Bergamo Jazz Pageant 2024
(Numerous venues in Bergamo. 21-23 March 2024. Pageant report by Julian Maynard-Smith)

REVIEWS OF:

• Danilo Pérez / John Patitucci / Adam Cruz Trio
• Fabrizio Bosso Quartet
• John Scofield w/ Jon Cowherd, Vicente Archer, Josh Dion
• Miguel Zenón Quartet
• Naïssam Jalal
• Bobby Watson Quintet
• ‘Famoudou Don Moye Performs Artwork Ensemble of Chicago’
• Emanuele Cisi / Salvatore Bonafede
• Federica Michisanti French Quartet, that includes Louis Sclavis
• Ana Carla Mazae
• Abdullah Ibrahim
• Fashionable Requirements Supergroup

Bergamo, situated some 40 km (25 mi) northeast of Milan, is an exquisite metropolis for a jazz competition. Or relatively cities plural, because the medieval and fortified Città Alta (‘higher metropolis’) situated on a hill may be very completely different from the solidly fashionable Città Bassa (‘decrease metropolis’).

To take the nineteenth-century funicular (€1.70) is just not solely to climb via house but in addition to regress centuries in time, to depart far behind the stately avenues of the Città Bassa, tunnel via the traditional Venetian partitions (that are a UNESCO World Heritage Website), and emerge right into a medieval and Renaissance labyrinth of squares and slender streets cobbled with a particular herringbone sample: a world of towers and arches, fountains and statues, and church buildings with ornate facades. Those that want to stroll can take the cobbled streets that wrap across the hill, or a extra direct stone staircase. All pedestrian choices create a satisfying climb, beautiful views, and the sensation of a pilgrimage.

Within the Città Alta even the soundscape appears to regress in time, usually muted to the animated chatter of individuals crowding the streets and eating places (mercifully free from thumping music), the clang of church bells, or the smooth pft-pft-pft from the fluttering wings of a startled pigeon. Within the quieter nooks and corners, the one sounds of modernity may be the smooth rumble of automobile tyres on cobbles or the muted snarl of a Vespa scooter.

Not but a subscriber of our Wednesday Breakfast Headlines?
Be part of the mailing record for a weekly roundup of Jazz Information.

Attending the Bergamo Jazz Pageant affords ample alternatives to discover each the Città Alta and the Città Bassa, the principle venues being the Teatro Sociale (opened in 1809) within the higher city and the Teatro Donizetti (opened in 1800) within the decrease city. Each are opulent opera homes, each not too long ago renovated. Smaller venues this 12 months ranged from a restaurant to the Chiostro del Carmine (a monastery transformed into an arts house), and Accademia Carrara (artwork museum). And with as much as 5 live shows a day to select from, any customer was spoilt for alternative.

Thursday 21 March

The primary night occasion was a double invoice within the Teatro Sociale. The sense of drama began with leaving the slender streets of the Città Alta for the plush cosiness of a theatre with hovering rows of bins organized in a decent horseshoe, and an uncovered ceiling of picket rafters that appears just like the inverted hull of an historical ship.

The primary act was a trio comprising the Panamanian pianist Danilo Pérez (piano and keyboards) with John Patitucci (double and electrical bass) and Adam Cruz (drums). Pérez and Patitucci beforehand performed collectively within the Wayne Shorter Quartet, and Cruz was a member of the Pérez trio earlier than Patitucci joined. The set started with a jaunty tune referred to as ‘Whistle By means of Adversity’, and different tunes included ‘Various Realities’ (devoted to the activist Angela Davis) and ‘Beloved’ (devoted to Toni Morrison). I used to be anticipating a straight-ahead jazz set and we actually received a few of that, however the efficiency usually strayed into fusion and rock territory: synth/organ textures, electrical bass and driving drums on extra energetic numbers; however electrical bass carrying the melody underpinned by synth washes and subdued drums for a Wayne Shorter dedication referred to as merely ‘Wayne’. High-level musicianship all spherical – however for me the spotlight was the encore, an expansive all-acoustic ‘Spherical Midnight’ of delicate piano, beautiful bass solo and delicate brushwork.

The second act was a revelation, the quartet of an Italian trumpeter referred to as Fabrizio Bosso I hadn’t heard of earlier than, accompanied by Julian Oliver Mazzariello (piano), Jacopo Ferrazza (double bass) and Nicola Angelucci (drums). The set opened with a clarion-bright tackle ‘Felicidade’ and ranged from agile neo-bop so energetic I might see the veins on Bosso’s neck standing out, to moments of Chet Baker like softness, to enhanced strategies similar to Mazzariello plucking the strings contained in the piano, Angelucci abandoning his sticks to drum together with his arms, and Bosso utilizing pedals to use wah-wah results and delay. For the encore, Bosso left the stage for the again of the theatre, enjoying as he strolled via the viewers again onto the stage. It was an exhilarating set of showmanship mixed with first-rate musicianship.

Friday 22 March

Friday’s night live performance was one other double invoice, this time within the Teatro Donizetti within the decrease city. Just like the Teatro Sociale, it’s a splendid setting for a live performance. Certainly one of its highlights is the trompe l’oeil ceiling fresco that had me craning my neck upwards earlier than the lights have been dimmed.

First up was US guitar legend John Scofield, with Jon Cowherd (piano and keyboards), Vicente Archer (double bass) and Josh Dion (drums) for a challenge billed ‘Yankee Go House’ that Scofield has defined as follows: ‘The idea is to cowl Americana, rock hits and jazzed-out people songs plus a few of my originals written in that vein.’ The band actually achieved that, coming straight out of the gate with the sort of prolonged wig-out (with a bluesy, nation vibe) that many others would go away till the tip of a live performance. Scofield even appeared the half, grizzly with a protracted white beard and baseball cap.

It wasn’t all full on, at one second dropping all the way down to solo guitar, however the lasting impression is of a live performance of nice depth. Highlights included a prolonged exercise on ‘Wichita Lineman’ resulting in the Pharaoh Sanders tune ‘The Creator has a Grasp Plan’ with a shock look from Joe Lovano on soprano saxophone, performed with such scorching depth it was virtually a hearth hazard; and the encore, Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr Tambourine Man’, an earworm that had me buzzing the tune lengthy after the lights got here up.

The second set was one other quartet, this time led by Puerto Rican alto saxophonist Miguel Zenón, with Luis Perdomo (piano), Hans Glawischnig (double bass) and Dan Weiss (drums). Any quartet following ‘Yankee Go House’ wanted loads of fireplace, which this quartet actually had. Zenón opened with a breakneck cadenza of Latin-tinged bebop, joined later by riffy piano and arco bass. Zenón proved a beneficiant chief, giving his band loads of alternatives for solos. For instance, the second quantity began as solo piano, joined by bass and drums for a trio efficiency solely often interspersed with melodic fragments from the saxophone. As with ‘Yankee Go House’ there have been moments of quietude however total the vitality stage was excessive, Zenón usually swaying and bouncing on the spot as if his legs have been springs, as if he have been so coiled with vitality that even enjoying breakneck bop couldn’t disperse it. However then for the encore he delivered a cadenza of liquid gold, of virtually Johnny Hodges sweetness, the rhythm part matching the temper for a mild ending.

Saturday 23 March

The primary live performance of the day, entitled ‘Quest of the Invisible’, was at eleven within the morning and featured Franco-Syrian flautist and vocalist Naïssam Jalal, accompanied by French double bassist Claude Tchamitchian. The setting was the Accademia Carrara, an artwork gallery of Italian work and sculptures, plus different artefacts similar to cash and porcelain, relationship from the Renaissance as much as the nineteenth century. The room was chosen with care: behind the small stage have been still-lifes that includes ouds and different stringed devices; and the room was sufficiently small for no amplification to be wanted, making a salon feeling.

Jalal had misplaced her voice, which means she couldn’t sing and needed to communicate in a whisper. However the music from each musicians was so lovely, so delicate and filled with sinuous Center Jap melodies, that in some way a whisper felt proper, drawing us in. Jalal spoke of combatting xenophobia via remembering that within the eyes of individuals we think about strangers we ourselves are strangers: a message bolstered by the sleek dance between flute and bass, the well timed chiming from a church bell exterior, and the distinction between the dwelling musicians and people still-lifes painted centuries in the past that graced the wall behind them.

The night live performance was one other double invoice on the Teatro Donizetti. The primary set was the Bobby Watson Quintet that includes Bobby Watson (alto sax), Wallace Roney Jr (trumpet), Jordan Williams (piano), Curtis Lundy (double bass) and Victor Jones (drums). I’d needed to listen to Bobby Watson reside for years, ever since being blown away within the nineties by his magnificent album Love Stays (1986). My expectations have been subsequently sky-high, and I wasn’t dissatisfied with this set of top-flight onerous bop.

Bobby Watson started his profession with Artwork Blakey and the Jazz Messengers (1977–81), a bunch that proved an incubator for a lot of future greats. He and Curtis Lundy return to the seventies collectively, and Victor Jones is from the identical period. Wallace Roney Jr (son of Wallace Roney Sr and Geri Allen) and Jordan Williams are from a youthful era. So it was applicable they performed a set with tunes spanning all the best way from Keepin’ it Actual (2020) again to compositions from Watson’s time within the Jazz Messengers, similar to ‘Wheel Inside a Wheel’ and – for the encore – a terrific tackle ‘In Case You Missed It (aka Fuller Love)’. Nice solos all spherical as nicely, together with a classically influenced piano solo from Williams that began the set.

The second set was ‘Famoudou Don Moye Performs Artwork Ensemble of Chicago’, that includes Famoudou Don Moye (drums and percussion), Moor Mom (voice, spoken phrases, electronics), Eddy Kwon (violin, voice), Simon Sieger (piano, trombone), Junius Paul (double bass, electrical bass) and Dudù Kouate (voice, drums, percussion). The set marked the 50^th anniversary of the AEOC’s first live performance on the Bergamo Jazz Pageant, at which Moye himself performed. He’s the one remaining member from the seventies, all of the others within the present line-up being significantly youthful than he’s.

The AEOC has at all times been about melding disparate influences (particularly free jazz, the avant-garde, and African music), multi-instrumentalism, and theatre. We received loads of that tonight, the point of interest on the stage being a desk lined with a brightly colored material with an array of percussion devices. It was like an altar, with Moye (his drum package behind) as excessive priest. The beginning of the live performance was equally theatrical, the band chanting and banging gongs off-stage earlier than strolling on stage as if in a procession.

The sense of theatre was prolonged by the spoken poetry of Moor Mom, suggesting the griot custom of storytelling. What I most loved, nevertheless, have been the moments when the entire band switched to percussion, increase densely layered rhythms that felt really incantatory. Moye himself, in fact, shone on drums and percussion. Eddy Kwon, a non-binary Korean-American, supplied a marked distinction to many of the live performance with a particular solo that leapt from operatic falsetto vocals to slithery violin – typically concurrently. Sieger was a revelation, being an amazing pianist whereas additionally channelling the spirit of Lester Bowie (on trombone relatively than trumpet), and even switching to alto flute at one level.

Sunday 24 March

Attending 5 live shows was exhausting however rewarding, the primary live performance beginning at eleven within the morning and the final ending at eleven-thirty at night time. Fortuitously, the primary three have been all within the Città Alta, with time between them for lunch and exploratory walks, and the final two (one other Teatro Donizetti double invoice) within the Città Bassa close to to the resort.

First off was Emanuele Cisi (tenor saxophone) with Salvatore Bonafede (piano), performing within the Teatro Sant’Andrea in a room whose historical stone partitions and vaulted ceiling supplied very best acoustics for unamplified music. I’m amazed to not have heard of both of those Italian musicians earlier than, as they’ve performed with many greats and are excellent musicians in their very own proper. Such discoveries are a powerful argument for attending jazz festivals in nations apart from one’s personal. The efficiency began with spacious piano and lengthy saxophone notes (heat and full-toned) that made the many of the acoustics and environment, earlier than rising bluesy and boppish. Again to calmness, with wavelets of piano buoying up extra lengthy tones from the saxophone, then a stunning minor blues. An expressive ‘My One and Solely Love’ was a deal with, as was a shock look from Joe Lovano on soprano saxophone for a terrific model of ‘On Inexperienced Dolphin Avenue’.

Live performance two was a quartet comprising Federica Michisanti (double bass), Louis Sclavis (bass clarinet and clarinet), Salvatore Maiore (cello) and Michele Rabbia (drums, percussion and electronics). It was within the Sala Piatti, an artwork nouveau masterpiece in-built 1901 with a magnificently adorned ceiling. That is one other benefit of attending festivals in different nations: discovering not simply new musicians but in addition having fun with their performances in lovely and unfamiliar venues.

The live performance was billed as ‘Federica Michisanti French Quartet, that includes Louis Sclavis’ – fairly a mouthful, however indicating that whereas Louis Sclavis may be the higher recognized identify and therefore the live performance draw, Federica Michisanti is the group’s chief and composer. The music had that distinctly European flavour of ‘classical chamber music meets avant-garde jazz’ and it was spellbinding, ranging in temper from calm to squally, and enhanced with prolonged strategies similar to Rabbia utilizing a material to slap and rub his drums, and electronics to broaden the percussive soundscape into eerie realms.

Live performance three was billed as ‘Caribe’ (the Spanish for ‘Caribbean’) and featured Ana Carla Maza (cello and voice) as chief, Norman Peplow (piano), Marc Ayza (drums) and Jay Kalo (percussion). Maza is a Cuban singer and classically skilled cellist, however this live performance was all about making a pan-Caribbean musical expertise: from the clavé rhythms of Cuba and Brazil, to bossa rhythms, to the reggae of Jamaica. Rhythm and dance being key, Maza usually danced together with her cello, plucking relatively than bowing, as if her cello have been a scaled-down double bass. All through the live performance, she sang with gusto and an virtually relentless cheerfulness. An early tools malfunction meant that Peplow’s synth keyboard or laptop computer irretrievably did not work, however the music labored simply superb as purely acoustic.

Partway via the live performance Maza made a really legitimate level: that regardless of her finding out cello for greater than 15 years in Paris, not as soon as was it proposed that she play a composition by a lady – so she hoped that her subsequent composition, ‘Astor Piazzolla’ (impressed in fact by the good Argentinian composer greatest recognized for his tangos), would encourage different ladies. It subsequently felt like a missed alternative when she resorted to tips extra suited to a pop live performance, similar to instructing the viewers to clap and sing alongside, and even to wave their telephone torches in unison. It made me consider Vanessa-Mae just for jazz: a musician (and supporting band) of considerable expertise who shouldn’t want such gimmicks. However many of the viewers received into the spirit, rewarding the group with standing cheers and sufficient lights from telephones to fill a planetarium.

Live performance 4, the primary of a double invoice on the Teatro Donizetti, was a solo recital from the legendary South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim. He’s 89 now and shuffled onto the stage holding the shoulder of an assistant, wanting significantly frailer than the final time I noticed him. His efficiency felt tentative at instances as nicely, quiet sufficient for a refrain of coughing from the viewers to change into noticeable. However he packed in loads of repertoire, a lot of it being what seems on his solo album Solotude (2021): together with tunes from the seventies when he was nonetheless referred to as Greenback Model, similar to ‘Peace’ and ‘Blues for a Hip King’. He additionally performed repeatedly with solely occasional pauses for reflection, encompassing Monkish dissonance and fleet-fingered runs, melodic fragments modulating into completely different keys, and folk-like melodies with wealthy harmonisation.

Ibrahim stated not a single phrase all through the complete live performance, however for the encore he chanted and sang ‘Trance-Mission: the Sound of Centuries Outdated Maritime Cargo’, a heartbreaking lament by an enslaved particular person (Welcome dwelling / There’s nobody to welcome me dwelling / I see the harbour lights / The deep ocean lights) made all of the extra poignant by the frailty of the voice that sang it.

Live performance 5 was the Fashionable Requirements Supergroup, that includes Ernie Watts (tenor saxophone), Niels Lan Doky (piano), Felix Pastorius (electrical bass) and Harvey Mason (drums). The distinction with Abdullah Ibrahim’s set was dramatic, the band beginning out full throttle with a thunderous jazz-rock tackle the Prince music ‘It’s About that Stroll’ adopted by an Ernie Watts unique referred to as ‘Intercourse Pots’ then a most uncommon alternative, ‘Wonderwall’ by Oasis. One other uncommon alternative was ‘Dancing Barefoot’ by Pattie Smith. However why not? Herbie Hancock lined a Nirvana monitor on The New Normal (1996) and Brad Mehldau has lined Radiohead and Rush.

Different tunes included a showcase for Ernie Watts referred to as ‘EW Ballad’, which packed in an amazing solo that cascaded from the altissimo vary proper all the way down to the deepest notes; and an Ernie Watts unique referred to as ‘Reaching Up’ with an brisk drum solo from Mason (the unique drummer in Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters). The encore was Jaco Pastorius’s ‘Teen City’, which featured a virtuoso electrical bass solo from Felix Pastorius that supplied a becoming tribute to his father. The Danish pianist Niels Lan Doky was new to me however nice too, from hammering out driving piano and funky Rhodes, to delivering a lushly harmonised piano solo of nice finesse. At instances I felt my consideration flagging on the relentless vitality, however possibly that was unsurprising after 5 gigs in at some point.

In abstract, this was a incredible competition in an amazing metropolis that provides loads of tradition and sightseeing: even for companions who aren’t into jazz. The competition’s been going since 1969, and will it lengthy proceed.

Julian Maynard-Smith was the visitor of Bergamo Jazz

LINKS: Earlier LJN studies from Bergamo
Evaluation by Rob Mallows of Fashionable Requirements Supergroup at The Forge from the identical tour