Dingo Australian Jazz Journal - Issue 6 Spring 2023

M USI C REVI EWS EDUCATI ON G I GS

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Dingo acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

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EDITOR Adam Simmons | editor@dingojazz.com CO-EDITOR & MARKETING Cal Barry | marketing@dingojazz.com ART DIRECTOR Perri Winter | artdirector@dingojazz.com COVER ART Joseph Remi d'Argent | remiphoto47@gmail.com WRITERS Adam Armstrong, Christina Ballico, Jason Bruer, Flora Carbo, Des Cowley, Ashley Cross, Hayley Egan, Sean Foran, Mirko Guerrini, Judy Jacques, Julia Messenger, Roger Mitchell, Barry O’Sullivan, Michael Prescott, Robin Ryan, Jurate Sasnaitis, Josh Underhill COPY EDITOR Des Cowley & Jurate Sasnaitis ARTISTS Meg Kolac | www.megkolac.com Alberto Casagrande | www.albertocasagrande.com Tarli Bird | www.tbirdart.com SUBSCRIBE subscriptions@dingojazz.com ADVERTISING marketing@dingojazz.com PUBLISHED BY Sounding Grace Pty Ltd 339 Clarendon St, South Melbourne, VIC 3205, Australia DISTRIBUTED BY ARE DIRECT ISSN 2652-9637 Dingo accepts freelance art, photo and writing submissions, however we cannot reply personally to unsuccessful pitches.

For submission guidelines please visit www.dingojazz.com/contact Views expressed by the authors are not those of the publisher.

Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited. Copyright is reserved by the publisher.

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editor Wominjeka/Welcome Listening.

A key skill for all jazz musicians is to be able to listen. Taking in sounds, melodic shapes, harmonic colours, rhythmic patterns, nuance and expression. Listening to the offerings given up by fellow musicians, processing their intent and invitation, in order to respond in kind, contributing to the development of the music, conversation, dialogue.

Of course, a magazine about music will mention listening, but there are some particular moments that resonate for me in this edition.

For instance, Hayley Egan shares a powerful and personal moment of listening to the radio: “I feel a part of something bigger than myself.”; Boston saxophonist, advocate and broadcaster Ken Field reminisces of cranking up the volume on the big studio speakers during his 3am college radio days; Ashley Cross explains how practice is developing a relationship with music as a listener.

Listening often requires slowing down, taking time out and even relinquishing control. It is giving space to someone or something else to offer something. It is being open to the possibility of something surprising or unexpected about the offering.

Jazz is an artform where listening is developed, encouraged and extended for both practitioner and consumer alike.

And for full appreciation, it is vital that all voices are given a chance to express themselves and be heard. And indeed, it is expected that all voices will get this opportunity and that the music will be richer for each and every contribution.

With the impending national referendum to recognise Australia’s First Nations peoples in the constitution and enshrine the notion of an advisory voice for them to parliament, I implore you to consider how much richer our nation will become by accepting the invitation extended by the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

Let’s seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make history.

Enjoy Adam Simmons

contents

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EDITOR’S LET TER

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S POTLIGHT

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ON AIR COMM UNIT Y R ADIO

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MAKING WINGS HONOURING THE ANCESTORS

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SYNTH ETIC RHY TH M S E XPLORING GENER ATIVE AI ’S IMPACT ON JA ZZ

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M ENTORS HIP & JAZZ

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JAZZ IN M ELBOU RN E

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REVIEWS

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ARTIST PAIGE DUGGAN

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EDUCATION HISTORY LESSON: WAYJO BLESSED DEEP DIVE PR ACTICE YOUNG ARTISTS

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GE AR REVIEWS

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LIVE

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GLOBAL PERS PECTIVE

RESIDENCY IN MOTION HEY AUSTR ALIA! I ’M OVER HERE.

WHAT’S IT LIKE OVER THERE? MEET KEN FIELD GR ANT WRITING 101: ANSWER THE QUESTION

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CONTRIBUTORS

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10 16 63 42 80 95

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spotlight

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JAZZ IN THE SQUARE 2023 Dingo’s 2023 Jazz in the Square event was again held at the end of April to celebrate International Jazz Day. Staged in Fed Square’s iconic performance space, The Edge, free performances were presented throughout the day. The inaugural evening gala concert featured beautifully stunning performances by ZÖJ and the trio led by pianist Aaron Choulai.

Our thanks to all our event partners and supporters that made Jazz in the Square possible: Creative Victoria, The University of Melbourne, Fed Square, The Music Place and Red Rock Drums Australia.

C H E RYL D U RO N G P I S I T KU L P H OTO BY L I SA B U S I N OVS K I

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F E S T I VA L S MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL Melbourne International Jazz Festival is imminent with an expansive celebration of all that jazz has to offer with over 100 performances and events across the city between 20-29 October. The 2023 festival will present international guests such as Chaka Khan, Nile Rodgers and Chic, Ebo Taylor, Lisa Simone and Nduduzo Makhathini. Australia ex-pats such as Shannon Barnett and Daniel Gassin will be returning with their own projects.

A strong local line-up features favourites such as Bumpy, Thndo, Rita Satch, Julien Wilson, Stephen Magnusson, Andrea Keller, Vanessa Perica and Cookin’ on 3 Burners.

T YL E R C O O N EY

SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S JAZZ FESTIVAL Three-time Grammy winner Cécile McLorin Salvant headlines the 2023 SIMA Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival.

With 18 concerts across 12 days from 25 October to 5 November, this year’s festival showcases top talents from around the globe. Artistic Director Zoe Hauptmann says, “This festival is a testament to the power of women in shaping the world of music. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to present the future of Australian jazz to Sydney. It’s never background music with SIMA!” BRISBANE INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL Brisbane International Jazz Festival will return in 2023 after a hiatus of several years. Their main event will take over the Thomas Dixon Centre on Friday 27 October featuring Brooklynbased saxophonist Caroline Davis with her trio Alula, Quiet Country featuring Harry Mitchell, Ben Vanderwal and Harry Winton, Loose Leaf led by Andrew Saragossi as well as Queensland-based artists such as Hannah Macklin, Cigany Weaver, Josh Hatcher, Khito, Tyler Cooney Quintet and Isaac Power/Sophie Min Duo. There will also be an open rehearsal of commissioned works by Kayleigh Pincott and Brendan Foster, recipients of the inaugural Lynette Irwin MF Composition Commission.

T I N A H A R RO D SW I J F

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WANGARATTA FESTIVAL OF JAZZ & BLUES

J O S H H ATC H E R

C EC I L E M C LO RI N SA LVA N T

Unfortunately, Wangaratta Festival of Jazz & Blues has announced that after more than 30 years they will “wind up its operations after presenting a final reduced event in November.” Despite being a much-loved and established fixture on the international jazz calendar, the festival’s statement outlines their rationale: “Whilst the 2022 Festival returned a positive balance sheet, this decision is seen as prudent and fiscally responsible on the basis of continuing financial constraints, and a shifting and uncertain outlook for music festivals generally across Australia.”

A modest program has been outlined for “The Last Hurrah”, beginning with a gala event on Friday 3 November, the National Jazz Award finals and an evening concert on Saturday, and the Jazz Mass at Holy Trinity Cathedral on Sunday morning. Artist details were unavailable at time of printing.

PERTH INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL Perth International Jazz Festival is presenting its launch event at Brookfield Place on 7 October, transforming Perth’s corporate hub into a New York-inspired “symphony of rhythm and energy” across six venues. The main city-based program takes place over the weekend of 3-5 November with a range of free and ticketed events featuring artists such as Lisa Simone, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Kekko Fornarelli, Trio Grande, Shannon Barnett, The Vampires, Jessica Carlton and Tom Avgenicos, Kristian Borring Trio and The 950 Marching Band.

Following the city shows, PIJF will then continue in south-west Western Australia in Busselton and Yallingup 11–12 November.

AUSTRALIAN JAZZ CONVENTION The Australian Jazz Convention will be hosted in Longford for its 77th edition 26-31 December this year, returning to Tasmania for the first time since 2002. As the world’s longest running annual jazz event, the AJC is an opportunity for musicians to share ideas, make new friends and renew old acquaintances.

Registrations for musicians and delegates are now open. Musicians under 18 years of age can register for free but require a chaperone.

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C O U RT E N EY H O O P E R

S E BAST I A N B RO O KS

H A N N A H H O M B U RG P H OTO BY E M M A ST RE L A N

E N N E RI G N A N ES E P H OTO BY FAC E T H I E F

AWA R D S AIR INDEPENDENT MUSIC AWARDS The AIR Independent Music Awards were held live at Adelaide’s Freemasons Hall in early August. The award for Best Independent Jazz Album or EP went to Donny Benét for his latest album Le Piano.

ART MUSIC AWARDS Presented at Sydney’s Carriageworks by APRA AMCOS and the Australian Music Centre in August, the 2023 Art Music Awards acknowledges the achievements of Australia’s art music community. Nat Bartsch’s Busy/Quiet won Jazz Work of the Year, while The Cloud Maker by Freya Schack-Arnott, Aviva Endean, Sunny Kim, Jasmin Wing-Yin Leung, Maria Moles, and Te Kahureremoa Taumata won Performance of the Year for jazz and improvised music. State and territory-based Luminary Awards were presented to a number of jazz and improvised music related individuals and organisations for significant contributions to their local communities: SIMA (NSW), MADE NOW MUSIC (QLD), Creative Original Music Adelaide (SA), Julius Schwing (TAS) and Tone List (WA).

COMA AWARDS AND INITIATIVES Adelaide’s COMA (Creative Original Music Adelaide) has developed a substantial range of initiatives to acknowledge, reward and support its musical community of artists, writers and artsworkers. Their longest running program, Emerging Artists Award for 2023 was Courteney Hooper, who was also a participant in their newest program, the COMA Forum, allowing early-stage music professionals an opportunity to present their original works in a friendly, supported environment with workshopping opportunities and constructive feedback from industry experts. Sound Alliance participant Hannah Homburg benefitted from working with Belinda Gehlert for this artist networking/ mentoring program, while Sebastian Brooks received the Audio Mentorship to learn audio techniques with COMA regular, Marty Jones. Finally, the 2023 recipient of the Jazz Writer’s Award went to composer and bassist Enne Rignanese, who is undertaking a series of artist conversations and also recording a new album in November.

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G EO F F K LU K E

P H I L L I PA M U R P HY- H AST E P H OTO BY S H A N E ROZ A RI O

O S CA R B RU T E N P H OTO BY JAS O N A L EXA N D E R

M A RG OT P E T RI E P H OTO BY L I L I A N A D E PA L M A

FIRST NATIONS ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

GENERATIONS IN JAZZ SCHOLARSHIPS

Presented in a partnership between Melbourne International Jazz Festival (MIJF) and the Australian Art Orchestra (AAO), the First Nations Artist in Residence Program is an artistic professional development initiative that supports the career development of an emerging to mid-career First Nations musician with a practice in jazz, improvisation or contemporary art music and its composition. The 2023 resident is Noongar woman and Naarm-based artist Bumpy, whose music is described as pulling “from the strength found in tenderness, scars and all”. The residency includes a cash bursary, a MIJF presentation in October and participation in the AAO’s annual Creative Music Intensive.

In May at Generations in Jazz (GIJ) held in Mt Gambier, Oscar Bruten won the James Morrison Jazz Scholarship and Margot Petrie won the GIJ Vocal Scholarship, both worth $10,000 each.

The 2024 James Morrison Jazz Scholarship and GIJ Vocal Scholarship will be open for registrations from the end of November 2023.

FREEDMAN JAZZ FELLOWSHIP Sydney-based Phillippa Murphy-Haste received the coveted 2023 Freedman Jazz Fellowship and its $21,000 prize in a thrilling contest at Pier 2/3, ACO, featuring the other two finalists Theo Carbo and Sam Gill. The event also featured a trio set by 2021 Jazz Fellow Hilary Geddes. Judges Chris Cody, Ellen Kirkwood and Laurence Pike noted the finalists “all possess seriously impressive musicianship, creativity and demonstrated attention to detail in their projects”. Through the fellowship, Murphy-Haste plans to undergo mentorship with Swedish clarinettist Per “Texas” Johansson to culminate in an international collaborative project blending composition and improvisation.

SOUTH AUSTRALIAN MUSIC HALL OF FAME Geoff Kluke will be inducted into the Adelaide Music Collective (AMC) SA Music Hall of Fame later this year and, as one of Australia’s premier jazz double-bassists and educators, is highly deserving of the honour.

With an illustrious career beginning in the 1960s, Geoff is described by AMC’s Enrico Morena as a “true gentleman” who has “performed with the ‘Who’s Who’ of national and international jazz artists”, such as Phil Woods, Dewey Redman, Emily Remler, Joanne Brackeen, Sheila Jordan, Brian Brown, Don Burrows, John Pochée and many more.

DA N I E L G AS S I N P H OTO BY M A RI A N N E B P

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CONNECTIONS ABC COMMISSIONS ABC Classic and ABC Jazz announce the third year of their composer commissioning fund, offering emerging Australian talents an opportunity to create new music. This fund prioritises opportunities for women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, people with disability, gender diverse people and other diverse voices. Successful commissions receive up to $6,000 for composing and recording projects, with studio sessions and production covered by ABC. The completed recordings will air on ABC and be released digitally on ABC Music. Applications close October 30, with recordings slated for 2024.

AMY CURL – FAREWELL SIMA’s visionary CEO/EP, Amy Curl is leaving after an extraordinary decade of stewardship, Amy has spearheaded pivotal projects like Young Women’s Jazz Workshops (WA), inaugural Berry Jazz Festival and the relaunch of Jazz:NOW series. Amy’s legacy as a jazz advocate and community builder will endure, and SIMA is now set for a new chapter with the recent appointment of Alex Raupach, who brings extensive experience from delivering government programs and a similar role at Canberra International Music Festival.

AUSTRALIANS ABROAD As international travel has opened up, it is great to see Australian jazz artists getting out and about. A few such examples over the past few months include: Daryl Mackenzie contributing arrangements for Ted Spurling’s orchestral tribute to Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Carly Simon, performed by numerous orchestras including the Philadelphia Orchestra, San Diego Symphony and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Nick Haywood Trio with Niko Schäuble and Andrea Keller touring to Czech Republic and Germany; and composer Vanessa Perica performing recently in Norway with the Bergen Big Band.

AUSTRALIA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS – CHANGES As outlined in the last edition, in line with the newly launched National Cultural Policy, the Australia Council for the Arts became the new Creative Australia, with its expanded remit, including the establishment of Music Australia, one of four new bodies that will operate under their auspices. The inaugural members of the Music Australia Council announced in August are: Adrian Collette (Chairperson), Sophie Payten (Gordi), Michael Chugg, Nathan McLay, Fred Alale, Lisa Baker, Fred Leone, Danielle Caruana and Petrina Convey.

7 VIRTUAL JAZZ CLUB CONTEST In late September the 7 Virtual Jazz Club Contest (7VJC) winners for the ninth edition were announced online with many of the artists and jury in attendance. First prize in the Pros & Amateurs category was awarded to French duo, NoSax No Clar, who also won the Innovation Prize for their tune, “Kahmsïn”. The runners up were Germany’s Shuteen Erdenebaater Quartet and USA’s Benny Banack III. Poland’s Quietet won the Under 25s category.

Congratulations goes to Australian ex-pats, Daniel Gassin and Quentin Angus for reaching the semi-finalists as judged by an international jury panel of professionals. Dingo is proud to be a continuing partner for this international event, with editor Adam Simmons participating in the international jury panel. Entries opened in October for the 10th edition to be held in 2024.

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ON AIR C OM M U N ITY RAD I O WO RDS HAYLEY EGAN

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I ’m about to describe a scene that has nothing to do with jazz specifically, but it has ever y thing to do with radio and that feeling you get when you unexpectedly hear a piece of music that changes your day.

Importantly, the scene is set in regional NSW. It’s a sunny winter morning, about 20 degrees outside, and I’m driving from Bellingen to the coast, over the sparkling turquoise Kalang river, the radio is tuned to Classic FM and is playing “40 Reasons to be Cheerful” by Australian composer Graeme Koehne.

The brass comes in and I’m looking for somewhere on the other side of the bridge to pull over so I can safely close my eyes. When the piece finishes, the presenter reads aloud several text messages from listeners around the country, who describe where and what they were doing, how the piece changed their day, and for just a moment I think about these people and I feel a part of something bigger than myself.

It might seem that I am some kind of passionate radio enthusiast, but this is not really the case. You can ask ABC Jazz’s James Valentine to confirm, as during our interview he was forced to explain the difference between FM and Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) … thanks for that, James. I didn’t even purposefully tune in when I got in the car that day. The radio was just tuned to 92.3 from last time. I should also say that I’m not really into classical music. I keep the radio on Classic FM because there are no ads. Other music genres I do enjoy include traditional folk and … jazz.

For obvious reasons, for the purpose of this article, I’ll focus on the latter. I’m pondering my relationship with the radio and I’m wondering how I can experience jazz in the same unexpected, visceral, wholebody way I did with the Koehne piece. On reflection, the experience was defined by two important factors: surprise and the guidance of a live presenter, who not only offers the piece as part of a curated soundtrack to the morning but holds space for the collective reactions of the audience.

In other words, it’s an experience unique to radio.

One of the differences between ABC Classic FM and ABC Jazz is right there in the name. But James Valentine, who has been the presenter of Sunday morning jazz program Upbeat for several years, does not think that ABC Jazz is missing anything.

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“ YOU WA N T T H E S E RE ND I P I T Y O F ‘HE RE I T I S’, T H AT I S GOO D M US I C PROG RA M M I N G .

SO M ETHI NG T H AT I S WH AT YOU L I K E BUT A BI T DI F FE RE N T.”

“Five years ago, I thought, ‘Why can’t we have an FM?’ Now I don’t think it matters anymore. [A digital station] is cheaper and we have universal access.

We are more likely to continue than if we had FM because it costs less to run. ABC Jazz is set up for contemporary listening. It was established when digital radio was meant to be rolled out nationally. It’s not between FM and digital. The true competition is between broadcast and streaming.”

As a musician himself, James Valentine doesn’t recommend relying on radio to get jazz music out into the world.

“The role of radio changes year on year. It’s getting less and less. I sometimes hear musicians complain that they aren’t getting their music played on the radio. They need to concentrate on getting their music out using social media. Radio is not how people find music anymore. Up until 2005, radio was the main way of getting music out to people. Now it’s YouTube. If you aren’t thinking about adding a visual to your music and uploading it there, your music is not getting out there.”

James also shared that he has very musical adult children who are somewhere around my age and who never ever listen to the radio.

So, what then, is the role of radio in the Australian jazz scene?

“Its purpose is to provide another way of hearing music. From the point of view of the musician, well, you better be thinking about other ways. But there is still an audience for [radio]. It’s a great way to listen to music. We don’t have the budget that Classic FM has where there is someone there 24/7 saying ‘Here comes Mozart!’ but still, someone is guiding you through. That’s quite beautiful. You don’t have to make a decision. Now there is an infinite choice of music and that means you want that curation that used to be there. You want the serendipity of ‘here it is’, that is good music programming. Something that is what you like but a bit different.”

For Josh Underhill, who presents the program Visualising Jazz on Mornington Peninsula’s community radio RPP FM, the role of a jazz program is to demystify the genre for people who like music that “just sounds good” to them.

“I want to make jazz a little bit more accessible, and not so intellectual. I love how it feels, I love how it sounds. I just love stuff that sounds good, and not only jazz, but that is the genre I’m most drawn to.”

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Context is also important for Josh. He also sees himself as a curator and a guide for an audience who may not have heard the music otherwise. His guidance is not necessarily historical or musical, but more visceral.

“I like to ask myself, what is it about this album that is worth your time? Is it lyrics? Or does it just sound good? Does it have a good beat? Does it have musical elements that I think are worth talking about before the track gets played? That gives them something to latch onto. Sometimes explaining how the music makes me feel will get people to listen to experimental stuff they normally wouldn’t listen to. Sometimes people want to hear that there is something at the end of this tunnel, so they should stick with the piece.”

Josh, who also curates Instagram’s @hotcupofjazz, notes that, much like the music itself, the process of exploring and presenting the jazz scene is incredibly collaborative.

“As you start to connect with musicians you can see who their influences are and who they are pioneering as well. You can come across something that you enjoy and look at the liner notes. If someone you enjoy is working with a certain musician, chances are you will enjoy their work as well.”

In the intricate network of the jazz scene are the links between programs and presenters throughout the country.

“These connections are really important,” says Josh.

“A program really is a curated list being presented by someone.

And through these connections, I’m starting to get records across my desk that I wouldn’t have found otherwise.”

Though they are certainly playing an integral part in the tightly connected scene, radio presenters are well-placed to observe the scene from the outside.

Josh says that his focus is on contemporary Australian jazz music, noting that there are plenty of programs in Australia and around the world playing jazz from the first half of last century.

“The older stuff is there for context,” he says.

“But what I find most interesting is that in any sort of improvised music, all of your environment and life experience gets drawn in and churned up in the playing. I think you can really hear that music from New York and the UK and parts of Europe just sounds different from Melbourne and Sydney.”

David Moyle presents the program Bent Notes for Joy 94.9, Melbourne’s LGBTIQA+ community radio station. The tagline for the program is “Ragtime to Remixes” and David says that it attempts “to go anywhere and everywhere from a jazz perspective”.

“I’m not an aficionado, I enjoy it, and I pass on all the info that I can find. I like to think that I can pass on the enjoyment of the music through my enthusiasm for it.”

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For David, a big part of the role his program plays in the scene is about interviewing musicians.

“It’s about giving the audience a look into the life of the musician being interviewed. I hope that the listener will go away with a new perspective on the musician themselves, and a new perspective on where a jazz musician sits within the contemporary music scene. So many of the musicians I interview are so well gifted, and so well experienced, that they appear everywhere. I hope the listener gets something new from my interview. If there is an album, I want to share why the album is here, what the objective was. If there is a gig, it might be about finding out whether there is anything special about it.

I want the audience to learn more from my program than they can read in an advert.”

In other words, these presenters agree that the thing that separates radio from a very groovy Spotify playlist is the human element. A live presenter guiding the listener through a curated but surprising program. Perhaps this is what is keeping radio alive.

If I wanted to listen to any of these radio programs (and I do), I would need to be at home and connected to NBN (yes, my side of the street has got that now).

My car doesn’t have DAB so I could not get ABC Jazz. I could stream it from the ABC Listen App, but

I would have to know it was there, remember that, connect via Bluetooth before taking off, before losing reception about a kilometre down the road. I’m not in Melbourne or the Mornington Peninsula so I can’t get Josh or David’s programs either. I live on the Mid North Coast of NSW. I have two friends in town who teach at the regional Conservatorium 50 kilometres away and make a daily commute. Both are jazz-trained musicians, but it is Classic FM on their radios every morning.

I can see the point James Valentine makes when he speaks of setting up a radio for contemporary technology. As I nosed around on the internet, I learned that the BBC’s Classic FM will move to DAB technology in January 2024. But here, for now, it’s not available in most of the country, which reinforces another of James’s main points. Radio is not what is getting jazz into Australian eardrums.

We’ve established that I, James Valentine’s children, my friends who work at the Conservatorium and pretty much anyone in Australia who lives outside of a capital city, are not listening to jazz on the radio.

So, who is?

I’m not quite sure what this means yet, but when I asked who listens to their

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programs, the answer from all three of the radio presenters I interviewed was somewhere along the lines of “No-one in my family, that’s for sure!”

“I have no idea who is listening,” says Josh. “From my Instagram, I can see that I have people from Poland listening in. They are primarily other programmers or musicians in the scene. I guess they are listening to use me as another extra resource.”

David imagines an audience that is really into jazz, really into JOY or both, “just settling down at the end of the week. We’ve received messages from time to time, but we don’t actually know who is listening.”

ABC Jazz has an estimated weekly digital audience of 400,000–500,000.

When I compare this with the 5 million who listen to Classic FM via analog access, I get why James Valentine likened the comparison to apples and oranges.

ABC Jazz might not have these sorts of figures, an FM presence, or a Classic FM budget, but they do have access to some impressive equipment for recording. 50 years ago, when jazz was just a couple of programs on Classic FM, there was still about an hour of Australian jazz recorded per week and that has continued since.

“That’s over 50 hours per year of Australian jazz music that simply would not have existed otherwise,” says James, and if I had any confusion about what the point of the station was, it suddenly becomes pretty clear.

The radio interacts with the scene itself, with some programmers regularly going to gigs, recording live jazz to potentially be shared with anyone in the world, or anyone in Melbourne or Sydney who couldn’t afford the door or had something else on that night. As I learn this, I can imagine the delights that emerge on ABC Jazz when this happens.

Now, if I could just get it to work in my car ...

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MAKING WINGS

HON OU RI N G T H E AN CESTORS WO RDS ROBI N RYAN AND J U DY JAC QUES

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See deep enough , and you see musically; the heart of nature bei ng everywhere music , if you can only reach it.

– T H O MAS CARLYLE

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Judy Jacques is a highly original contemporar y jazz singer who was propelled into the limelight as a teenager. The career of the mature Jacques (henceforth Judy) has evolved over six decades in remarkably creative ways . Twent y years ago, Judy ’s concept album M aking Wings won the New Investor Bell Award for Australian Jazz Vocal Album of the Year at The Inaugural Australian Jazz Award held in Melbourne on 28 August 2003.

The project premiered on 15 September 2002 at Montsalvat Artists’ Colony in Eltham. It garnered critical acclaim as a touchstone for the cultural production of Judy’s identity with “songs of journey, place and personal discovery that provide a powerful insight into Australia’s history and landscape”. I was privileged to be present at the album’s spirited launch and I venture that it is timely to remark, revisit and re-celebrate this album of striking beauty and depth – not just for its own musical worth, but for the gesture Judy was making and continues to make towards a national understanding of Australia’s First Peoples.

Central to Making Wings was Judy’s creative engagement with her own ancestors’ stories and their place in lutruwita (Tasmania) and its Furneaux Group of islands. Of equal meaning was the dark and complex history of colonisation’s impact on Tasmania’s Aboriginal Palawa peoples. Judy was especially stirred by the songs of Fanny Cochrane Smith (1834-1905), a Palawa woman born in captivity at Wybalenna, Flinders Island.

Making Wings represented the culmination of an intense five-year project. While the music defies categorisation, writer and festival director Adrian Jackson suggested in Rhythms Magazine that Making Wings is “jazz”; jazz that is “unmistakably Australian in its sound and content.” Judy responded to Jackson: “In my music, I’ve always looked for something that defines my life experience, the land and country we live in, people, history, and nature. The music comes out of these considerations, not labels such as jazz or folk or anything else. Having a jazz background can’t help but influence what I create; however, I try to not put up boundaries when exploring ideas. You will hear gospel and folk influences on some of the tracks; that’s just part of my language.”

Judy looks to the freedom within jazz to express her personal association with Country and nature as well as what is going on in the world around her. Oddly enough, the understanding of African American race relations was introduced to the young Judy through recordings of gospel music well before she knew any Aboriginal Australian history. On becoming aware of lutruwita’s poignant past, she was to break new ground in the art of truth-telling through song.

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Discontent with a shallow television career in the 1960s and 70s forced Judy back to the ecstatic condition of “just being at one in the music”. A born risk-taker, she experimented with the avant-garde, knowing full well that atonal singing would alienate fans of staple jazz standards. Music historian Bruce Johnson commented that “Jacques is one of the very few Australian singers to emerge from the jazz/folk boom of the early 1960s and define a new phase in her musical career” (The Oxford Companion to Australian Jazz, 1987).

Judy’s ensemble Lighthouse performed at the 1997 Edinburgh Festival Fringe and made a tour of Wales, Italy and France. The press release for the album Lighthouse encapsulated its “jazz roots, folk grooves and spirit-rapping songs of grace and power”. It was the precursor to Making Wings.

From 1998 to 2001, Judy travelled regularly to Flinders Island to uncover her ancestral roots, research the region’s history and conceive compositional ideas. In 2000, she lived alone for four wintry months in an isolated shack on Buffalos Beach, in the island’s south-west.

Judy used a tape recorder and keyboard and attuned herself to words and ideas. She created journals, prints, drawings, poems and recorded vocal improvisations: “I dream and wake and no time passes between night and morning, I write and sing and walk and dreams come. I walk with a tape recorder in my pocket and record open thoughts and snatches of songs, crouching under rocks for shelter from the wind and I am in heaven. I am filled with the island and the voices from the past. In time, Flinders Island showed me something of itself, I breathed it, whispered and sang with it, and in time I found my place there.”

Judy conducted singing workshops for the island community and attracted musicians and sound technicians to the island. They performed her raw new songs at the inaugural 2000 Flinders Island Wind Festival.

As the nation focuses on the impending Australian Indigenous Voice referendum, it is apt to emphasise the Indigenous components of an album that powerfully illuminates the effect of one culture on another. The transportation of Aborigines from Van Diemen’s Land to Flinders Island caused them desperate homesickness for their mainland tribal loci. In 1984, lutruwita’s Senior Palawa Elder, Aunty Ida West (1919-2003), revealed in an autobiography about her childhood on Flinders and Cape Barren Islands that “some old one [captured person] made wings to fly back [to the mainland] but were flogged”.

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Stunned by this phrase, Judy named her album Making Wings, and with Aunty Ida’s blessing, told the story in song, inscribing a CD cover that opens out like a pair of wings with words by the late poet and teacher Japanangka Errol West: There is no-one to teach me the songs that bring the Moon Bird,

the fish or any other thing that makes me what I am.

Judy shaped song schemas around the flow of stories and of lyrics: “Works for improvising musicians need special consideration. The approach used for this project places the text first as a referent for form and musical expression. Loose instructions are then added guiding the harmonic treatment, ensemble orchestration, spatial and melodic language.” (libretto notes, Australia Council grant application, 2001).

The texts dart between eighteenth and twentieth centuries in the manner of Indigenous Australian “cyclical time” that comprehends the past as a continuous surround. The singer’s unique forms of vocalisation prompted critic Bryan Patterson (Sunday Herald Sun, 2003) to write: “Jacques and company have conjured up a world of floating sensuality. They are not songs so much as tone poems.”

Weaving between balladry, gospel, antipodean folk jazz, wordless improvisations, taped location sounds and her re-interpretations of Fanny Cochrane Smith’s songs, the album captured the splash of ocean spray; the sight of starfish, stones, and sand; the squealing of short-tailed shearwaters (muttonbirds); and a shadowy sense of the past in clanging ship bells. In the words of John Shand, “one can almost smell the salt” (Limelight).

The Judy Jacques Ensemble recorded the album at Wild Dog Hill Studio on the singer’s St Andrews farm. Guitarist Doug De Vries contributed vastly to the performance, not just with his brilliant playing, but by ensuring the compositions remained true to the singer’s original concept, which she outlined to Jackson (Rhythms, 2003): “All these musicians bring a shared language, a freedom of improvisation, openness to ideas, the stories and adventures that formed this new music … from our collective improvising sensibilities.”

The ensemble was lustrous: Sandro Donati harmonised trumpet, Nicola Eveleigh flutes and voice, Howard Cairns bass, Michael Jordan drums and Denis Close percussion. Judy invited participation from other musical colleagues: jazz pianists Tony Gould and Bob Sedergreen, and saxophonist/composer Brian Brown. Gospel choristers from The Angels of Soul – Margie Lou Dyer, Jacqueline Gawler and Margot Barrett – supported Nicola and Judy, each bringing unique sonic approaches.

Making Wings is underscored by values straddling artistic restraint and righteous anger, for as Judy explained (Jackson, Rhythms, 2003): “The love of jazz grounds you in a political and social history. It is the stories, the folk music … everyday issues and the oppression of a people that resonates in jazz. This understanding remains with me and affects my search for a meaningful way to express our own experiences. Stories, words and sounds come together in these compositions to make sense of my intentions … Flinders Island drew me in with all of its power and its past. It demanded work of honesty and humility, thorough research and respect. The intention was for healing, so it had to sound and look as beautiful as we could make it. It had to feel like velvet.”

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F RAG M E NTS A ND VOI C ES F RO M T HE PAST M A DE I T C L EA R TO J U DY T HAT SHE WAS W RI T I N G SONGS FOR HEA L I NG : VOI CES A ND STORI ES F ROM BOT H SI DES OF A HA RD HI STORY.

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Two songs in particular distinguish the song cycle’s contribution to discussions within Tasmanian Aboriginal communities regarding cultural revitalisation. Judy re-interpreted notated transcripts and taped recordings of “Spring Song” and “Bird Call Song” from the repertoire of Fanny Cochrane Smith after painstakingly seeking permission from Palawa Elders the late Aunty Ida West, Fanny’s greatgranddaughter the late Enid Dillon, Rodney Dillon and Tony Brown.

Horace Watson contributed some of the earliest wax cylinders to be made in Australia when he recorded Fanny’s songs and language for the Royal Society of Tasmania at Sandy Bay, Hobart in 1899 and 1903 – 24 years in advance of recordings by Empress of the Blues, Bessie Smith. Tony Brown sent Judy a tape of the recordings and Alice Moyle’s sheet transcription of “Bird Call Song”. Judy thus created a new mode for preserving “Spring Song” and “Bird Call Song” in their original language as she brought them forward into the twenty-first century.

The adaptation of “Spring Song” furnished music to a television documentary on the Palawa women’s shell making tradition (ABC TV, 6 October 2003). “Spring Song” also provided a music track for the video Needwonnee Connecting and Sharing and a Native Garden Sound installation for the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery.

Fragments and voices from the past made it clear to Judy that she was writing songs for healing: voices and stories from both sides of a hard history. The voice of Fanny Cochrane Smith was a constant reminder that there was a world of difference between her own romantic feelings about the islands and the reality of what they meant for Fanny’s people: “Fanny introduced her “Spring Song” in full and proud voice as a celebration, a renewal that has the capacity to heal. I wanted to bring this sense of celebration to Making Wings. It made me want to honour Fanny’s songs and to bring ‘the sound of the voice that is still’ back into the wider community.”

To allow room for Tony Gould to colour the song with his individual and rich chord choices, Judy chose to sing “Spring Song” at a slower tempo than Fanny: “It took enormous faith to actually be able to sing, to make the sound that could get close to expressing the extent of what I understood of Fanny’s life and people through the fecundity and beauty of “Spring Song” ... Fanny was the last Aboriginal person to survive Oyster Cove, and the one Tasmanian whose songs and speech were recorded. As the carrier of “Spring Song”, she has the capacity to renew, to complete the full circle of healing.”

Finally, in her heartfelt title-track “Making Wings”, Judy revisited her gospel moorings to express the captured Elders’ longings for “Country” (home). The Angels of Soul crescendo in support of her powerful voice and as they lay a foundation for the passionate core of the album, Judy literally flies on wings of her own making. Having evolved with the jazz art - form, she transcends it in this exhilarating performance.

The music captured the Spirit of lutruwita's environment, history and people in character, thought and substance. It was the making of Judy’s ongoing connection and later physical move to Flinders Island as she came to terms not only with her personal history, but with the harsh history of a geographically marginal Australian place.

In celebration of twenty years, the original recording of Making Wings will soon be available on Bandcamp, along with the newly discovered and mastered 2002 live performance.

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SYNTHETIC RHYTHMS

EXPLORING GENERATIVE AI ’S IM PACT ON JAZZ WO RDS CAL BARRY

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I’M WORRIED IT WILL CREATE TERRIBLE MUSIC. ELECTRONIC MUSIC D OES DIVORCE ITSELF FROM HUMAN ENERGY, BUT I FEEL WELL-THOUGHT- OUT COLL ABORATION WILL BE THE BRIDGE BETWEEN BOTH ELEMENTS. RO BBI E AVENAI M

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The world of jazz has long been celebrated as a genre that encapsulates improvisation , creativit y, and the deep connection between musicians . Rooted in African American traditions and evolving through decades of cultural and social changes, jazz has retained its unique identit y while embracing various influences . In recent years, the emergence of generative artificial intelligence (AI) has introduced a new dimension to the jazz industr y, redefining the boundaries of musical creation and sparking a dynamic dialogue between tradition and innovation .

Generative AI is already being used widely with most of us exposed to it, often without even realising. The above introduction was kindly written by ChatGPT, a text based generative AI. As you re-read it, picking it apart to see if you can find any telltale signs, consider what is it you’re expecting?

Just as you’ve likely encountered AI generated text – News Corp “writing” 3000 localised articles weekly using AI – you’ve probably already heard AI generated music in ads, video games or deepfakes, without even realising.

Artificial Intelligence in music Deepfakes are now widely available online. Frank Sinatra singing modern pop tunes is a popular one. OpenAI’s Jukebox is an easy platform for these to be made or Music AI is another which creates an artist voice model that can then be put onto the desired base track. Other AI platforms such as LALAL. AI can strip recordings into individual stems allowing for easy remixing. This technology was instrumental in creating the 2022 remixed Beatles Revolver album release from producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell.

In 2021, Over the Bridge foundation released Lost Tapes of the 27 Club: four “new” tracks from deceased artists such as Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse: “To draw attention to the music industry’s mental health crisis, we used artificial intelligence to create new songs by members of the 27 Club, a group of legendary artists who died at just 27 years old after battling mental health issues. Lost Tapes of the 27 Club showcases the music that greats like Cobain, Hendrix, Morrison and Winehouse could have created had they gotten the mental health support they needed.”

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Computer generated composition is not a new phenomenon, it dates back to the 1950s with the Illiac Suite created at the University of Champagne Urbana-Illinois by composers Lejaren Hillier and Leonard Isaacson. At the time entire rooms were required to house the necessary computer equipment and the project was largely of academic concern. Jump forward a couple of decades and we have the 80s, where a new process – generative analysis – was developed to complete Schubert’s Symphony No. 8: Unfinished. Jump again to 2019 and Huawei did the same thing with just the technology housed in one of their smartphones. With composer Lucas Cantor overseeing the output, the work was performed to a sold-out auditorium. Similar feats were recreated with Beethoven’s unfinished Tenth Symphony. This took a team of music historians, musicologists, composers and computer scientists working for over 18 months to create two 20-minute movements which were then performed by human musicians, culminating in a premiere in 2021 in Germany.

Regardless of the perceived merit of these endeavours, the technology has now reached a point where it is readily accessible to the everyday consumer. It’s here and it is being used.

What exactly is generative artificial intelligence?

In general, the way most current AI generators work is that they are first trained on a dataset (often scraped from the internet without individual artist’s consent), then through machine learning and analysis of patterns and correlations, they are able to reproduce music “in the style of” or in a set genre or musical form. While there are obvious parallels with transcribing and studying an influential artist’s solo to learn their language, a computer can analyse in 15 minutes what it would take us a lifetime to do.

Once the AI is trained, the user – or artist – gives prompts for what should be made. For many this is in the form of text prompts, the sophistication of the AI dictates how detailed the instructions can be. Google’s recent MusicLM platform allows for detailed instructions that can include story elements. Others can use pictures or take over from a hummed or whistled melody.

“ T H E P EO P L E WH O G ET T H E BEST RESULTS W IL L BE T H OS E W H O BEST UN D E RSTA N D H OW I T WO RKS, A N D WH O CA N C O M E UP WITH N EW A N D C REATIVE WAYS TO USE IT.”

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So, does this make AI another tool for the artist, speeding up the process that all musicians go through as we study our influences, or is it an industry-destroying “copyright-violating plagiarism machine” as some have suggested? Do the general public care and can they even differentiate?

The latter can be partially answered. In a recent study, when presented with a collection of classical works composed by AIVA (AI platform) most humans were unable to distinguish the AI generated music – not surprising with the advancement of sample banks and that the past few generations have grown up listening to music full of digitally-generated sounds, rather than played acoustically by humans.

Is this the end of music as we know it?

The artists we spoke to were generally optimistic about the future of this technology. “Artists will adapt. That’s easy for us. It will be like learning a new form of music. There is so much more to still learn,” responds drummer and installation artist Robbie Avenaim. Having been at the forefront of experimental music for the last 15 years with explorations into robotic and kinetic percussion systems, he is well placed to incorporate the developing AI technologies into his practice. “We have to understand its potential now. I’ve always seen it like machines can do things we can’t, but we can do things they can’t, together is a perfect marriage. We need to start programming what we cannot do, not what we can. That way we are always in the loop and share a purpose.”

It’s working alongside and interacting with AI, that Perth-based saxophonist Gemma Farrell is also interested in: “As part of my PhD, I’m currently engaging in a lot of electronic stuff that’s really exciting. I’ve heard of programs that can respond to improvisation and the idea of working with something like that is also exciting to me.” This idea of an AI bandmate is reminiscent of projects such as Kenny G’s 2021 track Legacy featuring a new melody duet he wrote, played by himself and a “virtual” Stan Getz created from an (authorised) programmed sample library.

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Dr. Rob Vincs started exploring AI in jazz in the late 80s: “As part of my Postgraduate Diploma, I was attempting to model the cognition of a jazzbased improviser via coding … I have recently recorded a number of releases that explore different interactive scenarios with Adam Nash (coding) and Niko Schäuble (percussion).

Arguably, the music maintains very tonal domains but what was particularly surprising is that there are moments where Adam’s computer seems to be ‘listening’ to us. This has prompted me to think through this process and I am once again reminded of Ornette Coleman’s original concept of Harmolodics where the perceived interactivity is the result of synchronous events.”

And it may not just be the direct interplay that will inspire new creation as Alon Ilsar shares: “In a way I’m reacting to it by designing gestural instruments for improvisation.” With so many creative options at our fingertips the possibilities are almost overwhelming. Melbourne saxophonist, guitarist and educator Aaron Searle suggests, “the challenge with AI is to use this incredibly powerful tool to create something original. As with any tool, the people who get the best results will be those who best understand how it works, and who can come up with new and creative ways to use it. Sure, you can use AI to copy something that’s already been done, but that’s not a failure of the technology, it’s a failure of the user. Don’t blame the tool.”

The technology also has the potential to push us further to develop the techniques of our traditional instruments as Robbie explains: “Already we have seen drummers polyrhythmically and physically adapt, developing incredible skills based on complex drum machines programming. Drummers are a great example of this kind of evolution.”

Could generative AI replace musicians?

“For now, it needs us and we need it,” states Robbie. While it still needs us to initiate it, this technology does remove many traditional hurdles for consumers to dabble in music making. You no longer need to know any music theory or how to play an instrument. With text prompts you can create a whole range of music. Is this less valid than a trained musician? Robbie continues, “I’m worried it will create terrible music. Electronic music does divorce itself from human energy, but I feel well-thought-out collaboration will be the bridge between both elements.”

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Within the music industry there is much discussion around this topic. In one such conversation writer and musician Casey Bennetto proclaims “there isn’t a formula for art. Every time we think we’ve created one in the past invariably people get bored with the cookie-cutter nature of the results. Then someone breaks the formula and music/cinema/art is alive again.” Computers and generative AI by their very nature rely on formulae, albeit sometimes very complex algorithms, but set structures and rules nonetheless. Casey takes the example of AI picture generators: “Fingers are weird, and AI art programs keep misrendering them in far more interesting ways than the generic art it produces correctly. But it’s accidental creativity. It fakes knowing stuff, but it’s really Artificial Unintelligence.”

It comes down to what you consider the key defining attributes of an artist are.

“Most importantly, it can’t produce a work of art, look at it, and say ‘hmm, I could do that better’, and that is THE FUNDAMENTAL CHARACTERISTIC OF ARTISTS,” states Casey.

Most agree the current generation of AI won’t replace musicians en masse. The technology is still lacking key indicators of creativity. Though things are moving quickly; earlier this year a team of scientists created a working “living tissue AI neural network”. While still likely decades away from fully biological computers, the boundaries of synthetic and biological are quickly being broken down. Augmented humans are getting closer with various neural implants currently in development.

Whether this results in more inherently creative AI is yet to be seen.

The elephant in the room “Artists, by their very nature, are both innovative and experimental and we know that many artists are keen to use AI in their work. The issue that needs resolving is how the rights and royalties of the artist are protected through the use of AI, and there are a number of ethical questions that need to be addressed in considering its use.” explains Kirsty Rivers, Head of Music at Creative Australia (previously Australian Council for the Arts).

In Australia, our copyright laws – already decades behind the technology – are nowhere near prepared to deal with this evolving field. The companies behind the AI generators make no secret of the fact that they need to be trained. They have so far argued that their scraping of the internet and use of copyright protected material constitutes “fair use” and thus is allowable, without explicit permission.

Elise Chidiac from Musicians Australia and the MEAA suggests that while AI “provides enormous opportunity, at stake are the rights of musicians to maintain control over their identity, work (including the years of experience, development and skill needed to be able to compose and improvise, specifically for jazz musicians) and storytelling,and also the copyright implications which this raises” She continues “MEAA as a whole is also fully supporting the strike by SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild members, and their campaigning to win safeguards around AI to ensure our members are working, are compensated, and that audiences and our society benefit from human creativity and integrity.”

With a relatively unregulated marketspace, it’s left to the companies themselves to draw boundaries around acceptable practice. Often profits rather than ethics will be the driving factor. There is hope, though, with some platforms allowing artists to opt in/out for their work to be included in training datasets. Or to rely solely on public domain material for training. Some companies are also implementing a royalty system to track when AI draws on content to create a new work and then allocating royalties to the original artist. Though, this is not common.

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Authorship of the generated material is also a topic for debate.

Many AI generator’s terms and conditions state that the company retains the rights to the new material with options ranging from private use only to commercial licensing. Artists utilising these tools could potentially be in the position of having created new works that they can’t sell. Other AI generators may transfer copyright to the user but only on the highest subscription tier.

Where to from here and jazz?

Most AI generators that we explored struggled with jazz. The intrinsic nature of the music – improvisation, spontaneous interactions between musicians, “outside” playing that doesn’t fit easily with rulesbased theory – makes it difficult to reduce down into recognisable patterns. As Gemma says, “I think jazz created by humans will always be more exciting and impressive. I’m sure there will one day be robots that can play chorus after chorus of "Giant Steps", but to me a human doing that will always be more impressive.”

Rob expanded on this sentiment, “What turned me away from my early attempts to use a micro-processor as a substitute accompanist is that my coding tended to mirror back the artistic choices I might make when improvising a work. I realised that playing with humans would enrich my own artistry as they would generate interactive performance that would surprise and cajole me into new areas of my own expression. Hence my fondness for this art form is based on the deep connection one develops with associate artists through the act of performing and the expansion of individual creative consciousness.”

Ultimately, there are a few different discussions to be had that all revolve around the deeper issues of creativity, the concept and value of art and “artist”, and on a more global level humanity and soul.

As technology evolves there are so many exciting possibilities: democratising music by making it easier to create without any instrumental or theoretical knowledge (or expensive instruments for that matter); improving access to music-making for people with a disability; improving workflows for composers and artists; interactive, responsive and immersive installations that can offer truly personalised experiences. For now, we can utilise these new tools with cautious optimism and continue to push the boundaries of what is musically possible, as artists always have, and as Rob puts it, be challenged “to think more deeply about the nature of human expression.”

And, if you were curious about ChatGPT’s vision for the future…

The fusion of generative AI and the jazz industry holds tremendous promise for the future of music composition and performance. Rather than displacing human creativity, AI technology offers a new avenue for artists to explore their craft, bridging the gap between tradition and innovation. As jazz musicians embrace the possibilities that AI brings, they have the opportunity to expand their artistic horizons, engage with their audience in innovative ways, and contribute to the ongoing evolution of this cherished musical genre. The harmonious blend of tradition and innovation, made possible by generative AI, ensures that jazz will continue to captivate and inspire audiences for generations to come.

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MENTORSHIP

& JAZZ WO RDS D R . SE AN FORAN & D R . CH RI STI NA BALLI C O ART WO RK MEG KOL AC

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As a creative practitioner, engaging with mentors of ten forms part of the myriad of aspects included in artistic career development. There’s only so much you can learn on your own , and connecting with individuals who have travelled a similar journey to the one you are on can provide much needed advice, inspiration , encouragement, and motivation to continue the journey. Mentors of ten have professional experience, knowledge of the industr y and life experience that they can pass on to mentees, allowing them to gain practical advice and support, developing career strategies and gaining valuable insights regarding how to progress in their careers .

Personal Experience – Sean Early in my career I was studying an undergraduate degree in music, and I recall having so many questions about music making, but also the extra-musical aspects – rehearsing bands, booking gigs, developing projects… those kinds of things. I was fortunate to engage in a short mentorship project with Melbourne pianist Andrea Keller, a musician who I deeply admired as a composer, improviser and pianist.

During these sessions in Melbourne, I learnt so much about music making, but also an immense amount about idea generation, self-confidence, trusting musicians and creating a sense of personal style. I look back on these sessions as significantly influential moments, they inspired me to seek out further mentors later in my career – British pianists Matthew Bourne and John Taylor. These mentorships, years later, also enabled me to transform my perspective, ask questions, take risks and confidently take more steps in my career.

I think a lot of musicians have had these thoughts: What do I do next? Am I making the right career choices? Where should I focus my energy? How do I apply for this opportunity correctly? What is missing in my skill set? How do I progress in my career? But also, as creative musicians, we are often seeking insight from artists we admire – looking for feedback that can help us grow our ideas, find new ways to make music and challenge our methods, sounds and concepts.

Why Mentorship?

The Musicians’ Union UK explains that successful mentorships require trust and openness, generosity from the mentor, a need from the mentee to achieve some change, and recognition of the shared experience from both parties. A mentorship experience brings benefits to the mentor and mentee, with the mentor reinforcing their own skills and knowledge, improving their communication and leadership abilities, and expanding their network (Hamilton, 2023). The ongoing APRA AMCOS Women in Music Mentorship program has been designed for mentees to pair with carefully selected mentors, assisting them with current project work and strategies to navigate the music industry in the face of a myriad of challenges. The highly fragmented and increasingly digitised nature of the music industry creates many new challenges for emerging and established artists, with musicians often looking for guidance to keep their careers progressing. Formal and informal mentoring can frequently form a core part of artistic development and career strategy, especially if musicians are not engaged in tertiary training courses.

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Mentorship in Australia Finding a mentor can occur through a variety of pathways. Informal mentorship, often developed through musician networks frequently takes place, but can potentially lack the depth and detail that longer, and more structured, mentorship can provide. Further to this, in a challenging post COVID environment with skills shortages across the industry and pressures on tertiary students, the importance of mentorship in the music industry is growing. The 2020 report Making Music Work: Sustainable Portfolio Careers for Australian Musicians for example, discusses the nuanced experiences of Australian musicians’ navigation of the Australian music industry, and provides a detailed understanding of musicians’ career configuration, including the role of professional development. Musicians interviewed for that study shared how ongoing “learning and professional development opportunities played a vital role in their ability to expand the breadth of work they could undertake” (Bartleet et. al., 2020).

As Victoria’s The Push, Youth Music Organisation also explains, their Music Industry Mentoring program creates a pipeline for skilled industry practitioners – providing both young people and workplaces with a framework that ensures workplace readiness and meaningful pathways into the contemporary music sector. This three-year program, which will commence in 2024, will provide 60 young people aged 18-25, the opportunity to be placed and mentored in some of Australia’s biggest music companies to develop skills, confidence and networks across a range of streams including event management, technical production, business operations and marketing and promotions. This multi-year mentorship program will have two intakes annually, with mentees engaging in 150 hours of mentorship during their time in the program.

Mentorship and Professional Development in Western Australia In research conducted for the Western Australian Government Department of Local Government, Sport and Creative Industries, we investigated professional development and mentorship opportunities in the contemporary music sector of Western Australia. This study sought to understand the current scope of offerings, the experiences of engaging in such opportunities, support needs to assist in their functioning and the barriers for engagement for musicians and industry practitioners alike. It comprised a survey (which received 188 responses) and in-depth interviews with five members of the WA music industry who all had prior experience with mentorship programs. The survey – which was the study’s primary data collection method – explored participants’ specific engagement in capacity-building, knowledge-development, and mentoring programs. This included the reasons for engaging with these opportunities, the associated challenges, their most pressing professional development needs, the broad ways in which they learn new skills, their professional development plans for the next two years and their preferred modes of engagement with mentoring programs.

Interviews explored these topics in greater detail while also providing the opportunity for interviewees to reflect on the ways in which they navigated their careers, the support they would have benefitted from at various career junctures, their experiences of being a mentor and/

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or mentee, their ideal mentorship models, the barriers and challenges in existing mentoring programs, areas in need of support for the current day contemporary sector and barriers to opportunities within WA’s contemporary music sector in a broad sense.

This research found that survey respondents highly valued capacity building and learning opportunities, with professional development and/or mentorship viewed positively, a finding corroborated in the interviews. We found that participants engaged in these developmental opportunities for a variety of reasons, from broad career support to targeted goals and activities. This parallels with concepts of adaptive career identity, something prompted with increasing intensity in the continuing post-COVID arts industry, where continued evolution, self-management and the ability to work across a variety of shifting and challenging career situations are common.

While the research found positive responses to concepts of mentorship, it also found the most common barrier to engaging with mentorship and related professional development opportunities was a lack of awareness of available opportunities. While this could be attributed to the need for programs to be better promoted within the sector, it is worthwhile considering this in relation to the fact that the vast majority of participants were engaged in a portfolio career configuration – whereby one undertakes a range of positions concurrently and/or consecutively (cf.

Bartleet et al., 2020) and therefore were likely limited in their ability to seek out or take on additional work elements, such as further training and development.

Further to this, challenges identified include issues of accessibility and affordability – such as being unable to commit time, forgo income or other costs related to these development activities. Participants also noted perceived notions of genre inclusion/exclusion, age and gender identity as factors in obtaining mentoring activities, further highlighting the importance of learning and mentoring programs that support a cross section of the community – through supporting a range of musical genres, participant ages, genders and by ensuring multimodal program delivery modes. The research recommends activities including the creation of a rapid response “on call” mentorship program, allocation of funding for participants to engage with mentorship and financial support for equipment in programs, to enable high quality learning experiences and diversity mentorship offerings.

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In relation to the jazz sector, this research also found that there is a need to “recognise other genres of music rather than just the traditional indie rock” and that mentorship programs that fail to engage outside the most popular can result in a lack of engagement by members of the sector.

Jazz And Mentorship In the jazz sector, mentorship programs have and continue to provide significant opportunities for artists across the country. There is evidence of multiple mentorship programs currently in effect, with recipients engaging with mentorship programs across the country with a range of career outcomes.

Recipient of the APRA Women in Music Mentorship 2023, Harriet Allcroft has engaged in a mentorship with acclaimed vocalist and composer Kristin Berardi to focus on development of her next album. She notes the benefit derived from Berardi’s advice and perspective throughout the mentorship time, “Just to have someone who I trust and admire to bounce ideas off, or ask for help and feedback from, is very liberating. I feel like so much of the inner workings of the music industry is a secret, so to be able to chat freely about the music I’m writing, but also the music business side of things is great and very clarifying.”

Australian Art Orchestra Mentorship Program recipient in 2021 Merinda DiasJayasinha recalls how working with percussionist Sumudi Suraweera was “an invaluable step towards understanding my place in the arts industry moving forward. It was a perfect jumping-off point to engage with music that hasn’t necessarily been a part of my cultural upbringing and has informed not only music making but my broader multidisciplinary arts practice.”

Brisbane pianist and composer Sophie Min received the SIMA APRA Emerging Composer Mentorship in 2020, engaging in a mentorship with renowned pianist, composer, producer Barney McAll. The outcome of this mentorship specifically was a commission for the Sydney ensemble PHAROS, premiered at the Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival. Min worked with McAll on the composition for the festival premiere, but also recalls the lasting impact of the mentorship time, where she increased her confidence, allowing her to “magnify aural abilities to focus on the floating ideas in my mind and bring it out to the real world.”

While these mentees represent a small slice of the remarkable developmental opportunities that mentorship programs are offering developing jazz artists in Australia, they point to the benefits that flow to a wider range of musicians through the work produced, the audiences engaged and the new creative outcomes shared with colleagues in a variety of situations.

Mentoring in the Australian contemporary musician industry has and continues to form a key part of career development strategies for artists. Much research has been conducted in the “portfolio career” of contemporary musicians and often contemporary musicians are navigating the complex world of the music industry without a clear understanding of what to do or how to do it. Developing artists in the jazz sector that seek out mentorship opportunities such as the AAO Mentorship Program, the APRA Women in Music Mentorship and the SIMA Emerging Composer Mentorship are able to take significant steps ahead in their career. These mentorships allow them to develop not only new work and skills, but networks, ideas and strategies to continue progressing. By increasing the financial support of programs such as these and enabling more mentors to take part, the pool of mentees can be increased and thus the positive outcomes for the scene.

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“J UST TO H AVE SO MEO NE WH O I TRUST A N D A DMIRE TO BOUNCE IDEAS O FF, O R ASK FO R H EL P A ND FEEDBACK FRO M, IS VERY L IBERATING .”

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J O E L M O O RE - M U LG A

JAZZ IN MELBOURNE

WORDS ADAM SI MMO NS A RT WORK TARL I BI RD

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Melbourne is an eclectic cit y, renowned for its cof fee culture, laneways, and liveabilit y. It is also known as the “live music capital of the world ”, incorporating a vibrant and diverse jazz scene. From intimate jazz clubs in the heart of the cit y to open -air festivals in the suburbs, Melbourne is a mecca for jazz lovers, with an array of venues and performances to suit all tastes .

Melbourne’s long history of celebrated jazz artists and reputation for live performance opportunities have attracted numerous musicians from across Australian and overseas. It was the appeal of musical opportunity that drew me to the Victorian College of the Arts for study with the likes of Brian Brown, Tony Gould, Judy Jacques, Mike Doyle, Geoff Kluke, Sue Johnson and Lachlan Davidson. It has been my home for over three decades, with its rich and interconnected musical community providing a wonderful launchpad for creative projects here and abroad.

As saxophonist and long-time Melbourne Jazz Co-operative (MJC) Artistic Director and CEO Martin Jackson explains, Melbourne’s jazz scene is “really blessed with numerous key assets: several wonderful venues, a well-funded major international jazz festival, some excellent tertiary courses headed by visionary musicians such as Andrea Keller, Rob Burke and Jonathan Dimond, the Australian Jazz Museum and the Australian Art Orchestra; assets which collectively would be the envy of many major international cities.” In addition, I would note that as one of Australia’s only jazz presenting organisations, the MJC is another of those valued assets.

Melbourne’s jazz scene also benefits from key media supports: ABC Jazz’s Mal Stanley has been instrumental in documenting Melbourne jazz in their Southbank studios for the past few decades; community radio stations such as PBS, 3RRR, 3CR and JOY promote and support Australian artists; and of course, specialist writers for publications such as Rhythms, The Age, The Australian and this magazine.

Jazz is embedded in Melbourne’s musical DNA. In Craig Horne’s book, Roots: How Melbourne became the live music capital of the world, he outlines the critical historical role jazz has played in Melbourne achieving that title. And as a regular presenter of creative music, Melbourne Recital Centre’s (MRC) Director of Programming Marshall McGuire explains “jazz has its dedicated venues and spaces, but has always had a presence in other venues, reaching a wide audience. I think it’s fair to say there’s an even measure of love and respect for jazz and improvising musicians in this city.”

Drummer, composer and sound engineer Niko Schäuble describes Melbourne as “one of the most stable jazz scenes in Australia due to a large degree to the ongoing performance opportunities”. He estimates around half of the projects recorded at his Thornbury-based Pughouse Studios involve improvised music. High levels of creative activity and opportunity have attracted many musicians to this city over the years, which in turn have injected new voices and ideas into the local scene.

H U RST B RI D G E JA Z Z C LU B P H OTO BY DA N T E G RI F F I T H

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When it comes to trying to identify what is unique about Melbourne jazz, one might struggle if superficially comparing the gutbucket saxophone of Paul Williamson, Dure Dara’s intricately complex percussive sounds, Invenio Singers, sublime beauty, through to the psychedelic electro-jazz stylings of Mildlife. Though, I feel there is a parallel with Melbourne’s embrace of multiculturalism such as through food, where differences are celebrated and shared. Traditions are upheld, explored, mixed and reinvented. And think of the different parts of Melbourne – the CBD’s vibrant laneways, St Kilda’s beachside manner, South Yarra’s chic style, Fitzroy’s bohemian eclecticism.

Sonny Rehe, owner of Uptown Jazz Café, sees how the Melbourne scene has “always valued both the trad jazz and modern jazz traditions.

People were very good at either one or both of these before being considered a part of it. A uniquely Melbourne sound came on adding a local, bright, personal approach on top of that.” He cites Uptown regulars such as The Hoodangers, Bopstretch, Stephen Magnusson, Sam Keevers and the late Allan Browne as great examples.

Set above a neighbourhood bar in Fitzroy’s Brunswick St, Uptown has just celebrated 15 years of dedication to presenting Melbourne’s take on classic jazz sounds. As Rehe explains, “In many cities in the world there is a club in that town and you know when you go there, what you will get are the best musicians in the scene playing hard swinging music, mainly from the standards repertoire. Uptown is Melbourne’s edition of that.”

The continuing importance of traditional jazz should not be underestimated – I wonder how much is due to the international influence of Melbourne’s own Graeme Bell, whose contribution is acknowledged by the Australian Jazz Awards, informally known as The Bells. Jackson, though, sees this respect for traditional styles as “part of the legacy of the late Brian Brown”, who he describes as, “the spiritual father of contemporary Australian jazz (notwithstanding the contributions of Bryce Rohde and Charlie Munro)”. Jackson goes on to explain that Brown’s legacy was less about “emphasis on technique for technique’s sake, and more about finding a distinctive individual voice”.

The pervasiveness of this approach does appear to have extended beyond Brown’s immediate influence. Originally from Adelaide and drawn to Melbourne for its musical opportunities, drummer, curator and jazz-activist Ronny Ferella observes: “It does seem that within the Melbourne music scene, anything is “allowed” to take place. There is a real diversity and density of musical activity. Adding to that, style or genre doesn’t dictate how music gets made, there is a real smearing of that idea in Melbourne. I personally love that. I haven’t seen that in many other cities. Melbourne is hugely multicultural (in the largest sense of the word); the music is only going to reflect that. I have felt for a long time that the Melbourne music scene tends to value the overall sound of a group over the content that they are playing.”

The artist-led collective Lebowski’s has been a great realisation of this approach. Initiated by artists Eugene Ball and Steve Magnusson in 2004, and dedicated to original creative music, this series has been a shining example of Melbourne’s artist-led volunteer collectives. Ferella has helped keep it going through several changes, but explains, “we have recently put Lebowskis to bed. After 16 years promoting regular gigs, it kinda ran out of steam.” Though, the ever-entrepreneurial Ferella continues, “We just launched a new Friday JA Z Z L A B

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“ I T H I N K I T ’S FAIR TO SAY T H E RE’S A N EVEN MEASURE O F LOV E A N D RESP ECT FO R JAZZ A N D I M P ROVISING M US I C IA N S I N TH IS CIT Y.”

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night series at Cross Street Music Hall. We have a new performance space: The Library, a really nice intimate 40-seater. It is actually a library as well, with real books and CDs.” Back in Fitzroy, a few blocks north from Uptown, is a very different venue. Bar Open looks and feels the part of the overall Brunswick St grunge vibe and is widely accepting of any and all styles of music.

Given owner Jon Perring’s own musical proclivities, creativity has been encouraged: “I think musical diversity has always been part of the Bar Open DNA. Over the years I don’t think there is an untouched corner of live music that hasn’t played at Bar Open over its 25 years. Obviously, jazz and its intersections has been a huge part of the Bar Open story. I think great players have been a consistent theme in who we book.

When I say great, I mean musically, not just technically. It’s really about what is good, interesting and exciting.”

A regular Tuesday night institution is the Make It Up Club (MIUC), celebrating their 25th birthday and proudly hosted by Bar Open for the past 20 years. Declared by Perring as a national treasure, he explains: “It is so important to have such a stage for musical and sonic ideas in a supportive environment. The other thing I love about the MIUC is that you see crossovers between classically trained and grindcore musicians, jazz players with sound artists and electronic musicians. It literally has no conceptual edges. I think there is a synergy in our world view about music, art and sound.”

A change in recent years, as observed by Schäuble, has been the “decentralisation of the club scene; clubs moving out of the CBD and into the suburbs”. One reason may be due to COVID-19, though The Count’s at Monash University’s Clayton campus is a prepandemic example, which has recommenced their regularly weekly programming of established and emerging artists.

The Count’s senior producer and vocalist Raleigh Williams states, “our mission is definitely to be your destination for great music in the southeast of Melbourne, which was greatly

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lacking, particularly for jazz.” Williams enthuses, “We know that Melbourne can be fairly tribal in terms of people staying on their side of the river, and if we can bring amazing performances to more venues all around town, we know that there’s going to be more opportunities for amazing artists to showcase their work.”

Similar in ethos is the newly launched Hurstbridge Jazz Club in the north-east outskirts of Melbourne, run by father and son duo, Ryan and Dante Griffiths. As a response to COVID-19, the drive was to create “a place to jam, to celebrate each other’s original music, and to bring together musos of different ages and stages.”

Ryan modestly offers, “Our humble little jazz club in the hills is all about community.

Most of our crowd are locals, people that are unlikely to catch a jazz gig in the city; they just love the chance to roll down the street and see world class jazz.”

The MJC has played a key role in presenting original Australian and international jazz artists at venues such as Bennetts Lane Jazz Club, The Jazzlab and Uptown. A recent milestone was their 40th anniversary concert at MRC, described by McGuire as “a huge highlight of our year so far, with a spectacular array of artists on stage, and a huge and appreciative audience in the space. It’s no exaggeration to say it was a giant celebration of all the brilliant talent that have contributed to Melbourne jazz over the past 40 years.” Jackson shares that the MJC’s activity “has always been about openness to a diversity of styles, and “spreading the seeds” as much as we can”. Within the vagaries of arts funding, the MJC has always worked to the best of its ability to do what it can for artists, as Jackson understands that “playing original music in this minority idiom is challenging enough without creating more hurdles to jump.”

One of the MJC “seeds” that has flourished since its inception in 1997, is the Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival. Drummer and Co-Artistic Director Sonja Horbelt is proud of the festival’s achievements in “enabling so many artists to come into the festival at a developing stage and then return as their careers progress with new ensembles, winning awards and moving overseas to continue their musical journey.”

This year’s festival in December is the first since the passing of Artistic Director Lynette Irwin, though excitingly, a new interstate partnership to be announced soon augurs well for the continued growth and influence of this well-loved festival.

I’ve learnt a lot from my father, who enjoys recounting memories of heady nights spent at The Onion Patch in Oakleigh and Frank Traynor’s Jazz and Folk Club in the city, experiencing Judy Jacques, Danny Spooner, The Red Onion Jazz Band and more in full flight, reflecting many of the tales from Craig Horne’s Roots. These venues may have closed long ago, though their resonances continue to be felt today as those mentored by the likes of Jacques, Allan Browne and Brian Brown continue their legacy. I think of how similar “ghost” venues from my early career such as The Continental, Ruby Red’s, The Tankerville Arms, The Limerick Arms, The Lounge, The Gypsy Bar and The Punters Club and past events like Montsalvat Jazz Festival, Half Bent Winter Music Festival and the Melbourne Jazz Fringe Festival, are connected to their predecessors as well as current institutions as varied as Bird’s Basement, The Paris Cat Jazz Club, Memo Music Hall, Lido Jazz Room, Bar 303, Open Studio, The Brunswick Green, Tempo Rubato, The Moldy Fig, The Rising Sun Hotel and the Melbourne International Jazz Festival. And I am barely scratching the surface here.

Melbourne has something for everyone’s taste in jazz. Like its laneways, a little exploration will be rewarding. As Perring enthusiastically implores, “There are so many amazing players and bands that it is hard to get bored. We are really spoiled for choice. However, it still seems like a secret! It needs to be shouted from the rooftops.”

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reviews

TH E BACH PROJ ECT Michelle Nicolle Earshift Music

The fun thing about concept albums is figuring out what they are trying to do and then taking the time to appreciate their execution. This recording continues this ensemble’s Composer Series, having previously explored the compositions of Henry Mancini on Mancini and Ellington/Strayhorn on A Flower Is A Lovesome Thing. Michelle Nicolle vocally embraces the music of J.S. Bach in unique chamber-style jazz, handled deftly with her longstanding trio of Geoff Hughes (guitar), Tom Lee (bass) and Ronny Ferella (drums). Historically, Bach was one of the first jazz players. What he did for the keyboards in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries proved his genius. As well as some direct readings of the master’s works, there is also some intertwining with some jazz classics: Bach’s “March in D” successfully receives some Ornette Coleman styling; “Fugue in G Minor” delightfully emulsifies an arrangement of Thelonious Monk’s “Round Midnight”; and “Sarabande (from Partita No.1)” morphs its sad melody into Horace Silver’s ballad, “Lonely Woman”, in a B minor key. Here, Nicolle deftly utilises her pellucid pipes as a storyteller, accompanying the impressive guitar work of Hughes, creating one of the album’s highlights.

These interpretations are the apogees of an album from a vocalist and her band who have found their place in their search for creativity and taken it to another level with increased poignancy and interpretational powers.

Barry O’Sullivan

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S H AD OWS AN D L IG HT The Divergence Jazz Orchestra Independent

Shadows and Light by The Divergence Jazz Orchestra is an album both inspired and stimulating. Band director Jenna Cave effectively uses a broad sound palette to tether original compositions with those of Paul Cutlan, Andrew Scott and Miroslav Bukovsky, creating a propulsive story-like listen.

The record manages to traverse bright, optimistic ground with tracks such as “Long-Lost Frenemy” and “Orange and Olive Trees”, before sending you barrelling into the middle of dark, menacing woods with tracks like “Delicatessence” and “The Darkness of Silence”. You will see light again as the closer on the record, “For Woody”, is a swinging interlocked tune that will make you want to hit play as soon as it finishes.

The album features solo voices from most of the band (numbering 20 or so). My personal favourites being Yutaro Okuda (guitar) and Loretta Palmeiro (clarinet and soprano sax) for their emotive and textural contributions. The only vocal track “This too Shall Pass”, rendered exceptionally by Marie Le Brun, hints to themes of anxiety and the battle to control one’s mind. The rest of the album – fully instrumental – allows you to provide your own meaning and indeed can itself be a reprieve of mental ailment.

Recorded over a February 2022 weekend in Sydney, we now have the product of this session in hand, and more importantly in ear. Both of which I would encourage you to experience. Shadows and Light is a fantastic entry into the contemporary Australian big band space.

Josh Underhill

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FEED THE FIRE The Rookies Independent

Firstly, The Rookies present their fourth album in a unique way. It comes initially with all seven tracks split as usual. But the band believe that all the music flows as a continuous whole and so added an eighth track, the complete album as one piece, all 40 plus minutes. In that respect, they are right and this reviewer found himself choosing that option. There is a definite cohesion to the music which is enhanced utilizing the single track.

All tracks are collaborative compositions by the band consisting of Greg Sher (alto and tenor sax), Tom Sly (trumpet), Joel Trigg (Fender Rhodes), Oscar Neyland (double bass) and Chris Cameron (drums). And it’s fair to say that they know how to groove! From the opener “Dry Bones”, Neyland’s swinging bass and Cameron’s heavy drums provide a steady, very danceable beat. The group is augmented by a five-piece brass section on “On The Shoulders Of Giants” which builds a powerful conclusion. Throughout, the electric piano of Joel Trigg adds the perfect colour, whilst Sher and Sly are great soloists.

On four tracks they are joined by The Newmarket Collective, a six-piece string group who are not there to add sweetness to the groove. They form a vital component of the sound and it is hard to think of these tracks without their input.

The collaborative approach is certainly successful on the evidence presented here; these are very strong songs with a solid rhythm and memorable themes.

Michael Prescott

D ELVE Underwards Earshift Music

Ellen Kirkwood is an artist to admire. Highly praised as an exceptionally modern, award-winning trumpet player and a groundbreaking composer and bandleader, she has released four albums of her original works. Her newest project draws inspiration from how humans experience nature and its landscapes, combining beauty, mystery, colour and rhythm. On this recording, Kirkwood and her stellar band mates, Hilary Geddes (guitar), Nick Henderson (bass, synthesisers) and Alexander Inman-Hislop (drums, percussion), present a lengthy panorama displaying great range and fluidity of abstract explorations of sampled sounds and percussive textures over ten original compositions.

Throughout the recording, impressive solos abound on bass, trumpet and drums amidst the collective improvisations of the band. Discordance, dexterity and diversion are the sound palettes of Delve. A lot is happening, with very few memorable, hummable melodies that grab you early and hook you in. At times, it’s not what you would call accessible music. Kirkwood wants to experiment on her terms and would be unsatisfied with presenting a standard-issue quartet album. That said, there is the stand-out title track with its driving drum and bass groove and guitar melodies, and “In Ganguddy”, featuring a dexterously played flowing guitar with fine trumpet and drum solos that all shine. The album concludes with another favourite track, “Hands and Feet”, where it becomes clear that this ensemble will always keep us guessing with further surprising possibilities to discover in the future.

Barry O’Sullivan

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DESERT CRY Georgie Aué Independent

Steeped in the sound of bossa nova and jazz, Georgie Aué’s third studio release Desert Cry is an impressive display of an artist – both pianistically and vocally enchanting, as well as compositionally masterful. Released in late 2022, this nine-track album – eight Georgie originals and one Zac Grafton co-write – bestows much to the ear without demand.

Lyrically, Desert Cry is a depiction of the dance we engage in as we try to relate and blend our singular experience with others. This, thematically aided by flowing, gorgeous horn sections and solo statements, creates an album that is universal. At points it’s summery and breathless like Norah Jones’s “Come Away With Me”, while at others it’s swinging and citrusy like late Astrud Gilberto’s “Windy”. I’d even say it dips into the dark and melancholy of Angus and Julia Stone’s “A Book Like This”. But Desert Cry is always original and pleasurable.

This album truly shows off the talent of Western Australia. The band is made up of Jeremy Thomson on guitar, Zac Grafton on bass, Daniel Susnjar on drums, Tom Greble on saxophone, Jessica Carlton on trumpet and flugelhorn, Will Pethick on trombone and Georgie Aué on vocals and piano. All beautifully pulled together by Jarrad Payne in the mixing and mastering – sonically there is nothing wanting. As Thomas Mann writes in his novel The Magic Mountain, “Music awakens time, awakens us to our finest enjoyment of time.” Since getting the album on my shelf, I have turned to it countlessly to be awakened and reawakened.

Josh Underhill

H OW W E C OPE Loose Leaf MUSIC MADE NOW

Loose Leaf, led by saxophonist Andrew Saragossi, brings together three Melbourne-based improvisers: Saragossi, bassist Helen Svoboda and drummer Dylan van der Schyff. True to its name, the trio’s music manifests a “loose” ambience, occupying a liminal space between composition and improvisation. Such a balancing act calls for imagination and exactitude; a devoted attention to close listening; and a give-and-take synergy. It goes without saying, Loose Leaf demonstrate these skills emphatically. Svoboda and Saragossi previously staked a claim in this direction, their avant-duo Meatshell displaying an eclectic and radical aesthetic. Dylan van der Schyff, the veritable elder here, forged a strong career in Canada, playing with a who’s who of improvised music (Misha Mengelberg, George Lewis, Peggy Lee, Evan Parker for starters), before relocating to Melbourne.

The album opens with the title track, phased in by Svoboda’s intensely-driven bass bowing, a rallying cry for Saragossi’s soprano sax, dry-throated and expressive. “What Would Doom Do?” is two-and-a-bit minutes of driving sax and pounding drums, Saragossi’s tenor urgently weaving, ducking, feinting. “Boundaries” is built from a repetitive sax refrain, meted out over loping bass and choppy percussion, with Saragossi’s tenor ratcheting up events with a determined ferocity, squalling across a bedrock of skittering percussion. Sprinkled through the album, as an adjunct to Saragossi’s compositions, is a series of spontaneous improvisations “Journey” 1-5, that explore base rudiments: textures, colours, sound, silence.

The album’s dozen pieces, most under four minutes, never outstay their welcome; they are ideas fashioned in miniature, rough-hewed jewels of song, focused and inward-looking, fashioned as a three-way dialogue, the results brimming with confidence and brio.

Des Cowley

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TA N G LE D TRA ILS Robbie Melville Lionsharecords

Dynamic Australian composer and guitarist Robbie Melville delivers an entrancing musical experience with his latest release, Tangled Trails. Drawing inspiration from the 1921 silent film of the same name, Melville has masterfully crafted an album that effortlessly pulls you in, leaving a lasting impression in its own right.

Melville’s musical capability shines as he seamlessly unveils a tapestry of his signature warmth, playfulness and romantic melancholy. The sounds of the guitars themselves are a true highlight, and his mastery of the instrument creates a mesmerising backdrop for the album’s introspective journey.

Throughout, Melville dedicates many compositions to his loved ones, imbuing the album with a personal touch. The standout track “Gin Ode” is a daring composition that encapsulates the essence of his friendship with saxophonist Gideon Brazil.

This cheeky track, embraced by a jolly melody at its bookends, seamlessly transitions the listener through an unpredictable metamorphosis exploring harmonics, sonic experimentation and distorted guitars, showcasing Melville’s ability to create a captivating sense of drama and intrigue.

In “Romance”, Melville’s exquisite jazz melody expresses an almost timeless message to his wife.

“Lullaby” beautifully blends classical form with jazz, and speaks like a tender reflection from a father to his daughter, resonating beyond its intended purpose.Three guitar and cello duets showcase lyrical interplay between Melville and cellist Zoe Knighton. “Orton” slow dances and expressively glides, enveloping listeners in a sense of sorrow, stillness and silence.

In this captivating compositional journey, Melville demonstrates an understanding of expression, skillfully blending an array of genres. Tangled Trails sparks the listener’s imagination, inviting them to envision the early silent film that served as the foundation for this remarkable musical endeavour.

Julia Messenger

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EVERYW HERE I GO MY BODY GO ES WITH ME HEKKA Independent

First things first: great title, great cover. I remember a few years back seeing pianist Erik Griswold perform The Cure’s Pornography in its entirety, a mad-cap feat that, by dint of its bold repetitive thrumming, skewed heavily into postrock territory. There is something of the same going on here, with HEKKA unleashing wave after wave of ambient piano, bass and drums, fashioning dense soundscapes that double as catchy melodies, danceable grooves, awash in pulsing rhythms. A relatively new band, HEKKA comprises pianist Novak Manojlovic, bassist Jacques Emery, and drummer Tully Ryan. The trio’s debut EP Wrecker, released in 2018, set the template, mining a seam affiliated with bands like E.S.T. and Nat Bartsch’s Ronin, music emphasising interlocking rhythms, tightly-coiled figures, shadowy electronica. everywhere i go emerged from the rigours of lockdowns, patched together from happenstance. On the evidence, that’s been no bad thing. Opener “very little light” begins with evocative piano, a mild prelude to what follows: thunderous pianistic riffs, ethereal synths, propulsive drums. When Manojlovic shifts to the upper register, it’s like a dam breaking, an outpouring of juddering emotion. “we are now” is ushered in with abstract piano, before finding its path via cascading runs, repetitive beats, chunky percussion and fuzzy hooks. The ten-minute title track, which rounds out the album, is all lightness, delicate basslines, shimmering piano.

Overall, there is a subliminal urgency at the heart of this music, it routinely toys with rigidity and flow, building hypnotic rhythms, trance-inducing apparitions, leveraging sound as a source of tangled beauty.

Des Cowley

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C O NNECTING THE D OTS Ilaria Crociani ABC Jazz

Swelling with life and feeling, Connecting The Dots, by songwriter and vocalist Ilaria Crociani, is a moving body of music that directly connects to what is innate about being human. Born out of the important ABC Composer Commissioning Fund that supports the creation of new and interesting music, Ilaria – the driving creative force behind the compositions – has taken a lifetime of experience and learning and distilled it all into Connecting The Dots.

I find, from time to time, vocal-led albums can fall into the pitfall of sounding homogenous – a fall that Connecting The Dots easily sidesteps.

Full of quirky passages, swinging moments, and the odd musical collapse into the strange, Connecting The Dots carries your interest from the first measure to the last. The group features Paul Grabowsky on piano, John Griffiths on lute, Mirko Guerrini on saxophone, clarinet and keyboards, Geoff Hughes on guitars, Ben Robertson on double bass and Niko Schäuble on percussion and drums. The musical backing provides just as much divine intrigue as Ilaria’s unique and controlled vocal delivery.

My ears are particularly drawn to Paul’s otherworldly touch on the piano and Geoff’s considered and sparse approach to the guitar.

The great success for Ilaria in Connecting The Dots is the immediate emotional connection I felt when listening to the album, fully inhabiting the struggles of the artist in “Mary Lou”, the heartbreak at the empty chair at the table’s head in “Gina” and relishing in the delightful satisfaction found in “Eat My Dust”. This is a full and holistic album that deserves all the support and attention. A welcome addition to my collection, and I hope, to yours.

Josh Underhill

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O RBITS Casey Golden Independent

An orbit, a repeating path around a centre of gravity, is a fitting analogy for Casey Golden’s latest album Orbits. As a composer, pianist and synth mastermind, Golden skillfully merges his synth work around a solid foundation of bass (Jan Bangma) and drums (Tully Ryan), creating an open-ended jazz and electronic infused music journey.

With Orbits, Golden delves into the realm of the Roland Alpha Juno 2 synthesiser, an instrument that carries a sonic legacy.

An album featuring such an iconic instrument would inevitably be influenced by a rich tapestry of musical history. Orbits bears the imprint of earlier modern jazz pioneers who discovered new sounds such as Weather Report and Pat Metheny. The hypnotic bass and chordal sequence in the opening track resonate with The K&D sessions, while the album title hints at a homage to visionary William Orbit. Furthermore, the synthesizer itself becomes a celestial traveller, traversing through diverse styles and galaxies.

Within the galaxy, Ryan and Bangma emerge as beacons of brilliance. Ryan embodies the essence of the new generation of drumming, effortlessly blending the improvisational nature of jazz with an accuracy reminiscent of computer-generated beats. His ability to flow, improvise and connect emotionally while maintaining unwavering precision is a testament to his exceptional skill. I particularly admire the subtlety with which he handles the hi-hats, and the unwavering focus on the bass drum and snare. Together Ryan and Bangma anchor the musical vision with stylistic solidity.

This album stands as a testament to the profound influences and inspirations that have shaped Golden’s artistic odyssey.

His passion for the synthesiser shines through, as he seamlessly merges jazz fusion and funk with other influences, creating a captivating and forward-thinking album that leaves a lasting impression.

Julia Messenger

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LA ND ’S AIR Land’s Air Tone List

How might language – a title, for example – affect what we hear? Why the urge to turn an abstract art into “story”? Of course, how we hear depends on cultural indoctrination and education, on our individual ear, our references. And there’s the difference between listening to digital downloads and vinyl with its marked A- and B-sides. These meandering thoughts occur as I listen to Land’s Air, a collaboration between two of Perth’s major performers and organisers in the experimental noise scene, Josten Myburgh (alto saxophone, electronics, recording) and Eduardo Cossio (amplified zithers, electronics, harmonica).

The first of the three eponymously titled tracks begins with Myburgh’s muffled saxophone. A monotonous drone gradually fills the spaces between notes.

Percussive bell-like sounds enter like birdsong, build and turn into a torrential downpour. Themes evolve over the next two tracks, a perpetually changing dance between two master improvisers and their instruments and recordings: looping flights, hollow murmurs, shudders of pain, hissing, purring, vibrations and flurries, breathy whispers, and strangled groans. The last track “Telluric” (adj: of, relating to, or originating on or in the earth or soil; terrestrial) makes way for grinding, cavernous rumblings, and a crystalline intensity that describes cataclysmic tectonic shifts.

Myburgh and Cossio build on their wealth of experience working solo and with local and international improvisors and artists – Djuna Lee, Jameson Feakes, Annette Krebs, Emilio Gordoa and Lena Czerniawska amongst many others – to construct the seductive Land’s Air from spacious silences and dense textural reverberations.

Jurate Sasnaitis

BECAUSE OF H E R The Jack Pantazis Group Independent

Too often an album starts with a great track leading to the thought that it could be a brilliant album, only to then hear little more than variations on the opening theme.

Guitarist Jack Pantazis and his excellent band certainly do not fall into that trap with this collection of originals by the leader. He spans a very wide range of styles, from the bouncy opener, “The Girl With The Glock” featuring the full band with leader on electric, a couple of beautiful acoustic pieces, an almost free jazz middle section to “The Return Of ‘Uncle Confusion’” and closing with a definite Latin influence in “The Days We Left Behind”.

Pantazis has put together a classy band comprising his brother, drummer Gerry Pantazis, Tony Hicks on sax and flute and double bassist Adam Spiegl. Further, Pantazis uses six different guitars enabling him to cover a large range of styles from the almost mainstream, “A Blissful Day”, to touches of fusion, sounding at times a bit like Charlie Hunter on , “What Again?”, via beautiful acoustic ballads, for example “The Truth”.

Special mention must be made of the excellent sax from Tony Hicks and his flute on the final track “The Days We Left Behind” on which guest Phil Binotto’s percussion drives the decidedly Latin feel. The success of this album stems from the varied musical vision of the leader and his memorable compositions, expertly crafted by this fine band.

Michael Prescott

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I DIDN’ T GET TO WHERE I AM TO DAY Jason Bruer & Hammerhead Independent

I Didn’t Get To Where I Am Today is Jason Bruer & Hammerhead’s third outing with Bruer (tenor and soprano sax) as bandleader, composer and arranger. Each member of Hammerhead can, however, take credit for the searching dialogues and energy driving his music.

Perhaps a reflection on COVID sensitivities, “Tumbleweed on George St” features a lilting introduction by Andrew Robertson (alto and baritone saxes, flute) and confirms my feeling that flute does not get the exposure it deserves.

“A Folk Song” has the saxophones repeating a nostalgic refrain until its deconstructed final version. At 9:15 minutes, and my current favourite, “More Questions Than Answers” takes its time multiplying ideas that are partially taken up by various ensemble members, only to generate further complexities. The plaintive ballad “The Yearning (Biddy’s Song)” is beautifully realised in Bruer’s saxophone conversation with Greg Coffin’s subtle piano meanderings and a gloriously paced, unravelling finale. Pieces like “You Know Why?”, built around Alex Hirlian’s robust drumming, and “Pig Face”, which has Dave Quinn’s double bass laying down stepping-stones for Simon Ferenci’s excoriating trumpet, are closer to the hard bop sound that was prominent in Bruer’s pre-COVID album Turning Point. And, harking back to Bruer’s funk influences, the two tribute pieces, “Some Monk Funk” and “Trane of Thought”, lay down strutting sax and piano grooves respectively.

I Didn’t Get To Where I Am Today may not blow your socks off but does repay close listening. Bruer’s most nuanced album to date, goes to show that good things can come from isolation and adversity.

Jurate Sasnaitis

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JA N E T SAU N D E RS

ON TRACKS RO GER M ITCHELL SELECTS T WO D ISPARAT E T RACKS FRO M A FAVOU RIT E ALBU M FOR A CLOSER LIST E N.

C OUN TRY Shannon Barnett Quartet Which Way Music, 2010

Shannon Barnett trombone, Nashua Lee guitar, Christopher Hale acoustic bass guitar, Ben Hendry drums Care must be taken not to misinterpret a couple of track titles on this early album from an expatriate Australian now living in Germany, although the first – “Abercrombie Byron Hippie Knife Fight” – is probably readily understood. Typical of Barnett’s oft-dark humour, the second track, “Pesos”, refers not to currency, but to pessimists. Then there’s track four: Pathos 6:41 Again, the title may mislead – it is a reference to pathological liars – yet, after strings gently usher in the melody, Barnett’s ’bone begins a plaintive wail so luxuriant we could sink into it to find comfort, soon with lumbar support from Hale’s bass guitar. The soft-edged trombone notes float like air-filled, warm fudge, the chocolaty appeal enhanced by a layer of edible silver leaf from Lee on guitar and nutty scatterings from Hendry on drums.

Well-spaced, lingering horn dollops give way to a brief palate-cleansing interlude which displays the perfect complementarity between Hale, Lee and Hendry that underpins this whole album. Then the rich horn notes return in a wistful soliloquy of wandering and wondering that fairly suddenly fragments, as if spent. Surely we are free to adopt the unintended meaning – pathos, lashings thereof.

Rabid Hawk 5:07 If I was a rat or rabbit being torn apart by a hawk – rabid or not – I would hope for one that had listened to this track. There is an edgier version online (YouTube) that feels bloodier, but even in percussive mode Barnett’s trombone seems to muse on rather than go in for the kill initially, also softened by Lee’s soothing chords. There is a mildly chaotic spell – always a drawcard, I find – before an agile guitar solo that could be construed as chops-licking satiation, but then it’s all in as Hale and Hendry enthusiastically join the gory feast, peppered by the sharpest ’bone bits on the album. Tight work by the band provides a robust, satisfying conclusion.

(Who knows, BTW, what Barnett really meant by “Rabid Hawk”?)

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BALLARAT- BASED C OM POSER , M USI CIAN AND ARTIST PAIGE DUGGAN , HAS RECENTLY RELEAS ED HER N EW ALBUM , CO SM O S MADE CO NSCI OU S , EXP LORIN G T HE PARALLELS BET WEEN WHAT I S FOU N D IN THE UN IVERSE AN D OUR HUMAN EXP ERIE N CE . “ LUCID L IE” IS T HE BO NUS TRACK AVAILABLE WIT H T HIS C OPY OF DINGO.

artist

PAIGE DUGGAN

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What’s your musical background?

Growing up I participated in and listened to a broad array of music, played lots of instruments and wrote songs from an early age. When I was about nine, my brother introduced me to jazz and I fell in love with it. I’ve made music in so many genres over the years that my style is a real mishmash. But jazz, improvisation and art have always been at the centre of my mindset of how I think about music and music making.

What is jazz?

Jazz is music at its most artistic and creative. It’s the aural equivalent to visual arts; painting layers and textures.

It’s honest expression and exploration. It’s not precious.

Improvisation at its core means that it’s about taking risks and being vulnerable. Jazz encourages musicians to explore the full range of sound and diversity of their instrument. To connect, trust and communicate with the other musicians on a deep level. Jazz celebrates and embraces the beautiful qualities of harmonies, including dissonance and says it is all worthy. The risks we take in jazz, make the rewards we reap so much greater.

What excites you about composing?

It enables me to maintain that childhood quality of play, exploration and learning. My process of composing involves a lot of improvisation which I then cut and piece together to make the final piece. Every song is different and sometimes goes in unexpected directions. I have a strong sense of shape, form, texture and even colour when I compose and perform. It’s like painting with sound.

And of course, it enables me to tell stories, explore ideas and when it is performed, connect with community.

Tell us something about the track “Lucid Lie”.

Unlike most of the other tracks on the album where I had bass and wind/brass lines also written, with this piece I had nothing other than piano and chords. Once we came together as a band, jammed it out and Gideon picked up the piano part, I was then free to create the lyrics based on the scratchings of ideas I’d written in my journal. I knew I wanted it to connect the cosmic ideas explored in other pieces to the sub/conscious, dreaming and ideas of “the arrow of time”.

What else are you working on?

Currently, the band – Robbie Melville (guitar and effects), Zoe Frater (electric bass), Gideon Brazil (saxophones, flute and piano), Maddison Carter (drums and percussion) – is doing a slow tour in two parts, with the first leg finishing in November and a second leg in 2024, helping accommodate our family lives and my disability. Check out www.paigeduggan.com for more information.

FREE D OW N LOA D w w w.dingojazz .com/dug gan Passcode: 23DINGOLUCID

“Lucid Lie” is from the album, C osmos M ade C onscious, featuring Paige Dug gan (vocals, trumpet and guitar), Robbie Melville ( guitar and ef fects), Zoe Frater (electric bass), Gideon Brazil (saxophones, flute and piano), Maddison Carter (drums and percussion)

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The Greatest HARD RUBBER Mouthpiece You’ll Ever Play

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n o it a c u d e

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WAYJ O W I T H T I M DAV I ES AT ST U D I O U N D E RG RO U N D 2 0 1 3

L I B BY H A M M E R & DA RYL S O M E RS

WAYJ O I N T E RN AT I O N A L YO U T H F EST IVA L A B E R D E E N S C OT L A N D AU G 1 9 86

WAYJ O C 1 9 8 4

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When and how did WAYJO form?

WAYJO was formed in the early 80s and officially became WAYJO in 1983. There was a group of jazz musicians and educators that saw that there was an opportunity for youth jazz education and started the band and the jazz course at WAAPA (Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts) around the same time.

What is the driving purpose behind WAYJO? To give young musicians the very best experiences and opportunities we can. We organise an annual program for each of the three big bands to include guest artists, tours and recordings. Our Pathways program has become increasingly important as it sets up a more achievable and encouraging pathway into WAYJO and the jazz scene.

What has been a highlight for you?

H I STO RY LESSON: WESTERN AUSTRALIAN YO U T H J A Z Z ORCHESTRA One of Western Australia’s oldest performing arts companies, for the last 40 years the West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra ( WAYJO) has been building the future of Australian jazz and of fering outstanding opportunities for emerging jazz performers aged 14 -25 and local composers .

With such impressive alumni including international jazz luminaries Linda May Han Oh , Dane Alderson , Troy Roberts and Mat Jodrell, we spoke with artistic director Mace Francis to find out where it all started.

I have been involved with WAYJO since 2001 so there have been a lot of highlights. Our tour to New York in 2006 performing with Frank Foster. Working with amazing big band composers Jim McNeely, Ed Partyka, Darcy James Argue, Migiwa Miyajima and Mike Abene. Playing “House Party” with the great Fred Wesley. Seeing young musicians become the great musicians they dream to be … so many things!

How do you view WAYJO’s role within the wider jazz community?

WAYJO is a place young jazz musicians come because they love the music. It is a caring and safe space where everyone is welcome. The people they play with every week become their industry colleagues and often life-long friends. WAYJO provides the opportunity to play in a large ensemble which teaches you things like cooperation, listening, blending, playing in time, playing in tune, patience and how to work hard to make something great. This WAYJO community along with the WAAPA community creates a very fertile and creative scene in a city the size of Perth.

Looking forward, what excites you most about the future of WAYJO? Every year we are blown away by the young talent in the musicians who audition. They are getting better and better and younger and younger. That is exciting every year. I am also excited about working with international guest artists again, after the COVID pause. We are also looking to expand our training band programs and our international connections through exchange programs, Progressions and tours. Lots of exciting things to keep giving these young musicians the very best experiences and opportunities.

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BLESSED

MUSIC DEEP DIVE WO RDS M I RKO GU ERRI N I

P H OTO BY W. I . L . K .

T HERE I S SOM ET H I NG I N T H E T RACK “ BLESSED ”, CO MPOSED BY J UL I EN WI LSON AN D P ERFO RMED BY H I M O N T E N OR SAXOP H O NE, ST EVE MAG NUSSO N ON GUITAR AND ST EVE G RANT O N P IAN O AC C ORD I O N, T HAT I ALWAYS FOU N D H I GHLY FASC I NATI NG .

The form is a traditional 32-bar AABA with an interlude. The key is B minor, the first element of interest. B minor is certainly not a comfortable key for a tenor sax player. Once the tune is transposed for the saxophone, it becomes C# minor, presenting at least the difficulty of being an uncommon key. This particular attention to detail reveals Wilson’s finesse as a composer. The tonality of B minor certainly sounds much darker and angular than a more common minor key, and most likely, this is what he wanted.

The groove is a Brazilian partido alto, a rhythmic pattern derived from samba, with the peculiarity of being highly syncopated, with many accents on the offbeats.

The melody is gently following the harmonic twists of the chord progression and the motivic development is clear from the opening statement in bars 1 and 2. The end of the melody in the A sections is the seed that Wilson used to build the motifs of the bridge, with an alternation of intervals in both ascending and descending directions.

At the very end of the melody, in the second last bar, Wilson uses a tool that is very common in Brazilian music, especially in the music composed by Antonio Carlos Jobim, where the resolution to the I chord (in this case, F major) is delayed and preceded by an F diminished chord. This tool increases the tension in the resolution. It also creates a melodic sub-cadence with the notes of the diminished chord resolving melodically by moving up or down by a semitone.

The interlude is a gem of four bars preparing the ground for the solos. It is a little rhythmic game, with a 3/8 subdivision that shifts the piece’s pace, almost a ‘stretto’, as you would call it in a fugue.

The saxophone solo is based on a chord progression different from the melody. For his solo, Wilson improvises on a variation of a 12-bar minor blues: Figure 1 The deceptive cadence between bars 8 and 9 provides an exceptional opening in the harmonic sound that makes the flow of the changes very dynamic.

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Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 6

Figure 5

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The extraordinary expertise of Wilson, together with his deep knowledge of the tenor saxophone, is particularly evident starting from the tone quality that he has for this recording.

The format of the band, an acoustic trio without any form of percussion, allows the players to craft their tone to highlight the rich melodic nature of the tune. The most accessible reference you would make, listening to Wilson playing on “Blessed”, is Stan Getz. However, it is not the Stan Getz you would expect from the Brazilian albums he recorded, but most likely the Stan Getz of the album Focus, with a string orchestra arranged by Eddie Sauter. How Wilson articulates and uses the swing accents reminds me of the opening track, “I’m Late, I’m Late”. It is fascinating to notice that when I told Wilson about it, he said he was unfamiliar with that album. He is familiar with Stan Getz, though, especially with the expression and the swing articulation. Within the jazz practice, it is widespread (and acceptable) to hear influences on players more attached to the expression or the swing feel rather than the actual note choices.

The solo opens with a lovely, large, descending arpeggio, setting up the tone, the tonality and the groove. (The solo examples are written in concert as a commodity for the readers). Figure 2 When we transcribe jazz solos, it is always important to compare the played lines in the same part of the chord progression to better understand (and possibly reveal) the core ideas and the main vocabulary of that specific player.

In Figure 3, there is the beginning of the second chorus, with at least the incipit that sounds very similar to the incipit in the first chorus, with the note F# preceded and succeeded by the surrounding notes.

The opening of the second chorus is another beautiful example of cohesive motivic development. A simple turnaround over the F# ending with an ascending perfect 5th is repeated, adapted in the next bar and resolved nicely with a descending 4th and 5th. Note that Wilson sets a strong motivic development when the harmony is not providing too many chances to refresh the melodic lines. At the beginning of the chord progression, there are three bars on the same chord (B minor). Here is where Wilson becomes stronger with developing melodic ideas.

As you would expect from a knowledgeable player like Wilson, the altered chords in bars 4 and 8 allow the soloist to change gear and lift the tension and the energy.

Notice how Wilson, after the initial calm statement of the first three bars, unrolls a beautiful descending line based on a variation of the bebop minor scale, creating all the harmonic tension to resolve on third degree of the iv chord: Figure 4 In bar 4 of the second chorus, Wilson plays a very similar line, based on the same mode but resolving on the tonic of the iv chord: Figure 5

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Similar to what happens between bars 4 and 5, in bars 7 and 8 we have another altered dominant chord (this time the actual dominant of the implant key) where Wilson produces a real magic trick by playing an arpeggio built a semitone below the actual chord (F major arpeggio over F#7 altered) that not only anticipates the next chord (F Major7#11) but it maximises the tension by touching very angular notes such as b5, #9, maj7 and b9. It is the culmination of a very long phrase, and again, Wilson privileges the descending motion and diminuendo in dynamics to conclude the line. Figure 6 Again, very useful to compare the same bars of different choruses; This is what Wilson plays in bars 4 to 8 of the second chorus of his solo: Figure 7 One trait common with all those lines on altered dominant chords is the shape of long descending scales fading out, almost as if the scale would keep going for much longer. In the above example, note the quite firm yet relaxed swing articulation with excellent and soft tonguing (still audible) to enhance the legato feel without compromising on the swing.

Also, in bar 5 of the second chorus, Wilson employs a melodic pedal on the note B (the dominant of E min), becoming a constant landing note with the upper notes moving up and down the E minor scale. This melodic shape was largely used in baroque music written for solo instruments. For example, many Bach partitas for solo flute or violin present the same idea. I wouldn’t be surprised to understand that Wilson has spent some time studying that music transcribed for saxophone. Figure 8 Towards the end of the chorus, when some purely major chords appear, proving the opening as mentioned above in the harmonic sound, Wilson shapes, in all the choruses, some joyful and playful lines with, once more, some terrific motivic development and usage of the full range of the saxophone, with an excursion in the altissimo notes in the third chorus that sets the climax for the whole solo. Figure 9 Figures 10 & 11 show how hectically Wilson moves within the chords and how controlled such complex playing is. The accents displacement on the first bar and the bebop tool called “enclosure” on the third bar display how rich and colourful Wilson’s playing can be and how deep Wilson’s knowledge of jazz language is.

His exceptional use of dynamics sets Wilson’s poetic style apart, which adds depth and nuance to his playing. He effortlessly transitions between delicate whispers and powerful, passionate outbursts, using the full range of his instrument to convey a vast array of emotions.

Wilson’s saxophone becomes a vehicle for storytelling through this careful control of dynamics. His ability to create contrasting moods and atmospheres within a single performance is remarkable and speaks to his profound musical sensitivity and artistry.

Mirko Guerrini is Adjunct Fellow and Teaching Associate at Monash University.

He is a composer and artist and hosts the podcast Jazz Transcription Clinic.

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Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

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ART WO RK ALBERTO CASAG RANDE

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PRACTICE ASHLEY C ROSS Some musicians have great practice habits, others less so.

Ever yone’s psycholog y is dif ferent. Your practice is about your psycholog y. For many musicians the word “practice” elicits a flood of overwhelming. Egos strug gle. It can be dif ficult to find a way to proceed. The following may help.

Practice as Relationship The word relationship invites a way of reframing the way one looks at practice.

Successful relationships require constant attention and care. And in many cases, love. You love music; extend that love to all aspects of music and to the learning process itself.

Practice is developing a Relationship with; music as a listener; both aesthetic and observational, aesthetic being the projection of your taste and observational being the projection of your non-judgemental curiosity (which then informs your taste). the two basic constituents of music (sound and time), as well as all the other materials of music (too many to mention). Endear yourself to them in the same way a writer endears themselves to words.

“I fell in love – that is the only expression I can think of – at once, and am still at the mercy of words, though sometimes now, knowing a little of their behaviour very well, I think I can influence them slightly and have even learned to beat them now and then, which they appear to enjoy. I tumbled for words at once… There they were, seemingly lifeless, made only of black and white, but out of them, out of their own being, came love and terror and pity and pain and wonder and all the other vague abstractions that make our ephemeral lives dangerous, great, and bearable.”

– Dylan Thomas, “Notes on the Art of Poetry,” 1951 practice itself as an evolutionary process (you will learn to get better at it) your fellow musicians the professional world/audience yourself (simply facing up to the work)

Practice is developing a Relationship with Process Process: Meaning, Trust, Attention, Time (over the long and short term; minutes, days, months, years), Repetition and Consistency.

If something doesn’t have Meaning for you, you won’t practice it. No matter how much you tell your teacher (and yourself) that you will.

Once you find meaning in something (let’s say, practising arpeggios) you will need to have a process in place that you can Trust to bring about the desired results.

Then commit to it for the long term. Stop looking elsewhere!

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This process will require your Attention. Attention is the spotlight of working memory.

Working Memory (the most creative real estate in the universe) is the gateway to Long Term Procedural Memory, where your musical vocabulary lives. You need to give yourself Time in both the long (years) and short term (daily).

You will need to Repeat, Repeat, Repeat.

You will need to do this Consistently.

Practice is developing a Relationship with Your Artistic Blueprint (practice schedule) You cannot do practice without your Artistic Blueprint. You cannot separate the blueprint itself from the trust you have invested in it or the meaning it has for you. This is tricky because sometimes something doesn’t make its meaning evident to you until you have worked with it for a couple of months. A journey into the unknown takes courage.

Your Artistic Blueprint will only have material in it that you want to make stick. So, you really need to think carefully about what you put in it.

The blueprint (depending on instrument) should include some aspect of each of these daily: Aural training Technique/control Harmonic embodiment – e.g., arpeggios, scales, chromaticism, voice leading, voicings, comping Time feel, groove, rhythmic accuracy Modelling – in particular, phrasing models Repertoire Improvising – record yourself Reflection – e.g., listening back to recordings of yourself

Practice is about Making it Stick “In the pursuit of excellence, change is the only thing you are after.”

Any change in your musical output is simply a reflection of a changed neural network. It can’t be anything else. Due to the biological nature of the brain, neural networks and connections change slowly because they have to physically grow in order to become consolidated in long term memory. And they grow slowly. And right there, the “real problem” becomes clear, musical evolution will be slow … it will evolve at the same speed neurons grow. The speed of nature. It is that simple.

This is also the “real answer” to understanding practice. This is what people mean when they talk about “delayed gratification”. There is no “remedy” to this reality.

Do you have a psychological mindset that can deal with the slow growth of the neurons in your brain, can you deal with the long term? If you have one already, or can cultivate one, you are ready for the journey.

You may be thinking to yourself, “Why so slow?” Neural connections grow slowly (probably dictated by evolution) because the brain requires neural stability alongside the capacity to learn new things. If the brain learnt too quickly, stability would be under threat. Society and survival both need brains to be relatively stable, so ditch any cramming habits you have towards study.

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Practice is about Your Routine Turn up - physically and mindfully.

Have your trusted blueprint.

Turn off your phone.

Surrender to the inevitability that you are about to nurture the beautiful but challenging work of tending to, growing and strengthening your neural connections. Thinking this way can objectify the process.

Use a timer in 10-minute intervals. Do another 10 minutes if you have the neural juice. Go on to something else if you are tired. Or take a short break.

KEEP THE BRAIN HUNGRY! Follow the plan, do the work, foster and develop your relationships with the material.

Record yourself! Painful, yes, but too valuable to not do it. Best feedback there is.

Tick off each piece of work as you complete it.

Review by asking the only two questions you can ask; “Did I face my musical demons today?” and, “Did I use my time effectively?’

If you can answer “yes” to both of those questions, make yourself a cup of tea and bask in the radiant glory that you have taken one small step towards the musician you want to be a couple of years down the track. Rinse and repeat the next day.

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YOUNG

artists

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Teachers: Jamie Oehlers, Tony Borthwick Inspiration: Too many people to name! A few would include Seamus Blake, Immanuel Wilkins, Keith Jarrett and John Coltrane.

Josh Pa rke r (20) Tenor saxophone Perth / Boorloo Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, 3rd year

I grew up in Perth and started playing saxophone around age 13. I always enjoyed listening to music and was given a box set of Sonny Rollins by a teacher and mentor Garry Lee. From then I decided I wanted to be involved in music. I am completing my third year at WAAPA in 2023 and have had some amazing opportunities including spending time at New York University and winning the 2022 Recital Prize. More than anything I love making music with friends and trying to improve, two things I hope to continue doing into the future.

What I like about jazz? I like the way it makes me think about music more deeply and makes me see things in a more creative lens.

What will I be doing in 10 years?

God knows! Hopefully playing and making music I am proud of.

Favourite pet animal: Cats Favourite jazz club: During my stay in New York, I went to the Village Vanguard, that was special.

I also like: Hanging out with friends, going to see performances and seeing family.

Best practice tip: I think one big thing I’m trying is just to slow everything down, being more patient during practice – I find this super challenging!

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Cass Eva ns- Ocha re rn (21) Electric and double bass Perth / Boorloo Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, 4th year

From Perth: Ben Vanderwal, Jamie Oehlers, Tom O’Halloran, Harry Mitchell, Pete Jeavons, Nick Abbey, Grievous Bodily Calm, Supathick, Noah Dillon, Madoc Plane

Captivating him with its expressive and interactive nature, jazz allows Cass to embrace his authentic self while playing alongside others. He has worked with renowned artists including Ben Vanderwal, Linda Oh, Tal Cohen, Jamie Oehlers, Barney McAll and Frank Gambale. Presently, Cass is working on his new project called Storefront, a jazz-influenced contemporary band. With a desire to bring highcalibre musicianship to a broad audience, he aims to create engaging and enjoyable experiences through live concerts and recordings.

What I like about jazz? I love how interactive jazz is. It allows you to connect with the musicians you play with and see their personalities shine through the music.

Teachers: Paul Pooley, Nick Abbey, Pete Jeavons

I also like: Photography, film, food.

Inspiration: Christian McBride, Ray Brown, Jaco Pastorius, Victor Wooten, Chet Baker, Bill Evans, Hiatus Kaiyote, Jordan Rakei, Crumb, Human Bloom, Moonchild

Best practice tip: Section your practice into chunks and only focus on one idea, e.g. 5mins – Db altered scale.

What will I be doing in 10 years? Ideally working as a musician: touring, recording, collaborating and performing. My goal is to be running both the band and my jazz/session career simultaneously.

Favourite pet animal: Dogs and cats (I love them both).

Favourite jazz club/festival: The Ellington Jazz Club, Perth International Jazz Festival

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Ava M c De rmott (20) Voice Heidelberg / Woiwurrung land Jazz & Improvisation at Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, 2nd year

I have always been enthralled by improvised music – Ornette Coleman’s Something Else!!! was a staple of my childhood – but I have also had the chance to immerse myself in the world of classical vocal music.

Throughout high school, I was lucky enough to study classical and jazz voice, and in my practice today I draw from both traditions – a significant focus on improvisation allowing me to integrate both these worlds.

I love performing, from singing at the Melbourne Recital Centre, in acceptance of the 2022 Margaret Schofield Memorial Scholarship, to recording live at 3MBS, to singing at the Brunswick Green with my vocal duo project, The Selenic.

Teachers: Michelle Nicolle, Tim Reynolds, Gian Slater Inspiration: Betty Carter, Sarah Vaughan and the other singers around me.

What I like about jazz? I love the warmth it brings in textures and in timbre.

Probably more importantly, I love the freedom it is representative of and allows, and the community it inspires.

What will I be doing in 10 years? I hope to be singing as much as possible with musicians/peers I look up to and I hope to have been able to travel because of music.

Favourite pet animal: My fluffy poodle Mitzi has got to be my favourite animal.

Favourite jazz club: The Brunswick Green I also like: I love cinema! I often attend Melbourne Cinematheque screenings at ACMI and I delight in seeing films, both new and old, at The Astor Theatre.

Best practice tip: I always like to ground myself and find awareness through breath before I do any singing. I find that this leads to more focused and intentional singing.

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Sona li Wijetun ga (20) Bass guitar Rowville / Wurundjeri Woiwurrung and Bunurong land Jazz & Improvisation at Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, 2nd year

I was born and raised in Melbourne within a family that loves music. My siblings and I started with classical piano early on. As time passed, we explored other instruments. In high school, I began learning the bass guitar which opened me up to a whole new world of groove. My musical path transitioned from rock to funk, Motown, soul, and traditional jazz. Despite my limited jazz background and mostly self-directed learning rather than formal schooling, I am thrilled that I am currently engaged in its study. The challenges inspire me to expand my knowledge of jazz and mastery over my instrument.

Teachers: Sam Anning Inspiration: James Jamerson, Ahmad Jamal, Lee Ritenour, Dave Grusin, Michael Jackson, D’Angelo What I like about jazz? I like that it’s challenging, exciting and pushes me to really get to know my instrument and serve the music.

What will I be doing in 10 years? I hope that I dive into various music-related opportunities whether that involves composing and sharing my original music or reaching out and collaborating with musicians I’ve long admired.

Favourite pet animal: Dogs Favourite jazz club/festival: The Night Cat I also like: I like all sorts of films, painting, hanging and jamming with friends, and also just spending a decent amount of time by myself.

Best practice tip: If you have trouble soloing through changes, use the melody to guide you.

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GEAR

REVIEWS

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REGA P LA N A R 1 P LUS TURN TA BL E

This release is the first in the Rega line-up to include an in-built phono stage – basically utilising their highly regarded Fono Mini A2D without the digital circuit – providing a suitable line level output for easy connection to a range of systems. It even comes with a standard twin phono to phono lead.

The significant sound quality improvement from the entrylevel turntable I had previously been using was immediately noticeable. From the first album I put on, there was a warmth and depth to the sound that had previously been lacking. Everything is crisp and clear, and I could hear more nuance.

Think of this model as a good first step into high fidelity turntables. With an RRP of $849, it is an accessible turntable with many qualities of those far above it. Thought has clearly been given to which features to include, all of which seem to focus on producing the highest sound quality possible for this price point.

The joy of this machine is that it is still user-friendly. There was little set up required and the parts that are required are designed with the novice in mind. The tonearm is a great example of this.

Installing the counterweight simply required being pushed all the way on, up to a stop groove. This resulted in a well-balanced tonearm, no further precision balancing was required. While changing speed is a little bit fiddly – requiring manually changing the belt – this task isn’t too difficult and means that motor noise is kept minimal without extra mechanisms required for automatic speed selection.

The 24V synchronous AC motor delivers smooth and reliable speed, thanks in part to the new aluminium pulley. The clear dust cover sits nicely and the unit overall is sleek and attractive. The lifetime warranty offered speaks to Rega’s confidence in their workmanship.

Marketed as “the ultimate ‘Plug and Play’ turntable”, from my experience it would have to be close.

Cal Barry

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TH E P RACT IC E N OT E BOOKS O F M I C H AE L BREC KE R P RIN T MUSI C

Reading Bill Milkowski’s biography of Michael Brecker - Ode To A Tenor Titan coincided with purchasing Brecker’s Practice Notebooks.

As I immersed myself in the biography, there were countless references, mainly from older sibling Randy, about Michael’s work ethic and practice routine, and the fact that he kept a notebook of everything he practiced and was working on at the time. To be able to cross reference his notebooks with the biography was fascinating, especially as the biography tracked his formative years which was documented chronologically in these notebooks.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface – by David Demsey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i Introduction – by Randy Brecker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii Foreward – by Larry Dunlap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv How to Use This Book – by Chuck Sher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Interview – Michael Brecker on Practicing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii BOOK I – Classwork at Indiana University – 1967. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 BOOK II – Early 1970s in New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 BOOK III – 1973 through 1975 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 BOOK IV – 1976 through 1984 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 BOOK V – 1985 through 1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 BOOK VI – 1992 through 2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 APPENDIX I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Lead Sheets and Transcribed Solos / More on Transcribing by Steve Khan APPENDIX II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 Saxophone-Specific Exercises APPENDIX III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Sample Pages from Original Notebooks Related Publications from Sher Music Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 Sher Music Co. Catalog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

APPENDIX IV - MICHAEL BRECKER’S PRACTICE METHOD PART I - Michael Brecker Clinic, William Paterson University, 1995 Michael Brecker: “I’m not a real expert at practicing, I’ve spent many hours doing it…I don’t know what the correct way is, but I have a kind of method that I do that, for better or for worse, works for me. And it does involve repetition. I’m a slow learner. So, for me to get new ideas and really get them in my subconscious takes a while. I know other musicians that are much faster than me. My favorite example is always Joey Calderazzo, who can learn something and it’ll come out in his playing that night – that’s unique, very rare.

“When I’m into practicing, I try to divide it into segments. The beginning of it is purely technical stuff, once I’ve got a reed…long tones, overtone stuff, a la Joe Allard. Then I have this series of interval stuff that I do, which I could demonstrate briefly.

“Improvising for me is kind of a misnomer; I love to improvise, but a lot of it comes from making up Michael Brecker - Solo sentences, out of words.

I spend Clinic time sort ofDemo learning words, and Excerpts creating sentences out of them.

“The way I do this – this is purely just for me, take what you can from this and leave the rest if it doesn’t apply: Say one morning I wake up, and I hear, like recently, these four notes:

Michael Brecker Clinic Demo - Solo Excerpts

4 Transcription 11 & 44 œTranscription Transcription 1

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“Those four notes, just ‘impress me,’ they speak to me. I would then practice them chromatically.

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Transcription 3 q = 76 “Actually, I would do it slower, I’m trying to rush through it…

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Transcription 4 q = 145

& I don’t do it faster, we’ll be here all day. I would practice them up chromatically. And then, the same “If Transcription Transcription 44 qq == 145 145 thing generally œ b œ goingn œdown, b œ b œway I ncame œ the same œ up, so it would be:

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& #œ#œ#œnœnœnœnœbœnœ#œnœœbœnœbœbœ œnœnœœbœbœbœbœn œ nœnœœ # œ #œnœ œ œbœ nœ bœ rit........................ rit........................

The notebooks are something of a revelation to me. They underline the simple fact that Brecker’s work ethic and systematic approach to learning the saxophone was second to none. Not reliant on natural musicality, inherited from his father and musical family, it was his sheer dedication and practice regime that made him the incredible musician he is.

Delving into these notebooks is both fascinating and daunting at the same time. I wish I had come across these 30 years ago, as there is simply not enough time left in my life to fully absorb the countless exercises and musical ideas therein. I have played through some of the ideas and exercises however, that he obviously spent countless hours on mastering, and can see that by spending even a small amount of time on these, I can not only improve my playing but as importantly come to understand how his mind worked and how driven he was to attain a level of mastery that very few musicians reach.

All manner of things are explored in these notebooks, not only technique but so much on sound, articulation, and absorbing different styles, not limited to jazz but exploring blues and R&B players such as King Curtis, it is no surprise he could play comfortably and convincingly in virtually any style, thus making him arguably the most “complete” saxophonist of all time.

As a saxophonist, these notebooks are as important a resource as I have seen in my whole 40+ year career and will help and inspire any musician to not only improve their craft but ultimately realise and understand what it takes to reach the kind of level that Michael Brecker did and make him one of the all-time greats.

Jason Bruer

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F E S T I VA L S 2023

2024

October 20-22 South Coast Jazz Festival Goolwa, SA

February 2-4 SoundOut Festival Canberra, ACT

May 24-26 Big Band Blast Bathurst, NSW

www.sajazzfestivalsinc.com

http://www.facebook.com/ SoundOutFestivalandEvents

www.bigbandblast.org

October 20-29 Brisbane International Jazz Festival, QLD www.bijf.com.au

October 27 - November 4 Sydney International Women’s Jazz Fest Sydney, NSW www.sima.org.au/siwjf/

November 3 Wangaratta Festival of Jazz & Blues Wangaratta, VIC www.wangarattajazz.com

February 15-25 Hobart & February 29 - March 3 Northern Tasmania MONA FOMA Hobart/Launceston, TAS www.mofo.net.au

February 9-11 Port Fairy Jazz Festival Port Fairy, VIC www.portfairyjazz.com.au

February 24-25 Eltham Jazz, Food & Wine Festival Eltham, VIC

November 3-5 Perth & November 11-12 South West Perth International Jazz Festival Perth & South West, WA

www.elthamjazz.com.au

www.perthjazzfest.com

www.clarenceartsandevents.net/ clarence-jazz-festival

December 3-10 Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival Melbourne, VIC

February 28 - March 3 Clarence Jazz Festival Clarence, TAS

March 8-10 Kiama Jazz & Blues Festival Kiama, NSW

www.mwijf.org

www.kiamajazzandbluesfestival.com.au

December 26-31 Australian Jazz Convention Longford, TAS

April (dates TBC) Adelaide Jazz Festival Adelaide, SA

www.australianjazzconvention.org.au

www.adelaidejazzfestival.com

May 3-5 Generations in Jazz Festival Mt Gambier, SA www.generationsinjazz.com.au

June 7-10 Merimbula Jazz Festival Merimbula, NSW www.merimbulajazz.org.au

June (dates TBC) Cronulla Jazz & Blues Festival Cronulla, NSW www.cronullajazzandbluesfestival.com

June (dates TBC) Orange Winter Jazz Festival Orange, NSW www.owjf.com.au

June 7-9 Castlemaine Jazz Festival Castlemaine, VIC www.castlemainejazzfestival.com.au

July 25-28 Devonport Jazz Festival Devonport, TAS www.devonportjazz.com.au

August 2-4 Inverloch Jazz Festival Inverloch, VIC www.inverlochjazzfestival.com

August (dates TBC) Newcastle Jazz Festival Newcastle, NSW www.newcastlejazz.com.au

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GIGS BIJF Opening Party The Brisbane International Jazz Festival is returning in 2023 with a big opening party on Saturday 21 October, hosted by Unladylike Big Band and MADE NOW MUSIC. Head on down to The Clubhouse Moorooka from 3pm for a line-up featuring Talkin’ Jazz Women’s Workshop Band, Huda the Goddess, Reuben Lewis, Unladylike Big Band and Kristin Berardi.

Hurstbridge Jazz Club’s Spring Series This intimate monthly series in Melbourne’s north-east has begun its Spring series. The next one features Latin harmonies of Queen of Hearts Mariachi, backed by Pluck. The season finale on December 10 will celebrate the launch of Kimba and Ryan’s third duo album. With only 50 seats available, best to secure your spot early.

Shannon Barnett Quartet As part of their Australian tour, expat trombonist Shannon Barnett’s Quartet will perform in Adelaide on Monday 30 October for COMA’s regular series at The Wheatsheaf Hotel, Thebarton. Featuring Stefan Karl Schmid on tenor sax, David Helm on bass, and Fabian Arends on drums, this quartet delivers contemporary original jazz with a healthy dose of humour, despite the German majority. The tour is supported by the Goethe Institut.

LIVE

Foundry 616 – 10th Birthday For the past month, Foundry 616 has been celebrating ten years since Sydney’s Peter Rechniewski launched this Ultimo-based club.

The music continues with events such as the double-bill on Thursday 19 October, featuring Jason Bruer & Hammerhead and with New Zealand-born pianist Charmaine Ford marking her trio’s comeback after more than decade.

Ilaria Crociani Quartet On November 29th, at Lazy Bones Lounge in Marrickville, vocalist Ilaria Crociani leads her quartet, consisting of saxophonist Mirko Guerrini, pianist Paul Grabowsky and drummer Niko Schäuble, presenting music from their album Connecting the Dots. This rare Sydney performance is supported by the Italian Institute of Culture.

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RES I D E N CY I N M OT I O N FLORA CARBO Greetings!

It’s bold and empowering over here.

I wish I could stop and show you, but I am climbing a hill.

Even beside the busy road – cars sizzle in water, rivers in the path.

I was that enormous German snail in another life, I know it.

I love to move slow.

At this very moment, I am on a ferry towards Scotland, somewhere off the coast of the Netherlands. The sea is immense and comforting, providing a perfect backdrop for a reflection of the last few months.

Since May, I have been travelling through the UK and Europe, spending two weeks each in London, Helsinki, Milan, Berlin, Tuscany and the Netherlands so far. I am continuing on to Scotland and Ireland, before heading home in October. This project is focused on intensive development of my solo creative practice and international career through mentorships, collaborative opportunities, network building, artist residencies and creative time in landscape travelling by bicycle. All under the umbrella of a “Residency in Motion”.

COMMUNITY and CONNECTION On the bicycle I have been alone but not alone. Everywhere I go, every language I start learning to understand, the people I am meeting and the communities who have been so generously welcoming is a fuel of inspiration for a long time afterwards, perhaps forever.

The first part of the trip was designed to reconnect with musical friends and through them I got to know other music communities just like my own. I started working with trumpeter Daniel Cano in Canterbury, then vocalist Selma Savolainen in Helsinki and drummer Francesca Remigi and clarinettist Federico Calcagno in Milan.

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global P E RS P ECT I V E

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In the Netherlands, I performed at the Amersfoort Jazz Festival, the hometown of my father; being back with family was a reminder of who I am and what it feels like to have a home away from home.

In Italy, I was invited to participate in a residency of improvisers, the Tuscany Music Revolution. Free improvisation can be binding and isolating and vulnerable and warm, but it trumps all communication challenges. My lack of Italian was no barrier to building incredibly strong friendships and trust they will stay with me for the rest of my life.

TENSION, RESOLUTION and PATIENCE Today I played and tried to loosen some tensions.

The woods are incredibly beautiful right up until they become spooky.

Rain gave way to humidity and a glow just for me and a few ants.

The weeks of cycling so far have highlighted my developing values in music. For a while I have been searching for a slowness, every new idea a zoomed-out version of the last – striving for simplicity and essence and patience. In a recent project of mine, FCPE (Flora Carbo Percussion Ensemble), I aim to create a space where patience and simplicity is valued highly. The opportunity to play something over and over again is invited, encouraged and important, while the piece uses duration and repetition to build tension and resolution contrasts. Cycling through landscape holds similar values; repetitive motion, slow movement, coming across small towns versus open landscape in contrasting sections.

Tensions and resolutions seem to come in many forms and change with your emotions; sparse to busy, open space to suburbs, forests to highways, uphill to downhill, wet and windy to clear and still. If you are tired, wet or hungry, the only resolution may be arriving at the location – but giving in to the slowness I can feel and experience the most from the mini contrasts along a journey. Although this kind of travel is adventurous, it is also a simple commute in a very practical sense as the form of a trip is connecting dots, town to town – the development of an idea through subtle changes in landscape.

“The walks are the unobtrusive connecting thread of memories, and yet each walk is a little drama itself, with a definite plot with episodes and catastrophes.”

– Leslie Stephen, “In Praise of Walking” “WHAT IS YOUR DESTINY? … DESTINATION?” Can’t wait to share every sound with you all with you when I am home!

Love from, Flora x

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“ H E Y, A U S T R A L I A ! I ’ M O V E R H E R E .

W H AT ’ S I T L I K E O V E R T H E R E ? ” ADAM ARMST RON G I’ve been in New York City 23 years this month. After leaving Australia in 2000, our family spent six months in Phoenix, where my wife Danielle had a nursing contract. While in Phoenix, I hardly played, apart from jetting off for a Scott Tinkler’s Trio tour of Vietnam and China. When asking about local gigs, the person answering the “Phoenix Jazz Hotline” suggested moving to LA or New York! So, when we escaped Phoenix and arrived in New York, I wasn’t sure how I would start to make inroads into the scene. I knew Sean Wayland. I also got in touch with Nicky Parrott who loaned me an amp for a couple of early gigs. But I could tell it was going to be tough to make connections.

Pamela Knowles had returned to the US around that time. She was keen to promote her new album 13 Kinds of Desire. She booked a band composed of Xavier Davis, Alex Norris, Keith Hall, Gilad, and lucky me. The first rehearsal at Michiko Studios was a revelation. Everyone was there set up and ready to play right at call time. I consider myself to be punctual, yet I was the last to arrive. Also, everyone had checked out the music. The first reading of each chart sounded gig worthy. Having played on her album, I led Pamela’s band. The musicians were cool with that … even though they had no idea who I was! That was the beginning of a nice run with Pam, including performances at Nuyorican Poets Cafe and Chicago Humanities Festival.

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So began a series of Aussie connections that led to much of the work I’ve done since moving to NYC. Pamela recommended me to saxophonist Eric Person. Pam had met Eric at Ronnie Scott’s in London when she opened for Dave Holland’s band. Eric invited me to play in Meta-Four, replacing Kenny Davis who had started to tour with Herbie Hancock. I’ve played regular gigs with Eric ever since, toured across the US and made records, with collaborators including Zaccai Curtis, McClenty Hunter, Dave Gilmore, Kevin Eubanks, Ingrid Jensen, Adam Klipple, Brian Charette, Shinnosuke Takahashi, Patience Higgins, Duane Eubanks, Darrell Green, Houston Person, Ralph Alessi and more.

Aussie drummer, Ben Vanderwal, invited me to a jam in Brooklyn with saxophonist, Kim Bock. I ended up playing in Kim and Sila Cevikce’s band, which recorded with Rich Perry and Ari Hoenig. Kim’s quartet featuring Peter Retzlaff and David Smith, toured and made records over four or so years, including Live in Copenhagen on the SteepleChase label.

Christian Finger, who heard my name when he lived in Australia, asked me to join his NYC trio. Christian’s bands have been another staple, including gigs and recordings with Chihiro Yamanaka (with whom I toured Japan), Vadim Neselovskyi, Rich Perry, Dave Stryker, Pete McCann, Jeff Ballard, Tim Armacost, Donny McCaslin, Zach Brock, and Nate Radley.

Aussie saxophonist, Tim Otto, booked me for a gig early on with Richard X Bennett on piano. A few years later, Richard asked me to play in his trio and his quintet, featuring Lisa Parrott and Matt Parker.

I’ve made a number of records with “RXB”, playing gigs with Michael Blake, Paula Jeaneen, Alex Wyatt, Julian Edmond and more.

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The musical connection I made with Ken Thomson (who knew about me via Greta Gertler) has been one of the most satisfying and challenging of my years in the U.S. Performances with Ken’s bands have included recordings and tours of Europe and the U.S. with Slow Fast, with Nir Felder and Russ Johnson, and Sextet, which has featured Russ, Anna Webber, Kalia Vandever, Nadje Noordhuis, Alan Ferber, E.J. Strickland and Daniel Dor. Ken’s music has been some of the most complex I’ve played. That’s saying something, considering I was a member of David Jones’s AtmaSphere, and Daryl Pratt’s Sonic Fiction. Ken relocated to Berlin during COVID, but I hope to do more with him in the future (given time to practice!).

In a long line of great singers with whom I’ve had the honor to play and record – including Pam, Greta, Aussi ex-pat Ali Hughes – last, but definitely not least, is KJ Denhert. I joined KJ’s “jazz project” in 2018, playing a residency at the 55 Bar with Adam Klipple and Joe Strasser. This year, with Nicki Denner on keys, Eric Halvorson, drums, and Mark McIntyre guitar, KJ is releasing an album featuring her originals, jazz standards and reimagined pop tunes.

During my 23 years in NYC, I haven’t gotten back to Australia to play much, nor played with too many visiting Aussie musicians. In 2001, I did play with Don Burrows for the Festival Internacional Cervantino in Mexico. I also joined Maria Schneider’s Orchestra of Aussie musicians for the 2002 Sydney Festival. And this year I reunited with Miro Bukovsky’s Wanderlust for that legendary band’s 30th anniversary celebrations in Sydney.

But I guess I haven’t been on the Australian scene’s radar much.

So, when people back home ask, “What happened to Adam Armstrong? The guy who played bass on a heap of records and gigs in the 80s and 90s.” I’m still here. Maybe playing at the Blue Note, Small’s, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola or venues in Brooklyn.

Danielle and I have been married 31 years. We’ve raised two kids – Matilda, 26, and Gabe, 20, who is studying double bass at Purchase College. We live in Brooklyn. We’ve survived 9/11, Superstorm Sandy, and COVID-19. I’m not “famous”. But I still love to play the bass and try to play it better every day. So, to paraphrase Sam Keevers’s funny expression from when we were in Vince Jones’s band, “Hey, Australia! I’m over here. What’s it like over there?”

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meet KEN FIELD

RISK AND REVO LUTI O N ADAM SI MMO NS Ken Field is a renowned composer, saxophonist, flautist, and percussionist who can mesmerise an audience with his vibrant musical compositions . With much acclaim for his solo work and performances with the Revolutionar y Snake Ensemble, Ken has also written compositions for the much -loved children’s program , Sesame Street. Known for his abilit y to push boundaries, Ken’s commitment to the music communit y is evident by his role as President of the Board of Directors of JazzBoston and his significant contribution to the HON K! Festival of Activist Street Bands and its Australian iteration . He also shares his love for creative instrumental music as the host of WM BR’s radio program , The N ew Edge .

P H OTO BY B RI A N L E FO E

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I have enjoyed a friendship with Ken since we first met at Jazzahead a few years ago, learning of his ongoing connection to Australia. We caught up to discuss aspects of his musical journey, his passion for jazz and improvised music, his unique approach to performances and his role in fostering the jazz community.

Where did your musical journey begin? I’m interested to hear how you were introduced to music and what part jazz played.

How did I start? Well, like many in my generation I started playing a band instrument in 4th grade and chose the clarinet. I practised a lot, always making sure I got to the end of my lesson before I agreed with my mum that I should come downstairs for dinner. I would always say, “Just a minute, I have to finish my lesson.” I have a kind of compulsive side to me which is handy when you’re a kid practising an instrument.

I got pretty good at reading music and playing the notes on the page. I knew nothing at all about jazz or improvisation but when I got to high school – still playing clarinet – I was astounded and mystified by a guy who could improvise. I had no clue. I was just: “You’re a god.” I didn’t know what to say. At the same time – I was born in 53 so it’s quite some time ago – an interesting thing happened. Our family had a TV set, but it broke and my parents didn’t fix it. This was by design. They saw the evil of television before many people did; they were pretty bright. So, I would spend that time upstairs in my room listening to AM radio, which at that time was playing pop hits but also R&B, Motown and all. Basically, I listened to a lot of music that had very metronomic time. I think that’s what instilled in me a good sense of time.

Fast-forward to college. I was fooling around in the hall of my freshman-year dorm. And I ran into a door chasing a guy down the hall, broke my front tooth, meaning I couldn’t play clarinet. The tooth was repaired but I still couldn’t really play clarinet: it pushes out on the front tooth. So, I start playing flute, learn a little by ear of how that works, how improvisation works, how simple chords work and jam with people who play folk music and blues and such. At one point, somebody just blew my mind by explaining to me diatonic harmony and I was like, “Woah, that’s how it works?” It was really an eye-opener.

I started playing with some people that were playing this broad range of cool stuff: Frank Zappa, McCoy Tyner, Captain Beefheart – stuff I didn’t know anything about.

I picked up saxophone, eventually studying at Berkeley with Joe Viola, a really wonderful saxophone teacher, now passed. I went up once a week to study privately with him, before attending Berkeley for a couple of years. Berkeley taught me how to function in a lot of different situations and technical aspects. That served me well in terms of being at least not embarrassed to go and play with people, which is a big hurdle. And that’s sort of how I got into jazz and learning about improvisation.

HONK! Festival, held in Somerville, Massachusetts since 2006, is dedicated to presenting community street bands and has spawned similar events across the globe, including Wollongong’s HONK! Oz. How did you come to be so involved with HONK!?

The first year HONK! was presented, I was asked to participate with my band, the Revolutionary Snake Ensemble. It was interesting because the organisation was more of a “disorganisation”. I was apprehensive about this festival, like, “They’re not giving me information, I don’t know what’s going to happen, where to go …” Then the festival happened and I was blown away. It was genius. Much in the way of the spontaneity of jazz, it was improvised in a lot of ways. And I said, “Wow, a lot of people put a lot of work into this.

Here I am, playing in a band, reaping the benefit of their work. I should help.” So, I offered to join the organising committee at that point, and I’ve been with them ever since.

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HONK! Oz started in 2015. An incredible couple involved in music in Wollongong, David Rooney and Lotte Latukefu, were thinking about an event, gathering brass bands from different places in Australia. And they saw that the HONK! Festival existed. At that point, HONK! Festival had spawned many different independent festivals all over the US and around the world. And they said, this is exactly what we’re thinking of doing, so we’re going to put together a HONK! Oz festival. And they must have posted something on Facebook. And I must have responded said, “That’s great.” And they saw that I existed, that I had a band with only six people as opposed to most of the HONK! community bands with 20 or more people. And they said, we could bring this guy over with his band. It turned out there was not enough funding, so they brought me over the first year to lead a pickup band and that’s what I’ve been doing since then, with a little pause for COVID, with the Hoot Band growing to 75–100 people who join me. It’s been the honour of my life to participate in this festival, get to know the people of Wollongong and beyond, and travel around Australia.

You mentioned your Revolutionary Snake Ensemble, which is a long-standing and popular ensemble. Can you share something of its origins and approach?

It started out as a gathering of friends, playing for a party. We were making music with simple elements – just horns, percussion, no material – and people loved it. It started as a fluid thing, though it’s been stable for the past 7-10 years with some of the best players in the Boston area that I have the

distinct honour of having in my band. One of the things I love about the band is that while we play a combination of New Orleans traditional music, original music and interesting treatments of covers in a sort of second line style often, we don’t have any preset arrangements. Every time we play a tune, it’s different. The musicians love the fact they’re not doing the same thing every night. And sometimes they’re doing things that surprise me. We’ve been playing together long enough so things happen and I’m like, “Woah, that was cool.” It’s a great fun band.

What we’re trying to do with JazzBoston is advocate for the jazz community, including musicians, audiences, venues and media. And we’re doing some specific things that I think are impactful. One of the major radio stations cut back significantly on their jazz programming about seven years ago. We’ve been able to bring jazz back to that station by working with them and they now have a significant jazz presence. It’s not just JazzBoston’s doing but it’s been a fruitful collaboration to help them understand why this is important music.

We’re also producing jam sessions that people can get involved with for free, we’re doing performances and we’re working with local government to make sure they’re aware of what’s happening. We’re also helping in some ways to promote activities that other people are doing.

There’s kind of an explosion of what’s going on with jazz; there are several jazz festivals in the Boston area that are just kind of bubbling up. Some have been around for a little while, some are just starting. There’s so much interest in this music.

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As long as you categorise it with a “large tent” and be inclusive in terms of what you call jazz, improvisational music, music stemming from this African American tradition, there’s a huge amount of interest amongst young people and older people. It’s inspiring to see the response.

How do you juggle touring with your regular radio show, The New Edge? I see that you include the show in your upcoming events. How does a radio show fit in with your practice as a performing artist?

Any musician knows that listening to other music is an important part of your creative life. I got into radio when I was in college many years ago, at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, with a radio show in the middle of the night. I loved sitting there in the quiet, 3am in the morning, fully immersing myself in music, any music I wanted to play, with these huge speakers and I’m the only one there and not bothering anybody and I just loved that. It took me a while to get back to it, but I’ve been doing The New Edge for about 15 years now. It’s inspired in a way by John Schaefer’s New Sounds on WNYC, a widely influential show. My show covers a lot of territory stylistically. I restrict it to instrumental music as that’s what I do myself mostly. I get so much stuff sent to me and I try to listen to pretty much everything: classical, contemporary classical, world music and music that just seems interesting to me. I stay away from particularly aggressive work as it doesn’t necessarily suit me. I call it creative instrumental music. So that’s what I do and I love it.

What continues to inspire you about jazz and improvised music?

I think that’s an important question for everyone who plays jazz or any kind of music really.

What’s unique about jazz? It’s important to recognise always the African American heritage of jazz. As leader of JazzBoston, an organisation which advocates for the jazz community, and being a white person, it’s important to recognise where this music came from originally. The improvisational nature and spontaneity of jazz is what really keeps me interested. Also, the constant challenge. When you have music that’s different every time you play it, not only can you spontaneously create melodies but you can also spontaneously create arrangements with a band. You can do things differently every time. Another part that inspires me about jazz is that it is such a large tent. You can incorporate many different elements into jazz. And still, it’s jazz.

A thing that I talk about sometimes is how I consider every performance of jazz to be an experiment.

An experiment is something that you don’t know in advance what’s going to happen. The thing about that is experiments sometimes don’t work. That’s the nature of it. It’s not always going to succeed. I feel strongly that you have to be willing to take risks, you have to be willing to fail, you have to be not playing it safe. And that counts in terms of what you play melodically, how you arrange what songs you play – you have to be willing to take that risk of failure or else you’re not moving things forward.

H O N K ! 2 022 F EST IVA L I N S O M E RV I L L E , M AS SAC H U S E T TS , U.S .

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GRANT WRITING 101: ANSWER THE QUESTION ADAM SI M MO NS Securing funding is crucial for success in many industries – music is no dif ferent. For those looking to develop their creative practice, record their first album or take their music on the road, investment through funding is available for those who can state their case. This is the second of this series drawing upon my own funding successes and failures over the years to provide an over view of practical tips for preparing competitive grant applications .

The process of applying for a grant can be intimidating and overwhelming, especially when it comes to addressing the questions in the application.

Though, it becomes more straightforward when you understand that the questions are basically extracting details around who, what, when, where, how and why. Writing down the answers to these fundamental questions can be a good way to outline the information required in your application.

Answer the question When responding to a question, just answer it. If you’re not answering the question directly then you’re wasting words and may not be providing the required information. A common example of this is when applicants respond to the question of “Describe your project” by giving all of the history leading to the project rather than describing the project. Stay relevant to the question and address key criteria where applicable as they guide how an application is scored.

Clarity To help communicate your message: Be concise Be clear Be explicit Use dot points and headings

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Information can be hard to find in large slabs of text. Make it easy for a reader to understand your message and to find relevant details quickly.

Make it personal Connect your artistic practice to the project – help the assessors see why this is an authentic and logical next step in your development. Whether it is creating music for your next album, touring to a new region or undertaking a period of mentored development, making this connection is critical in establishing the project as a genuine, motivated and achievable goal.

Detail In addition to being personal, it is important to add specific detail when answering questions in a grant application. Names are vital – artists, artworkers, venues, organisations, partners – these go to establishing your network. Show your understanding and knowledge, for example: instead of saying you will promote to media, refer to specific outlets and presenters by name; when outlining the benefit to your community, mention the organisations, schools and ensembles that will be direct beneficiaries. Several named examples will carry much more weight than a broad aspirational statement.

Language While there is no universal “grant-speak”, each application will have specific language that should be used. One example is what word is used to refer to the “project” itself. Australia Council tends to use “project”, while Creative Victoria might use “activity”. Use words from within each question and the listed criteria – these will be the words that assessors are looking for when scoring applications.

Consistency Attention to detail is critical throughout your application. Any inconsistencies, errors or omissions can lead to confusion, undermine credibility or render an application ineligible. Be sure to check all details and references are correct, including in your timeline, budget and support materials.

In conclusion, it is important to understand that anyone can write a successful grant application. From answering questions directly, to being concise and clear with your language, to providing specific details and making sure your application is consistent, these tips can help you give your grant application the best chance to stand out.

Next time: Crunching the numbers – preparing your budget.

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VA L E

SUPPORT ACT

Dingo wishes to acknowledge the passing of the following valued members and contributors of the Australian jazz community and extend our condolences to their beloved friends and family:

C RI SI S RELI EF & WELLBEI NG H OTLI NE

Roger Garrood – saxophone, WAYJO Hall of Fame

Wellbeing Helpline – free & confidential 24/7 support: 1800 959 500 General Enquiries | Crisis Relief: 1300 731 303

Beverley Hay – vocals

www.supportact.org.au

Paula Langlands – vocals, radio broadcaster, member of the Australia Council for the Arts Music Board

Additional Content Contributors

Mike O’Connor – jazz aficionado, supporter of Victorian Jazz Club Bryan O’Neill – drums Andrew Oh – saxophone, flute Ralphe Rickman – radio broadcaster Dave Robison – banjo Niels Rosendahl – saxophones, woodwinds, composer, arranger, Royal Australian Air Force Band, Western Australian Jazz Project Hermann Scheidler – trombone Don Semple – member of Victorian Jazz Club Wally Temple – drums, guitar, reeds Dieter Vogt – bass, trumpet, flugelhorn Graeme Weideman – ex-Chairman of Melbourne International Jazz Festival, former Victorian Minister for Tourism

Adelaide Music Collective Creative Australia Creative Original Music Adelaide Bar Open Brisbane International Jazz Festival Freedman Fellowship Hurstbridge JAzz Club MEAA Melbourne Jazz Co-operative Melbourne Recital Centre Melbourne International Jazz Festival Sydney Improvised Music Association Sydney International Women's Jazz Festival The Count's Uptown Jazz Café West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra

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