The Bass Summit in the Traklhaus L-R: Robert Landfermann, Lukas Kranzlbinder, Jasper Hoiby Photo Credit: Frank Schindelbeck / jazzfotografie.de

Jazz & the City 2018 
(Salzburg. 18 October. Round-Up by Oliver Weindling)

This, our third and final round-up from Jazz & the City, is from Oliver Weindling. Links to our other two pieces are below. Oliver writes:

I had ended my own Friday night hearing Jasper Hoiby with his band Fellow Creatures. Great to hear how the band has developed from its first initial gigs a year ago, revelling in the joy with which all the members of the band impart from their performance. So the first gig on Saturday had a bit of continuity since it started with an extended version of a Blind Date concept that is being used at the festival – musicians playing for the first time with one (or more) whom they have never met before.

As a “bass summit”, Jasper was invited by Austrian Lukas Kranzelbinder along with Robert Landfermann (of Pablo Held Trio). It took place in the museum located in the house where Salzburg’s own poète maudit Georg Trakl (1887-1914) was born. This was a mesmerising dialogue where the three players passed the widest range of sounds across each other – bowed sections, and use of the bass as a percussion instrument amongst others. All the way through there was a strong flow that gave the performance impetus. Perhaps that is because they are all three used to giving the pulse to so many of the groups that they perform in?

Miller’s Tale is named after the fact that the album was made in Yonkers, the hometown of playwright Arthur Miller. Sylvie Courvoisier, Mark Feldman, Evan Parker and Ikue Mori delivered a master class of improvisation. All blended together, yet each was able to create lines which reflected their strengths – Evan’s extended techniques, Mark’s technical brilliance and Sylvie’s variety of sound. The ‘glue’ was provided by Ikue Mori, who masterfully integrated her electronics.

The day was completed by another Austrian group, Kompost 3. They played in the Jazzit club, the main year-round jazz club in town, intriguingly in the local Communist Party headquarters. Martin Eberle showed the full range of trumpet techniques, from spluttering through to high wails. The rest of the band (keyboard, bass and drums) took a bit of time to get going and the groove element and noise levels built. By the end they had drawn us in, though I think that they could have achieved that earlier if they had engaged better with the audience in terms of eye contact, etc.

The other group that I heard on Saturday was Synaesthetic Trip led by Edward Perraud, drummer with Das Kapital. Somehow Thomas de Pourquery had disappeared and we were left with his microphone. But there was no need to feel anything missing, with Bart Maris (Flat Earth Society’s trumpeter) and Benoît Delbecq providing interplay. A whole range of influences and stimuli, from female soul thieves through to Wagner and Bach. Perhaps unsurprisingly in a city which is the birthplace of Mozart, and has one of the most uncompromising classical festivals every summer, the audience was on its feet at the end.

All credit to Tina Heine and her team, working hard to teach the Salzburgers the thrills of jazz today. With so many thrilling gigs available for free, one should put it in the diary for next year.

LINKS: Sebastian’s round-up of Wednesday to Friday
Ralf Dombrowski’s Round-Up of Friday and Saturday