For Klassiek Centraal, we could certainly discuss one day of Jazz Middelheim, especially when a string quartet is also programmed. So we chose the best day, the final day!
And the first highlight on that high day of August 15 in Antwerp's Park Den Brandt was Aka Moon, the trio of saxophonist Fabrizio Cassol. With his slender build and luxuriant hair, he led his companions into his well-known polyrhythmic universe. Is it jazz or not, it is in any case the hallmark of Aka Moon. Today supplemented with a Portuguese guest, accordionist João Barradas. And that was good for an hour and a half of collectivist playing pleasure, improvising and rehearsed, practiced and invented on the spot. Fabrizio Cassol at his best, full of fire spurring on his soloists to do more and himself drawing out every last note from his sax. Supported by his mates: drummer Stéphane Galland and an almost percussive and impressive bass guitarist Michel Hatzigeorgiou. All four of them gladly and happily accepted thunderous applause for this resounding concert. It is a milestone year for Aka Moon, thirty years now, since 1992. And now in quartet format as well, with accordionist João Barradas added, electric and acoustic. Thirty years old, as young as Aka Moon itself. They found each other when Barradas participated in Fabrizio's famous Medina festival in Aix-en-Provence where he invites young people from the Mediterranean region to play together. For Barradas it was a true discovery. And the saxophonist became his mentor.
A completely different style we heard from the Kurt Rosenwinkel Trio. A strong personality in the jazz scene for years now and virtuoso guitarist. Undoubtedly more jazzy but not as seductive and appealingly different as with Aka Moon. Much more in the 'classical tradition' of his generational peers from the New York music scene of the nineties and before, with up tempo numbers and ballads.
Then came another guitarist, the Philip Catherine Piano Trio. And immediately a series of standards sounded, as timeless as he himself. Guitar, bass and piano, almost without embellishments, real trio jazz, no drums: exposition of the theme and everyone in turn improvising soloistically, as you have been hearing in jazz for years. And that is longer than the age of our guitarist who will turn 80 this autumn. Jazz as we and that music have known it for years and swinging as none other. That guitar sound of his is recognizable from a thousand. As is the combination of notes he gets out of it. Graceful, intimate, classical. It was a serious Philip Catherine, who usually surprises his listeners with a joke. He couldn't help himself this time either. When he had to announce his guest, a violinist, he forgot whose name it was for a moment, put the audience on the wrong foot by starting to pronounce the first name of another legendary jazz violinist "Stéphane……..uh, no …. Alexandre Cavaliere." Typical Catherine humor. And with Cavaliere as a violist added, the concert atmosphere got even better. With among others Broken Wing which he often played with Chet Baker. A quiet to intimate concert it was, Philip Catherine at his best. Yet some sentiment at the end when he, as an engaged artist, brought his own version of the Ukrainian national anthem.
It became truly classical when American pianist Fred Hersch came on stage with his drummer and bassist and also a string quartet. Unpublished at Jazz Middelheim, I think, but not in the world of Fred Hersch. Quartet, pianist, drums and bass, all with scores. They play pieces from Breath by breath, his latest album of the same name. And that quartet is the Antwerp Desguin Quartet, still as young as a quartet and yet already into jazz. By the way, who talks about genres anymore when even punk rocker Iggy Pop was allowed to open this jazz festival. The numbers from that album sound wonderfully melodic. Take Rising, Falling, with the strings added it could well become a skillfully arranged new standard. All compositions inspired by his meditation exercises. Once those were called "jazz meets classic" experiments "third stream music." For the current generation of musicians these are long obsolete concepts. Hersch soloed and the quartet did too. At a classical concert you don't hear applause afterwards, here applause followed as it should at a jazz concert when another soloist starts. Even more classical influence came when Fred Hersch added a tribute to Robert Schumann's Kinderszenen, a dreamy Pastorale. Sounded perhaps a bit too sweet. And of course ending with Thelonius Monk. Just like with Thelonius Monk, jazz takes another step forward with Fred Hersch, whichever direction it goes.
The audience proved to be captivated by Fred Hersch, called him back several times and he came back several times too, with trio and at the end solo as well. Star of the evening.
- WHERE: Jazz Middelheim, Park Den Brandt, Antwerpen
- WHEN: Monday 15 August 2022
- WHO:
- Aka Moon ( Fabrizio Cassol [saxophone], Michel Hatzigeorgiou [bass], Stéphane Galland [drums], João Barradas [accordion])
- Kurt Rosenwinkel Trio (Kurt Rosenwinkel [guitar], Doug Weiss [bass], Greg Hutchison [drums])
- Philip Catherine Trio (Philip Catherine [guitar], Nicola Andrioli [piano], Bart De Nolf [bass], Alexandre Cavaliere [violin])
- Fred Hersch Trio (Fred Hersch [piano], Clemens van der Feen [bass], Jonas Burgwinkel [drums]) with Desguin String Quartet (Wolfram Van Mechelen [violin], Ludovic Bataillie [violin], Rhea Vanhellemont [viola], Pieter-Jan De Smet [cello])