This past Friday Irene and I went to the Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta. http://web.javajazzfestival.com/2011/. It was three days long, Friday, Saturday and Sunday with over 150 different acts spanning jazz, pop, folk, rock and hip hop, though the emphasis was still on jazz. However, the most popular acts were Santana and George Benson. We could not possibly see all of the acts because they were performing in ten different venues simultaneously. Thus you had to pick and chose whom you wanted to see. While we saw a number of different local musicians performing an array of hip hop and pop jazz on several different stages while we were waiting to buy a program or purchase a festival credit card (another story entirely), we went there with the intent to see maybe six different acts. We wanted to see a Javanese group simply known as Iwan Hasan, Andien, Mery & Enggar Chamber Jazz at 6:30 pm. Then we hoped to see Fareed Haque a sometime classical and sometime jazz guitarist at 7:30. But we most wanted to see Maurice Brown at 8:30 pm and then Roy Hardgrove at 10:30 pm. Then, we figured, if we could stay up that late, we would finish up with Roberta Gambarini beginning around midnight. We had arranged for Miles to sleep over at a friend's house, so we were all set for a late night out.
I left our house around 3:45 pm to drive down to the Embassy to pick up Irene. That took about an hour and fifteen minutes. Then it took about another hour to get to the festival. All in all, it took almost 2.5 hours to travel 23 kilometers. Not too bad. We were making good time. We got through the doors at about a quarter to six and thought we might be able to walk around and hear some of the other acts before we went to the Chamber Jazz concert, but I couldn't figure out where all of the different performance outlets were so we decided to buy a program. But you could not do that with cash (it was only $2.50). You had to do it with the special festival pre-paid credit card. So we got in line to purchase the credit card. Or rather, Irene got in line, while I wandered around trying to find the venue where Iwan Hasan would be performing. I was directed to four different locations by four different people, all of whom were consistent about one thing: they were all wrong and hadn't the foggiest idea where the venue was. But Indonesians always want to be helpful, and would not want to embarrass themselves by not being able to provide you helpful advice, so they did not embarrass themselves. Meanwhile, Irene stood in line for about an hour to purchase the card. Eventually, I found the venue where the Chamber Jazz was supposed to perform around 6:45. Luckily, they were running late. But there was also a booth where you could purchase the credit cards that had only about two dozen people waiting. I stood in line and called Irene and we both got to the head of the line around the same time, so I let her purchase the card, while I went in to hear Iwan and Co. begin. By that time both Irene and I were in a foul mood and thinking this may have been a mistake. But then things changed when we started to listen to the music.
Andien, the lead singer of the group is very popular in the big cities of Indonesia and has several very well received pop hits which get a good bit of air play on the radio. Iwan Hasan was the leader of a rather influential experimental rock group back in the 90s. Now he has turned his attention more to jazz and traditional javanese folk music. The instrumentation was guitar (Iwan), vocals (Andien), Tuba and Piano. While it was not New York class jazz, it was very good and well done. And I enjoyed them a lot, but I have to admit that I enjoyed even more the Javanese music. It definitely had some jazz influences over the traditional javanese music, and I think Iwan, who does all of the writing and arranging, could have expanded it a little more. But, it was still very good, and Irene and I both agreed that this alone was worth the price of admission (only $35.00). On one song, Iwan played a guitar he modified with staples and paper clips to make it sound like a gamelon orchestra. On another song he played an instrument I had never seen before (not in any gamelan orchestras or anywhere else). It was a combination of deep body guitar and harp. It had about twenty strings. Six strings were over a long neck fret board like on a guitar and the other strings strung like a harp which were plucked like a Zither. It had a beautiful sound and the song he played on it was equally beautiful. Instead of the piano, the pianist played a children's air keyboard. This is an instrument that kids play at Miles' school to learn a little keyboard. It is a key board of no more than one and a half or two octaves that you blow into through a hose. It has the sound of a thin accordion. I have to admit that since listening to Dave Douglas' group, Three Leg Torso, Pink Martini, countless tango quartets, and a Japenese jazz quarter that employ the accordion, I have grown quite fond of this instrument. And I was shocked and pleased by what I heard this woman produce from this tiny instrument which I had previously always considered nothing more than a toy and a miserable excuse for a musical instrument. I am now excited for Miles to pick up this instrument.
After the Chamber Jazz concert, Irene and I sat at a small cafe and had a couple of cappacinos in order to fuel us up for the rest of the evening. There we unfortunately had to sit through several Indonesian DJs do their electronic hip hop. Definately wanna be's for something that was happening in New York about fifteen years ago, and which was really just an extension of what some stand up comedians were experimenting with their microphones thirty years ago. After fighting to get our bill and pay, we left to catch some Fareed Haque. Fareed, however, was doing his power fusion thing. Translation: overly amplified bass drums and guitar hammering away at three chord mollys. We were just about ready to walk after ten minutes, when Fareed did a short unamplified classical piece. We stayed for that, then when the amplifier was turned back up, we walked, and headed over to hear Maurice Brown.
Maurice is a young up and coming trumpeter that I was really looking forward to hearing. I had never seen him previously but I was impressed with his music and particularly liked his music video, Tick Tock. Maurice did not disappoint. He is a great musician. He had a great band. And he is a good performer. Maurice is like a modern hip hop Louis Armstrong or Louis Prima. He knows how to visually engage the audience and build up excitement. He will mug to the audience. Spin his trumpet likes some marching band kid on ecstacy. And do these little hip hop moves. This guy is definately a musician you want to see in person. All I could think while listening and watching him was how much I wish Miles could have seen this. I started Miles on trumpet earlier this year. Now we are starting to play simple songs. And his music teacher learned that he plays (this is still a bit of a stretch of the definition "plays") the trumpet and now wants him to be the back up horn section for the elementary school choir's rendition of Chuck Berry's Rock and Roll Music (which the teacher mistakenly attributed to the Beatles). So, I thought Miles could pick up on some of Maurice's moves.
So, okay after Maurice Brown, I was thoroughly content. We could have left the festival then and there and I would have been happy. But Roy Hardgrove was playing in 20 minutes, and so we headed on over to that auditorium. I've always liked Roy. He is a good solid trumpeter, who writes and plays great music. I have never thought of him as particularly innovative or outstanding, but I do own several of his cds and believe he deserves a greater audience. For any of you people that are fans of Chris Botti, I can only say- grow up. Listen to some real trumpeters out there. Start listening to Roy Hardgrove. Listen to Enrico Rava. Listen to Terrance Blanchard. Wynton Marsalis is good, you can listen to him, but he is a little too infatuated with himself at times. Anyone of these other trumpeters can match him and subtlely blow him away. You want a good trumpeter with chops? Listen to John Marshall a musician with whom I went to High School. John has been living and playing in Europe for the past ten years because Americans are more interested in hearing watered down or popped up jazz in the form of Chris Botti rather than a mainstream jazz musician like John Marshall. Or, if you prefer, go back in time and listen to Clifford Brown, Kenny Dorham, Freddy Hubbard, Dizzy Gillespie, Booker Little, and . . . don't get me started.
Right now I am listening to Roy Hardgrove, who is proving himself to me to be a consumate musician. He does not need to grandstand. He does not need to hog the spot light. He knows how to be a leader and lead his band through the music. I am very impressed. I have not heard Roy for several years and he has definately grown and matured. Tonight he has advanced several steps in my estimation. It was a flawless set that seamlessly built in excitement. The musicianship of his band members was incredible and he let them play effortlessly. Roy did perform a solo ballad on flugelhorn, which had that quiet understated quality that balanced techique with a spare open musicality. I swear, if I could have, I would have hugged him.
When Roy finished up his set, it was after midnight, and this old man and his darling young wife were exhausted but also enervated by the music. Nevertheless, we decided to bail on Roberta Gambarini. I like her very much. But it ws very late and we had just heard some very excellent music. Roberta had come with (I considered) a second tier trio and I did not want to be disappointed. There was a very good possibility that Roy Hardgrove would join her on a couple of tunes, but maybe not, and I decided that I would rather be disappointed by not hearing her rather than disappointed by what I heard. We decided to go home. It was, for us, very late. We are accustomed to getting up at 5:00 am. By the time we finally got home it was after 1:00 am.
I would have raced back there Saturday night for another evening (both Maurice and Roy were again playing) but Irene had previously invited people over for dinner and so I look forward to next year.
So, I am sorry none of you were able to attend the Java Jazz Festival 2011. However, I did find some selections on You tube, so that you can get a taste of what we heard. Enjoy.
Iwan Hasan, Andien, Mery & Enggar:
Is you my Baby? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMsjR6VM9RQ
Javanese Suite http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95gKeMgG6Kg
Iwan Hasan playing the guitar harp http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0veqxahAK6A
Fareeq Hasan:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgJKTjTFnnA
Maurice Brown:
Tick Tock http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isSSJ48byaI
Misunderstood http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTsLwDBgyP0
Roy Hardgrove:
I Remember Clifford [Brown] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9zQzAAWgd4
Invitation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8fIBUMvY0o
Soulful http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW4CCWDAcHw
Roy Hardgrove and Maurice Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=morwoBGXmL8
Roy Hardgrove and Roberta Gambarini
La Puerta http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Z0kqoUBRmc
Everytime we say goodbye http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quVtw0Pkgek
Roy and Roberta doing their best Dizzy and Ella http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRwxBTLV1T4
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