a music magazine i subscribe to is wire
it comes out of the uk on a monthly basis
what i enjoy most about this publication
is the inclusion of a sampler cd packed with music
that is loosely defined as modern music
i.e. whatever music that cannot be easily
assigned to one of the traditional genres
there are some amazing sounds evident on the sampler
probably only through lack of investigation
i often think there doesn't seem to be a culture of such music
evident if my corner of the world
at least not in public view
but tonight i think i encountered it first hand
ten part invention
comprises 10 musicians in 3 parts
up front 4 saxophone players
left stage rear piano, drums & percussion, and double bass
right stage rear the brass section of trombone and twin trumpets
they are internationally acclaimed having at least once
been invited to perform at the jazz festival of jazz festivals in chicago
but they defy categorising as a straight-up jazz band
much more experimental and inventive than that
they perform only their own material
no stunning interpretations of jazz standards here
i had a great seat down front stage right
and only a couple of metres from the stage
like having them in your own lounge room
it occurred to me as i was watching them play
they were enjoying the creative process so much
and had such confidence with each other's ability
that the crowd was completely incidental
they could have been having a private jam session
not to say they didn't acknowledge the audience
there was ample entertainment both musically
and funny anecdotes thanks to drummer/leader john pochee
but when the music was flowing
if was for each other that they seemed to be playing most
it was fascinating to watch at one point 9 of the members
very efficiently signalling each other as the best way
to re-launch a tune that had been lost
due to a sax solo feeding on itself
and growing much larger presumably than the notation
in this case the recovery was totally seamless and successful
and had several members whooping it up on re-launch
a standout tune called folk song written by trumpeter miroslav bukovsky
really hammered home the modernity of their music
tuned out instruments, notes and keys
intersecting to set up a very eastern european feel
that then led into some superb harmonising and soloing
over an extended time before coming back again to where we started
i think it was during this piece that i realised
that what i was hearing and seeing a few metres away
was an outfit that could easily feature in wire magazine
or be included in the cd sampler
another example of a group
producing highly individual music
but in this part of the world
sound lounge fridays
way to go...
