Prodigious spaces, but also subtly disturbing: The famous Witch Hunt, now almost a jazz hit: Video, Photos

Donizetti as seen by musicians… I don’t know if I can explain…

It’s a bit sad to say, since the great Dave Holland is paying the price, forced to withdraw from a delicate heart operation, by the way, best wishes for a speedy recovery.

In place of the Holland – Loueke duo, Myra Melford’s Lux Quartet was signed up on the fly, already on tour around Europe and Italy: the pairing with the Danilo Perez plus Ravi Coltrane trio proved to be more than happy and gave rise to a memorable evening, in my opinion.

For Lux, Melford enlisted tenor sax player Dayna Stephens (who has only appeared sparingly in our area), double bass player Nick Dunston (already noticed in the company of Mary Halvorson, a notable calling card) and above all drummer Allison Miller.

On the latter it is worth opening a parenthesis: it does not often happen that in concert, especially on a decidedly important stage like that of the Donizetti, the leader does not utter a word.

Let us also take into account some shyness in front of a majestic traditional theater crowded to the last seat in the gallery, but it seemed a bit strange that the one to brilliantly and lively present the concert was Miller, instead of Melford.

But as soon as the music begins to unfold, we realize that the drummer is an authentic co-pilot of the Lux plane: her clear and airy drumming is crucial to give the imprint to the bright and transparent sound that explains the name of the group.

The full-bodied and sanguine bass of Dunston, another name to mark prominently in the listener’s notebook, gives it a bit of earthly roots.

Once again in Bergamo we witness a slightly sidelined role of the tenor sax, far from the protagonisms of other times: the soft and sinuous one of Stephens responds more to a group logic than to a solo evidence, to the benefit of the remarkable balance and amalgamation of the band.

The silent Myra (who at the end of the concert seemed to almost levitate in front of the Donizetti’s oceanic ovation) shows off a pianism that is also airy, full of clarity and almost delicate: her solo forays are not frequent, but they definitely leave an impression on the listener.

At the end of the concert the crowd at the Donizetti – a large part of which is made up of seasoned jazz lovers of long standing (there is even someone who hasn’t missed an edition since 1969) – decrees a success that is one step away from triumph. A curious episode confirms this: at the end of the set the group leaves, also pressed by the time required for the stage change for the next concert.

But the 1,200 at the Donizetti want the Lux back: a long ovation gradually turns into a dryly rhythmic applause, even on a good tempo. In the end, the first to come out is the usual Allison who swoops down on the drums to ride the rhythm, inciting the audience: Lux is thus launched into the race for an encore on which the curtain finally falls.

Bottom line: in my opinion Lux is the best thing that Melford has put on the field in recent years, a carefully balanced and homogeneous group on a par with the Snowy Egret that the pianist had reunited over 10 years ago: let’s wish them a good life (and several good albums …).

Lux Quartet one year ago. Ironic “congratulations and condolences” dedicated to all parents. Differences compared to Bergamo: Scott Colley on bass instead of Dunston (a very luxurious substitution) and a Dayna Stephens a little less on her own. The rest is all there

The charm of the pairing with the Shorterians of Danilo Perez was all in the diametric contrast: from the bright and clear skies of Lux to the perennial night of the great cosmic spaces, populated however by fluid and iridescent nebulae, in perennial, unstoppable transformation.

Here too, the men of what was once called ‘rhythmics’ are on the shields: special mention goes to the feats of John Patitucci on bass, both bowed and pizzicato.

It is no coincidence that the bassist played almost the entire time sitting on a stool, almost as if to suggest a concert attitude (not foreign, on the contrary, to the music of the latest Shorter).

The group does not offer space for solo forays, it is a fluid nebula that suddenly generates ephemeral aurora borealis and other blinding luminous prodigies in the darkness of deep space.

Perez’s ability also shines in creating unusual and mysterious sounds with the simple manipulation of the piano, with the stimulation of the strings with his bare hands, without the unruly and capricious electronic devices so in vogue today.

Only rarely does Perez use an electronic keyboard to obtain broader brushstrokes of color that serve to better characterize the group sound.

…an absolutely irresistible association of ideas

While I am carried away by the silent dynamism of this fluid music, I cannot help but think of the very first Wheather Report, and especially the fascinating covers of their “Wheather Report” and especially “Misterious Traveller”: perhaps the images that best describe the music listened to by Perez and his companions.

Prodigious spaces, but also subtly disturbing..

A cumbersome surname loomed over Ravi Coltrane, especially in the context created by the trio: and instead his insertion was perfect, here too fluidity and subtlety, curiously the sound knows little difference in the passage from tenor to soprano.

Here too, no protagonism (let alone titanic), indeed Ravi is decisive in confirming that here we are not faced with an evocation, but with the pure, authentic development of Shorterian thought.

1964, Van Gelder Studio. the original ‘Witch Hunt’. Alongside Wayne, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Elvin Jones. A modern classic is born

At the end of the concert, Joe Lovano bursts into the Shorterian hyperuranions with his soprano sax: in the best jazz traditions, one cannot deny oneself the classic “May I sit in?”, even more so this time when the request comes from the host, the director of the festival.

The finale then slips into a rather different climate: obviously, it is necessary to converge on a standard that also gives the newcomer the way to play his game. It will be “Witch Hunt”, now a classic by Wayne, among other things very appropriate to the current moment… The famous theme, very incisive and structured, brings the finale to a more expressionist climate, in which Lovano makes his figure by talking to Ravi. All in all a clear and defined epilogue, perhaps not inappropriate after such an ethereal and elusive concert.

Bottom line. As a good citizen of the cosmos, Wayne is still with us, only he speaks with new voices, but they are also fascinating. In dark and threatening times like ours, he reminds us of the possibility and the ability to look with a clear and serene mind to distant spaces in which an exciting and livable future is still possible: a beautiful message that comes to us from the best of the 70s, the first. And also a good antidote to our Absolute Present crowded with Big Brothers who are dangerous yes, but also laughable and grotesque if seen in a broader perspective.

By the way, once again stay tuned: other signals are coming from afar.

The trio plus Ravi a few days ago. It is precisely the famous ‘Witch Hunt’, now almost a jazz hit: so iconic that it obscures a little the fluid nebula that is this group on other occasions.

Anyway, let the pressing exposition of the theme pass and on the development you can begin to get an idea of ​​the Bergamo set ․․․