Better-than-expected crowds life this year’s Jazz Fest
A few dates underattended, but numbers up
You want to attend a jazz festival with an open mind and few specific expectations.
When the crowds came out for this year’s Edmonton International Jazz Festival, they got the sort of world-class musicianship you can expect, but it was harder to predict exactly what sonic spin might show up.
On the numbers angle, festival producer Kent Sangster was happy to report that this year’s festival easily passed the break-even point. It will be a few weeks before the final accounting is in but attendance was better than expected, especially for the two big Winspear dates with Herbie Hancock and Esperanza Spalding.
“The revenue from those shows far exceeded where we set out expectations, but our smaller special-event series at the Yardbird with artists like Patricia Barber and Kurt Rosenwinkel worked out well too. So did certain shows in the Cabaret series. We did at least equal to and very likely better than last year.”
Hancock’s date was one of seven shows to hit sellout or very near sellout status, with the overall budget of this year’s festival running at just over $650,000.
Sales of the Johnny Jazz Pass could still be better, and a few dates were sadly underattended for the excellent talents involved, like Alan Jones’s Canadian Allstars and Courtney Pine, who brought in halffull houses at best.
“Programming is never an exact science. There are always thoughts on how to tweak things next time. I was pleased at the number of people who came out for our early- and late-night emerging artists’ series with local bands. That’s important in developing new talent.”
Edmonton has a reputation among visiting artists as one of the best-organized jazz fests in Canada thanks in part to its smaller scale and hard-working force of 150 volunteers.
Anyone who attended more than a few shows could be hearing the long sponsor list in their sleep but it’s good to know that many mid-level supporters can still make it happen.
HIGHS AND LOWS
This jazz fan caught all or part of about 20 acts. Very few shows knocked me out but there were many satisfying moments, starting with drummer Jones’s amazing Canadian Allstars and superb work from horn players Ingrid Jensen and Seamus Blake in particular.
One night later, Tommy Banks and P.J. Perry gave packed audiences exactly what was ordered — solid, soulful, swinging tunes as only two old friends could play them. Vancouver cellist Peggy Lee brought an exquisite, more experimental ensemble (shared with Brad Turner), though her own playing and soloing seemed a bit lost in the mix.
Two Montreal bands, Trifolia and Quetango, sported separate takes on ethno-classical-jazz crossover in the Cabaret Series. And the Berlin band Gorilla Mask, led by Canadian saxophonist Peter van Huffel, was this year’s top power trio. All three players brought striking versatility to their instruments, tapping into a rock energy and intense, noisy playing that still had tuneful structures.
Opinions seemed divided over Courtney Pine’s quintet, with guest steel pan player Samuel Dubois. Despite the grandstanding solos, I liked their intensity and sophisticated approach to Afro-Caribbean rhythms, but some found it too loud and shrill.
A few times over the festival I found myself yearning for a tune, just a solid, coherent tune.
That’s one thing I missed from the U.K.-Scandinavia trio Phronesis. It’s exciting how the group puts intense interactive effort into creating rhythmic textures but they could find even greater drama with a little more space and stronger melodic ingredients.
On the final night, Patricia Barber was the perfect antidote. The Chicago pianistsinger and her young trio of companions were the essence of urbane jazz, dryly humorous, moody and smart, with wonderfully inventive lyrics and airy scats. Who else can create jazz rhyme schemes with five-syllable words?
Hungary’s veteran quintet Djabe put in a terrific, varied set at Catalyst, hitting on fusion, ethnic traditions and more. They grabbed me emotionally in a way that Kurt Rosenwinkel’s otherwise excellent quartet didn’t, though the American guitarist and his group thrilled much of their packed audience.
Esperanza Spalding brought a very cool concept in her large ensemble Radio Music Society, with exceptional musicians like saxophonist Tia Fuller. They had their moments but it didn’t quite take off for me. Maybe it was the sound mix, the fact that I couldn’t hear much of the lyrics, or the number of solos that seemed to lose track of the tunes, but the audience of some 1,400 was generally hip to the groove. Opener Gregory Porter was something to relish, but felt a little rushed. Bring him back please.
There was bound to be a mixed audience reaction for Herbie Hancock, who has had at least several contrasting careers in music. I would have preferred a bit more of his acoustic side myself but it was a thrill to see the maestro having fun with such a great band, looking closer to half of his 73 years.