Jazz tunes in the capital
Preview
It's all about jazz at the Palace courtyard this weekend. Fringe Productions are putting together a series of ensembles featuring different key artistes each time. We've already seen some perform at various venues round the island such as Bridge Fridays, but others have been brought to us for this special jazz feast by a keen team of musicians, Andrew Alamango and Sandro Zerafa.
The birth of jazz happened in the turnover 20th century New Orleans scene but since then has come a long way, developing into various styles and also taking over Europe. The artistes in this two-day festival are Europeans and the jazz styles they play range from pure American jazz styles to the current jazz styles and more daring tunes. Guest artistes include popular musicians who are active on the Parisian scene which is said to be the most popular after New York. The show is not meant to portray mainstream musicians but to give all enthusiasts a feel of the more up and coming mix of European styles. It's not just a free improvised jazz and bebopper sort of scene but a festival in which trends have also followed those of NYC into an area of deeper experimentation and influences from a wider spectrum of music genres.
Yesterday's session consisted of a performance of Synapse Trio featuring dancer Arnette de Mille. Here we saw the originality referred to before. Dance improvisation is a creative feature of this group and instigates a lot of interaction among group members. The style varies with influences of rock, pop, some folk and a liberty in each band member's harmony and structure. Synapse Trio also features guitarist Pierre Perchaud, Karl Jannuska on drums and Amy Gamlen on saxophone.
Later on in the evening, Julien Daian Quintet featuring Dj Borz took over. This group is fresh and innovative. They got together in 2005 and the style of their jazz is modern with electro and pop influences. Other band members include Julien Daian himself on the saxophone, Aristide Goncalves on trumpet, Thomas Cassis on piano, Octave Ducasse on drums and Oliver Degabriele on double bass. Yes Mr Degabriele is one of their guest artistes; a practice typical of this group is to have a local with them on stage.
Today sees the inclusion of a more purist jazz band, the local Dominic Galea & Co. Mr Galea is known for his own compositions, improvisations and some bebop too (jazz with a touch of blues). Together with Walter Vella (saxophone), Roger Azzopardi (trumpet), Mario Cocker Aquilina (bass) and Benedict Galea (drums), they present some Latin originals and bebop numbers for which they are so much loved.
The second session today is dedicated to Sandro Zerafa's White Russian Quintet. Their music is influenced by a range of musicians such as Keith Jarrett, the Beatles and bop pianist Thelonious Monk. Mr Zerafa, Olivier Zanot, Davis Georgelet and Yoni Zelnik play an improvisation type of jazz with a touch of folk, rock and pop, some of which was actually composed by Mr Zerafa.
• Jazz Fringe! is part of the Malta Arts Festival. More information may be obtained online at jazzfringemalta@gmail.com or www.myspace.com/jazzfringe
The birth of jazz happened in the turnover 20th century New Orleans scene but since then has come a long way, developing into various styles and also taking over Europe. The artistes in this two-day festival are Europeans and the jazz styles they play range from pure American jazz styles to the current jazz styles and more daring tunes. Guest artistes include popular musicians who are active on the Parisian scene which is said to be the most popular after New York. The show is not meant to portray mainstream musicians but to give all enthusiasts a feel of the more up and coming mix of European styles. It's not just a free improvised jazz and bebopper sort of scene but a festival in which trends have also followed those of NYC into an area of deeper experimentation and influences from a wider spectrum of music genres.
Yesterday's session consisted of a performance of Synapse Trio featuring dancer Arnette de Mille. Here we saw the originality referred to before. Dance improvisation is a creative feature of this group and instigates a lot of interaction among group members. The style varies with influences of rock, pop, some folk and a liberty in each band member's harmony and structure. Synapse Trio also features guitarist Pierre Perchaud, Karl Jannuska on drums and Amy Gamlen on saxophone.
Later on in the evening, Julien Daian Quintet featuring Dj Borz took over. This group is fresh and innovative. They got together in 2005 and the style of their jazz is modern with electro and pop influences. Other band members include Julien Daian himself on the saxophone, Aristide Goncalves on trumpet, Thomas Cassis on piano, Octave Ducasse on drums and Oliver Degabriele on double bass. Yes Mr Degabriele is one of their guest artistes; a practice typical of this group is to have a local with them on stage.
Today sees the inclusion of a more purist jazz band, the local Dominic Galea & Co. Mr Galea is known for his own compositions, improvisations and some bebop too (jazz with a touch of blues). Together with Walter Vella (saxophone), Roger Azzopardi (trumpet), Mario Cocker Aquilina (bass) and Benedict Galea (drums), they present some Latin originals and bebop numbers for which they are so much loved.
The second session today is dedicated to Sandro Zerafa's White Russian Quintet. Their music is influenced by a range of musicians such as Keith Jarrett, the Beatles and bop pianist Thelonious Monk. Mr Zerafa, Olivier Zanot, Davis Georgelet and Yoni Zelnik play an improvisation type of jazz with a touch of folk, rock and pop, some of which was actually composed by Mr Zerafa.
• Jazz Fringe! is part of the Malta Arts Festival. More information may be obtained online at jazzfringemalta@gmail.com or www.myspace.com/jazzfringe