Day Two of the wonderful Watford Jazz Junction Festival and a triple bill of temptations on offer. Although unable to make Cleveland Watkiss presents The Great Jamaican Songbook in the evening, I was able to get along to Watford's Pump House Theatre and Arts Centre for an afternoon of delights.
First up was 17-year old Suffolk-based pianist Oscar Lyons who led a confident set of his original compositions. 'Convergence' and 'Close To Home' both felt like work from a musician of many more years and much more experience than Lyons 17, rich in colour and emotion. My favourite however was his closer El Vieco (I hope I've spelled that correctly!) which was inspired by his Mexican heritage and was filled with the dance-like energy.
The band was George Johnson on tenor saxophone, cutting quite a dash in his deer-stalker hat; Chris Diamand on electric bass, beaming a sunshine grin at the audience throughout; and Luke McCarthy on drums who kept the whole show knitted together with his cool, unhurried swing rhythms. Lyons himself on piano was mesmerising, leading the band with smiles and gentle nods, but playing the piano with his whole body, crashing his shoulders down into crunchy treble chords and lifting his whole chest when playing with a lighter touch.
Up next was Emma Rawicz and her quintet in their first-ever Watford show. Mixing tracks from her debut album 'Incantation' with sneak peeks of music from her upcoming album to be released later this year, it was a very personal hour of passionate and intimate jazz.
'Farloo' (again, spelling!) ought to be on the soundtrack of a high-octane action film; cinematic in scope and narrative in feel. In fact, many of the pieces felt like they had stories to tell rather than simply moods to evoke. 'Xanadu' captured the tension and strain of a growing storm while 'Rebecca' felt like a nervous walk through a ghostly house of horror. If not inspired by the Daphne Du Maurier novel, it certainly brought it to mind.
Some of the stories were more personal. 'Middle Ground' was a ballad written as a gift for her father on his birthday. As Rawicz quipped, it beat the alternative which would have been socks. And 'Vera' was a tribute to her inspiration, her grandmother who, although not musical herself, encouraged Rawicz to follow her passions.
Improvising the set list for the first time, Rawicz was visibly enjoying herself, dishing out solos on the hoof and catching her band out with calls which sent them all scurrying for their manuscripts. But boy, were they up to the challenge. Ant Law dazzled on guitar, with dextrous Ivo Neame on piano, laid back Conor Chaplin on double bass and Asaf Sirkis playing drums with his eyes closed and head nodding as if channelling the beats from the spirit world. Another sold out Jazz Junction show, and another sweet treat for Watford jazz fans.
No comments:
Post a Comment