Nugent and Marc Iacona have made statements that mirror this sentiment.  That is great news.  If the festival grows to a bigger size on its own merits, that is great, but there is no need too push.  Let it happen organically and we will avoid killing it.
• Many of the artists (Fred Hersch, Andreas Petterson, and many others) expressed their enjoyment of the festival and their interest in the support it gets from the community.  Nugent and Iacona are the faces of this thing and they deserve the lion’s share of the credit, but community takes participation.  From people coming out to see the shows to local business and government sponsorship to local amateur and professional musicians playing their hearts out, it takes everyone to make this city the vibrant and exciting place it was over the last week and a half.  Everyone deserves a pat on the back.
• While this idea might seem self-serving, I’ll make it anyway.  How about a “Blogger Pass?”  Basically, the RIJF would issue a Club Pass that said “Blogger” on it.  It wouldn’t get us into the Eastman shows, just the regular Club Pass venues, but it would be free to anyone who has been writing consistently about this event for at least two years.  What are the benefits to the festival?  Well, I think the effort of bloggers enlarges the coverage of this event.  Blog posts are available worldwide, and they don’t expire after a period of time like newspaper coverage.  Blogging is a communal activity, if done correctly, and being blogged is a sign of the festival’s health.  I think some of us have proved to be reliable, consistent, and even-handed in our discussion of the festival and we add something to it that goes beyond sitting in an audience and buying a beer.

• Set up some shows as field trip opportunities for local schools.  This could take two forms.  The first would be to visit schools with an artist or two as an assembly.  Esperanza Spalding, Christian Scott, The Shuffle Demons, Bonerama, Soul Rebels, and several others would be great acts to introduce jazz to local youth.  The efforts to make local teen musicians part of the festival is first rate.  Do some outreach to all the kids who enjoy music, but don’t play.  If traveling to different schools is not feasible, have a couple of shows at a local college during the day for field trip groups.
• I would like to see more visible RIJF support of local jazz during the rest of the year.  Sponsor a couple of shows at Water Street in the Autumn and Winter.  How about sponsoring a Battle of the High School Jazz Bands as a Cold Rush event?  I’d like to see the festival be more visible during the rest of the year.
• How about a series of shows specifically for Club Pass members?  I have no idea how many people by in at the door of these shows, so maybe this is a non-issue (all of my issues are probably in the general “non” area), but I thought I’d mention it.  You can’t get this kind of qualitative feedback from the How-Snooty-Are-You surveys.

• Raffle off some free trips/tickets/packages to the Stockholm and Baltimore festivals and vice versa.
• Sponsor some classes during the week on jazz etiquette and appreciation.
• Encourage more amateur local musicians to play in the streets.  I loved the few groups who set up on the sidewalks here and there.
• Hire me to host a blog during the week on the RIJF website.

 

 

Well.  Those are my big ideas.  I could probably rank them and then come up with more, but I got a life to get back to, pathetic as it is.  Lots of cleaning to do and chores to complete.

I’m already looking forward to next year.

Technorati Tags: rijf, rochester international jazz festival, jazz, avishai cohen

 

 

Well it all ends tonight.  But there is still some great jazz to be experienced this evening.  If last night was any indication, the organizers of this event have saved some of the best for last.  I started the Don Byron’s Ivey Divey Trio at Kilbourn Hall and walked out of the place feeling like my ears had gotten an education in jazz.  Of course, I don’t really know anything about jazz other than what I like and what I don’t, so every show is a learning experience.  I feel like the learning curve is still in its infancy.

A set like this, inspired by a previous recording session (in this case the 1946 recording Lester Young Trio), gives me something to research and listen to after the show.  During the set, Byron called Lester Young a “codifier of melodic invention.”  I immediately wrote that down and have been pondering the statement.  Codify is a term that has two basic meanings.  The first is to reduce to a code, and the second is to systematize or classify something.  While one can classify by coding, classification is not in all instances a byproduct of codification and it certainly does not define to what depth or sophistication such classification reached.  Did Bryon mean to say that Young identified and named different “melodic inventions?”  Did his naming of these inventions imply categories?  Or did he develop a system that organized melodic inventions? 

Like I said, Byron left me thinking.

Moving on, we headed over to the Lutheran Church for some more of the Nordic Jazz Now acts.  Tonight was the Andreas Petterson Quartet playing all George Gershwin tunes.  During the intro, Nugent said, “These guys swing.”  He wasn’t kidding.  I’ve never heard Gershwin sound like blues, swing, jazz, and classical music all in the same song.  My favorites were the second Prelude and Summertime from Porgy and Bess.  We got to see Petterson with his mates again at State Street and they did a very interactive tune and played with the audience.  Petterson is not only an excellent musician, but a first rate entertainer.  He must also be the tannest Swede I ever saw.

After Peterson, my enthusiasm to see Toots and the Maytals got the better of me and I outpaced the “gang” to find myself alone in front of the Alexander Street stage just as the show began.  Toots was energetic and the music was fun.  I got to hear Pressure Drop and Sweet and Dandy live and by the real McCoy, so I was happy.  I left the tightly packed crowd to catch a very entertaining Omar Sosa set at the Max.

There was much play and experimentation in the set and it was paired perfectly with expert improv and standard jazz chops.  These guys could sit in with anyone and may have been the most diverse group of musicians I saw this year.  They play again today, and I can recommend them without reservation.

So tonight is the end, and I need to stop writing and get in the shower, so hopefully someone will read this and it will convince them to attend.

I tried several times to get a picture of Petterson’s bass player and the shadow he was casting on the ceiling.  It was a great sight.  This was a poor, but probably my best attempt.

Technorati Tags: RIJF, Rochester International Jazz Festival, Don Byron, Lester Young, Toots and the Maytals, Jazz, Omar Sosa