Tag: concert

Winter Warmer

A group of singers performing in a choir, with a female lead singer in the foreground wearing a black dress, gesturing with her hands, and other choir members in the background holding music sheets and wearing black outfits with red sashes.
Jubilee Library, Brighton

On the 31st of January we attended a marvelous concert of world music at the Jubilee Library. Above, Polina Shepherd & Slavic Voices. Below, Jo Ema, Isaace Jengwa (Zimbabwe), Bashir al Gamar (Sudan) and Peyman Heydarian and Sattar Chamanigol (Iran). See www.bestfootmusic.net for more information on upcoming events.

A musician with an acoustic guitar performing on a stage, wearing a hat and casual clothing, against a backdrop of informational posters and a speaker.
Isaac Jengwa
An older man with gray hair and glasses plays a lute while seated on a chair, surrounded by microphones. Behind him are posters displaying historical photographs.
Bashir Al Gamar
Two musicians performing in a contemporary setting, one playing a string instrument and the other holding a large round percussion instrument, with historical posters in the background.
Peyman Heydarian, Sattar Chamanigol
Two musicians performing on stage, one playing the violin and the other playing the accordion, with historical posters in the background.
Jo Ema

Mona Krogstad Quartet

The Jazz Bar, Edinburgh

Our week in Edinburgh coincided with the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival and we were lucky enough to get great seats for the Norwegian Mona Krogstad Quartet at the Jazz Bar on the evening of July 19th (over a month ago, now!) to hear this excellent ensemble. A great time and rather than describe the music subjectively and inaccurately, I can recommend you listen to them. Click any of the pictures below to see them all bigger (you may have to click the post title first if you’re not seeing this directly on the web site already).

For those interested in technical details, these were difficult shooting conditions as it was dark and I was just shooting with my walk-around zoom lens from my seat so as not to disturb those around me. Needless to say, they were shot at a very high ISO and were reasonably noisy as well as sometimes not that sharp at low shutter speeds. I used DxO’s Pure Raw to recover as much quality from the raw files as possible before processing in Capture One, simply using the default settings.

Music Festival, Bruges

There were music festivals going on everywhere we went in Belgium. This one was in Bruges’ Grand-Place or Grote Markt. All the bands we heard sounded like American bands but when they announced songs or players it was all in Flemish. This band played My Sharona, among others.

St Michael and St Gudula Cathedral, Brussels

Another set of postcard pictures taken at the above-captioned cathedral which was stunning. By chance we arrived just before a concert was put on by an English girls’ boarding school (Badminton School).

Jazz on a Sunday Afternoon

These guys played a great set, combining sweet lyrical pieces with wide ranging dynamics as well as driving, beboppy pieces from Chris Potter on sax, spectacular drumming from Nahseet Waits (who regular viewers may remember was in the trio I posted from a few weeks back) and confident rhythm support from Joe Martin on bass.

Click any image to see them all enlarged.

Jazz Yoga

Yoga
The Mall, Central Park, New York

As the concert, featuring Chris Potter on sax, Joe Martin on bass, and Nasheet Waits on drums, began, a demonstration of some kind of yoga or acrobatics was given to the music. At the end of the concert we heard that lessons were available. The photographer is Jimmy Katz, founder, with Dena Katz, of Giant Step Arts and the Walk With the Wind concert series.

Honoring John Lewis

The Mall, Central Park, New York

Before the final Walk With the Wind concert honoring John Lewis, a Columbia professor (I can’t find his name or school), read to us from Lewis’ late work, exhorting us to hope and to vote, invoking MLK’s recommendation to practice good, non-violent, bad behavior.

Walk With the Wind

Mark Turner, Rashaan Carter, Nasheet Waits
Bassist, Rashaan Carter
Rashaan Carter
Mark Turner, Rashaan Carter, Nasheet Waits
Mark Turner, Rashaan Carter, Nasheet Waits
Drummer, Nasheet Waits
Rashaan Carter, Nasheet Waits
Not sure about the new jazz
Nasheet Waits
Nasheet Waits
Nasheet Waits
Saxophonist, Mark Turner
Mark Turner

The last Saturday of September we went to see one of the free Walk with the Wind performances in a series in Central Park honoring the memory of John Lewis. Performances, which are acoustic and feature small groups, take place at 1 p.m. on The Mall in Central Park. Here are some shots of the band – click on any one of them to see them all enlarged.

King Crimson

Radio City Music Hall, New York

Went to see King Crimson with my old friend Joe in late September. they have a pretty strictly enforce policy of no photos till they’re done, at which point they start photographing each other and the audience, meaning no great photos of the band playing. And with the lights beaming into the audience at this point there’s massive flare to try and control…

The Sellouts

Dennis Chambers
Wayne Krantz
Wayne Krantz
Wayne Krantz
Oz Noy
The Iridium, New York

Went to see Wayne Krantz and Oz Noy (with Dennis Chambers on drums and Kevin Scott on bass, playing as The Sellouts) with my friend Joe Silver last month. We were sitting right in front of Wayne and I could twist around to get a couple of shots of the others. Great set, if a little dissonant for my taste.

Click any image to see them all enlarged.

Thomas Dolby

Went to see Thomas Dolby at the Cutting Room a month ago with Frank Burrows. As Frank described it, “it wasn’t a a straight out concert, but a solo show with Dolby deconstructing some of his best-known songs. He told the story behind their creation while breaking down the structure- beats, chords, keyboard parts, and synth sounds, looping and layering them until he recreated the entire song which he then performed. He was very engaging, recounting a lot of personal and show-biz anecdotes in a very funny and self deprecating way.”

Dolby watching Shatner sing She Blinded me with Science
Take off
Dolby Now… and Then, with Bowie
Frank and Dolby’s Father-in-law

The show was opened by Dolby’s father in law, Jess Beller, 93-years young on piano, playing jazz standards with panache. Turns out he grew up in the Bronx, one block from where Frank did in Highbridge!

Click any image to see them all enlarged.

Joyous Night

Last Sunday night I got to see the great jazz guitarist, Pat Martino at Iridium. Maybe  because it was the last show on a Sunday night the house was pretty sparse. We got to sit right up front. It was a great set. The only time Pat spoke was to introduce the band members right before the last number. Unfortunately, I didn’t remember their names and I can’t find any trace of this particular lineup online anywhere so they’ll have to remain nameless. I didn’t get any decent shots of the organist so he’ll have to go unmemorialized here.

the drummer
Pat Martino
and on tenor saxophone…
Pat Martino
Pat Martino
trumpet
Pat Martino’s shoes
Pat Martino

Click any image to see them all enlarged.

4th Dimension Meets The Invisible Whip

The maestro takes a solo
Gary Husband moves from keyboards to drums
Etienne M’Bappé
Delighted by Jason Crosby’s violin
Ranjit Barot
Both bands say goodnight

Went to see John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension on a double bill with Jimmy Herring and The Invisible Whip in Newark a couple of weeks ago. First set was Jimmy Herring’s band which I’m not that familiar with but they played a cracking set. Next, out came John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension who played brilliantly. Then both bands did a set of classic Mahavishnu Orchestra numbers which was fantastic. Loved every minute of it. Finally got around to pulling together these snaps I took.