Although the musical style known as jazz was first synthesized in the United States in the years just before the First World War, it is today a music that knows no international boundaries. Good jazz is now being played on every continent. What's more, some its most talented musicians - and the most fervent fans- are Asian.
Jazz first began to be heard in Indonesia in the late Thirties when it was played by the visiting Filipino musicians who had come to Indonesia to earn their livings as entertainers. Through their playing, many Indonesian listeners first had the opportunity to hear wind instruments (trumpets, saxophones and so on) usually then featured only in so-called "serious" music played in an exciting new way. That early jazz-influenced music had quite an impact on young people of the day and represented a real contrast to the staid European heritage that then represented "high culture."
Among the other musical elements introduced by these visitors from the Philippines were Latin rhythms - rumbas, sambas, boleros, and more. Many old-timers still recall the names of the more prominent of the visiting Filipino stars: Soleano, Garcia, Pablo, Baial, Torio, Barnarto, and Samboyan. Some stayed for long periods in Jakarta and were even featured as soloists with the Indonesian Radio Orchestra. Others found opportunities to play in cities in various regions of the country. Samboyan, for example, became leader of the Bandung Studio Orchestra. Through the process of observation and osmosis, these new musical influences began to be reflected in the playing of young Indonesian musicians.
Where were theses intriguing new orchestras and smaller groups being heard around Indonesia in the late Thirties? Filipino musicians were entertaining and playing for dancers at Hotel Des Indes (on what is now the site of Duta Merlin Plaza), at Hotel Der Nederlander (there are government offices in that location today), at the Savoy Homann Hotel in Bandung, and at the Orange Hotel in Surabaya. At these and other popular spots, the Dutch mingled on occasion with upper-crust Indonesians.
It is said that the first song composed by an Indonesian specifically to entertain (and using a standard song pattern) was one called "Als de Orchideen Bloeien" ("When The Orchids Bloom") by Ismail Marzuki. The lyrics were in Dutch and the date of publication was November 1939.
Western-influenced music was banned by the Japanese during their occupation. However, Asian music was allowed. And so was keroncong, which was regarded as traditional music. But with the expulsion of the Japanese and the new availability of Western recordings, a broad musical revolution began to occur. Certain individual musicians began to garner local reputations for the clever ways; they adapted overseas influences as a part of their own styles. Pianist Marihot Hutabarat, for example, played with a flair not unlike George Shearing's. He often accompanied singer Sal Saulius Hutabarat, whose baritone voice was said to resemble Billy Eckstine's. Bing Slamet's singing, on the other hand, reflected the influence of Bing Crosby's popular records.
Over sixty Dutch musicians came to Indonesia in 1948 with the intention of organizing a symphony orchestra made up primarily of local musicians. Before they returned to Holland around the time of independence, they had established the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. Among the best known of these Dutch musicians were Baarspoel, Fritz Hintze, Henk te Strake, and Jose Cleber. Some of them lingered beyond their original period of commitment and helped to form ensembles of other sorts.
Cleber's Jakarta Studio Orchestra featured big band arrangements that sounded a lot like what Stan Kenton's band was doing in California around that time. Other prominent groups of the time included The Progressive Trio (with Dick Able as guitarist, Nick Mamahit on piano, and Dick van der Capellen playing bass); Iskandar's Sextet and Octet, which played modern jazz arrangements; The Old Timers, led by Eto Latumeten on tenor saxophone and playing a Dixieland repertoire.
In 1955, Bill Saragih formed the Jazz Riders with himself on piano, vibes, and flute, Didi Chia on piano, Paul Hutabarat as vocalist, Herman Tobing on bass, and Yuse on drums. A later edition featured Hanny Joseph playing drums, Sutrisno playing tenor saxophone, Thys Lopis on bass and Bob Tutupoly as featured singer.
As the jazz style became more popular, other names gained prominence: pianists Taslan Suyatno and Mus Mualim, trumpeter Ari Tess, drummer Benny van Dietz (Benny Mustafa), and many others. The leading lights in Surabaya between 1945 and 1950 were Jack Lemmers / Jack Lesmana (bass), Bubi Chen (piano), Teddy Chen, Jopy Chen (bass), Maryono (saxophone), Berges (piano), Oei Boen Leng (guitar), Didi Pattirane (guitar), Mario Diaz (drums), and Benny Heinem (clarinet). During the Fifties and Sixties, the big names on the Bandung jazz scene were Eddy Karamoy (guitar), Joop Talahahu (tenor saxophone), Leo Massenggi, Benny Pablo, Dolf (alto saxophone), John Lepel (bass), Iskandar (guitar and piano), and Sadikin Zuchra (guitar and piano).
Among the younger musicians who began to be heard in Jakarta during the Seventies and Eighties are the late Perry Pattiselano (bass), Embong Raharjo (saxophone), Luluk Purwanto (violin), Oele Pattiselano (guitar), Jackie Pattiselano (drums), Benny Likumahuwa (trombone and bass), Bambang Nugroho (piano), Elfa Secioria (piano). Some of these younger players leaned toward rock and fusion, but occasionally had opportunities to play in a jazz context: Yopie Item (guitar), Karim Suweileh (drums), Wimpy Tanasale (bass), Abadi Soesman (keyboards), Candra Darusman (keyboards), Christ Kayhatu (piano), Joko WH (guitar), and many others.
There are doubtless many other names deserving of mention. The list above represents only a cross-section of musical talent in past decades. The musical scene in Indonesia today is a busy one, with many chances for talented players to earn their livings playing for television, in nightclubs and as back-up for pop singers. But many of them would like to have the chance to play real jazz more often because it's music that stimulates and challenges them. As lovers of this music, we should support them wherever and whenever we can. Our enthusiasm will allow them to keep the music as vital and as omnipresent as it should be!
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Saturday, January 31, 2009
INDONESIAN JAZZ HISTORY
Friday, January 30, 2009
BHASKARA 2008
Kelompok ini awalnya tampil dengan nama Bambang Nugroho & Friends yang terbentuk karena kerinduan beberapa musisi kota Bandung akan jenis musik Jazz Standard, Latin, Funk & Fusion yang sempat berpengaruh pada era tahun 1980 dan 1990 an.
Bambang Nugroho dan Dadi Sufiyadi pada tahun 1980an sempat melakukan kolaborasi dengan Donny Suhendra dan Yuke Sumeru di kota Bandung dan sempat membentuk Batalyon of Musicians (BOM) dan pada tahun 1983 sempat tampil beberapa kali secara live (on air) di Jazz Program TV Nasional. Pada tahun 1985 Bambang Nugroho tampil pertama kali dengan Bhaskara 85, sebelum kemudian bergabung dalam Bhaskara 86 dan tampil sebagai duta musik jazz & fusion Indonesia di beberapa International Jazz Festival seperti North Sea Jazz Festival di Den Haag, Belanda.
Dadi Sufiyadi yang pernah menggondol gelar Best Drummer III – Jakarta 1978, Best Drummer I – Jakarta 1980, Best Drummer SLTA 1981 - 1984, dan Best Drummer LMC’83, memiliki latar belakang pendidikan musik drum di YMI selain pernah belajar pada Elfa Musik Studio (EMS) Jakarta antara tahun 1982–1983 bersama Black Fantasy Band. Dadi juga pernah mendapatkan pendidikan musik percussion di Bandung 1983-84 dari Hasbullah dan Adang Bendo. Sempat bergabung dengan berbagai kelompok musik seperti Black Fantasy, Abadi Soesman Band, Bahana Band, Spirit Band, BOM Bandung, Krakatau, DKSB Harry Roesli, Bill Saragih Trio, Big City Blues dan terakhir sempat mengeluarkan album bersama Canizzaro Band.
Bambang Nugroho & Friends terbentuk di pertengahan tahun 2006 atas prakarsa beberapa pengamat dan pecinta musik jazz di kota Bandung dan diundang khusus oleh Peter F Gontha untuk tampil pada 3rd Java Jazz Festival 2007 Jakarta dengan formasi: Bambang Nugroho (grand piano & sopran/tenor saxophone, Imam Pras (keyboard & grand piano), Tiwi Sakuhaci (vocal & accordion), Balqi Lesmana (bass), Kanggep Kusuma (guitar), Ahmad Sankis (percussions) dan Dadi Sufiyadi (drum) mengiringi penyanyi senior Rien Djamain.
Dalam perjalanannya Bambang Nugroho & Friends sering kali tampil dengan formasi Bambang Nugroho Trio, Bambang Nugroho Quartet, Bambang Nugroho Quintet dan Bambang Nugroho Acoustic dan terakhir terbentuk dengan nama Bambang Nugroho Octagon (dengan formasi 8 pemain musik), Bambang Nugroho Hexagon (dengan formasi 6 pemain musik) dan Bambang Nugroho Pentagon (dengan formasi 5 pemain musik).
Berdasarkan saran dan masukan khusus dari Peter F Gontha, Bambang Nugroho Octagon akan tampil dengan nama Bhaskara 2008 pada 4th Java Jazz Festival di Jakarta.
Formasi Bambang Nugroho Octagon (Bhaskara 2008) adalah:
Bambang Nugroho (grand piano/keyboard dan tenor/sopran saxophone)
Imelda Rosalin (vocal dan keyboard/grand piano/accordion
Imam Pras (keyboard/grand piano)
Balqi Lesmana (6 strings & up right bass)
Kanggep Kusuma (electric & acoustic Guitar)
Dadi Sufiyadi (drums)
Ammy Kurniawan (4, 5 & 6 strings violins)
Ahmad Sankis (latin & local Percussions)
Di 4th Java Jazz Festival, Bhaskara 2008 membawakan komposisi original dan baru bertemakan pop, jazz & latin yang kental dengan karakter permainan piano Bambang Nugroho ditambah beberapa lagu lama milik Bhaskara 86 dengan komposisi dan aransemen baru.
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RETRO SWING
Just a couple years approaching the millenium, there are some revitalization brought to the jazz scene. One of the result is the rebirth of the conventional swing band. Swing band was born again into an interesting form, generally referred as “retro swing”. Retro Swing still has the same swinging feel as the 30s or 40s style, but this time the swingers have added numbers of influences along. It could be ska, punk, or rock, even the boogie woogie, blues or rock and roll, added into the conventional swing. Some of the influences drive the beat to go in faster swingin rhythm. So, basically, it has the same ingredients of the originals, still with the vintage clothings, collection of old cars, some use acrobatic dancers as well, but some more recent elements added and blend nicely.
Starting from the underground scene of music, now the style of retro swing has burst upon the public’s consciounness. There are many bands or musicians playing in this retro swing area. Brian Setzer, Katharine Whalen, Bernadette Seacrest, Lavay Smith, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy,Squirrel Nut Zippers, and Veronica Martell, are some of them who helped to bring this genre into the spotlight. It’s great to see that swing is still alive and still kickin’ into the new millenium with this new breed. Keep swingin’ guys!
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NEO SOUL
Need modern food to feed your soul? A new take on soul food is here. Neo Soul is a genre that emerged not that long ago. This neo soul, or some name it, Nu Soul,came from the late 1990s as a hybrid of 70s soul music and the classic contemporary R & B, but with influences from many genres like hip hop, house music, funk, gospel and many jazz elements. It’s a modern-day soul music, with modern attitudes and sensibilities.
The term is believed to have originated with Kedar Massenburg of Motown Records back in the late 1990s, but actually it first came from Tony!Toni!Tone! in the mid 1990s. Neo soul also got a lot of influence from the acid jazz movement in UK. Neo soul is sometimes looked upon with disdain as nothing more than a marketing specialization of contemporary R & B instead of an honest revival of soul music. This is because most of the people who record in the genre and listen to it tend to be anti-mainstream preferring that the music favor underground credibility and soulfulness over mainstream popularity.
Many famous names are known pouring their creativities under this genre, despite the fact that most of them never want to be associated with the genre. Jill Scott, Maxwell, Erykah Badu, Angie Stone, Corinne Bailey Rae, John Legend, Alicia Keys, Angela Johnson, Rahsaan Paterson, Macy Gray,India Arie,Lauryn Hill and many more.
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SWING
Swing is a form of jazz that developed in late 1920 as a well known style in USA. It came from New Orleans, then spread over New York and other cities. Swing music usually has crowded and large ensemble of musician, and this is where the name BIG BAND came from, including double bass, drum, brasses and also strings. Swing also has different composition and notation. There’s big dependency to the band leader, since usually the spirit, the power and the timing for improvisation came from them. Because of that, there’s no surprise that many swing band leader became popular, like Glenn Miller or Benny Goodman to mention a view. The composition could easily producing chaos sound, that came from spontaneous improvising of more than 10 musicians at the same time.
For Benny Goodman, the “King of Swing”, Swing defined as a “free speech in music.” “The most important element in Swing,” said Benny, “is improvisation. The liberty a soloist has to stand and play a chorus in the way he feels it, instead of the way in which it was written, a liberty never given any musician in classical performances. That is why I say Swing is genuinely American. It’s the expression of an individual -a kind of free speech in music. It’s the democratic privilege of rising from a storekeeper to President.” That’s how the swing was originally styled, eventhough in the progress, swing could composed more percisely and planned as well. The typical song of swing usually would feature a strong and anchoring rhythm section supporting the freedom of brass sounds, strings and vocals. The most common style is having a soloist be the main man at the center of the stage, and improvised a solo within the framework of the band. However, while the soloist improvised, there is also normal for some band members improvising as well.
Tommy Dorsey, that Sentimental Gentleman, had his own defination. “Jazz was modern music in its infancy and Swing is the infant grown up with all the vigor of eight to the bar come of age. Zestful, reflecting life’s present-day tempo, Swing is sweet and hot at the same time and broad enough in its creative conception to meet, every challenge tomorrow may present.”
Harry James offers a straight matter of fact explanation: “Swing is improvised music, rranged and played in the various styles of big time bands.”
Swing style reached its golden years throughout 30’s to 40’s, and later began to decline during the world war II, mostly because there were many musicians at that time were overseas fighting in the war. Also, when the crisis hit America during the war, the cost of touring with large ensamble was prohibited.
There are many genres appeared after the world war II, but still swing survive until today. There are also many crossover in swing, which enriched this one of the most famous style in jazz. Many important names were given the key to continue the life of swing. Imagine what would it be without Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, then the next generation like Frank Sinatra, then the Rat Pack, or Nat King Cole. Later on in the modern world, there are set of crooners like Harry Connick Jr, Michael Buble, Steve Tyrell and many others. The ladies took such an important part too. Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday or Julie London for example had their moment too in swing.
From the old fashioned and genuine swing, to the new born nu-swing or electro swing which popularized by G Swing in the millenium era, we can be sure that swing will still have its part in the musical world.
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MICHAEL FRANKS
Talking about Michael Franks is talking about someone who has contributed something very special in the jazz world. Simply an unquestionable talent. Inspirational lyrics, rhytmic balance, beautiful arrangement, and of course, who could resist his sweet and soft comforting voice. His way of singing is uniquely different. He always interpret songs in a very simple way and focusing on the beauty inside every songs. He just sing it simple without vibration, and that’s his trademark that loved by many over the years. Simply put, Michael Franks is one of the best talent in the jazz world.
Michael Franks was born on September 18th, 1944 in La Jolla, California. He bought his first guitar when he was 14 with six private lessons included, and that became the only music education he had. Michael began his music lane by singing folk rock with guitar. Then later on he started focusing on jazz. It was a perfect choice, because with jazz he could explore his ability widely, and soon after that people realized they got something new in jazz with him. Michael Franks’ first appearance in music industry was in 1973 with his first selftitle album. Until now, he has made 21 albums, and the good news is, it won’t stop there because he’s still active.
During his career he has been working with big talents in music industry such as Patti Austin, Art Garfunkel, David Sanborn, Brenda Russel and many others. His songs have been recorded by Patti Labelle, Diana Krall, Carmen McRae, The Manhattan Transfer and The Carpenters.
What kind of jazz does he bring? Mostly I can relate him with smooth jazz. Yes, smooth jazz is his base. I think his smooth, soft and relaxingly whistling voice really fits in it. But he also added many taste of jazz in his songs as well. There are many songs where he play around with mainstream or standard jazz, in other times he emphasize acoustically on guitar, then there are also touch of blues, even light bossa in his megahits “Lady Wants To Know” and “Antonio’s Song”. Both of this song are very famous in Asia, especially in Indonesia.
One thing for sure, it’s never difficult to enjoy his music. He never make it sound complicated. Simple, soft, smooth, cozy, relaxing and comforting music is the best way to describe Michael Franks’ music. His best piece of works include Lady Wants To Know, When I Give My Love To You, Barefoot On The Beach, Popsicle Toes, Rainy Night In Tokyo, Tiger In The Rain, Monkey See, Monkey Do and Antonio’s Song.
Everybody can listen to his music, his charm and simplicity put him in a very special stage in jazz and in the listeners’ heart.
Michael Franks’ Discography:
1973 - Michael Franks (Brut)
1976 - The Art of Tea (Reprise)
1977 - Sleeping Gypsy (Warner Brothers)
1978 - Burchfield Nines (Warner Brothers)
1979 - Tiger in the Rain (Warner Brothers)
1980 - One Bad Habit (Warner Brothers)
1980 - With Crossfire - Live (Warner Brothers)
1982 - Objects of Desire (Warner Brothers)
1983 - Passionfruit (Warner Brothers)
1985 - Skin Dive (Warner Brothers)
1987 - The Camera Never Lies (Warner Brothers)
1988 - Indispensable (Warner Brothers)
1990 - Blue Pacific (Reprise)
1993 - Dragonfly Summer (Warner Brothers)
1995 - Abandoned Garden (Warner Brothers)
1998 - The Best Of Michael Franks : A Backward Glance (Warner Brothers)
1999 - Barefoot on the Beach (Windham Hill)
2003 - The Michael Franks Anthology: The Art Of Love (Warner Brothers)
2003 - Watching The Snow (Rhino)
2004 - Love Songs (Warner Brothers)
2006 - Rendezvous in Rio (KOC)
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AZIZA MUSTAFA ZADEH
Download music!: Aziza Mustafa Zadeh-Sheherezadeh; Aziza Mustafa Zadeh-Boomerang; Aziza Mustafa Zadeh-I Don't Know
Meet the Princess of Jazz from the western side of Caspian Sea. Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, also known as Jazziza, is a lady with a special gift. She’s a fantastic pianist, amazing composer and also has superb voice. She play her music in an unique style, deeply influenced by the Azerbaijan’s traditional style known as Mugam.
Mugam jazz was created by her own father, Vagif Mustafa Zadeh. Vagif was also a pianist with superb skill. He passed away tragically at the early age of 39 caused by heart attack. This Mugam Jazz has the sense of Middle East blending perfectly with melodies, it’s glorious and dreamy. Aziza continues what her father has left in more modern approach. When we listen to Aziza’s songs, it feels like we are having a journey through the magical and beautiful 1001 night. Really, magical and beautiful imagination will definately filled our mind through her compositions. And that’s exactly what she wants, the connection between feelings and the music. Often she also felt her father’s presence in her shows. She once said, “For me, my father has never died. He simply has left this earth. I still feel his energy surrounding me. Sometimes, it’s like his soul is flying around me, you know. There are times when I give concerts that I feel his presence so strongly, it’s almost tangible. It’s like I could reach out and touch him.”Aziza has worked with many stars, like Bill Evans, Stanley Clarke, Al Di Meola, Omar Hakim, John Patitucci and Dave Weckl to name a few. She has started her appearance on stage at the age of three, improvising vocals accompanying her father. She began by learning classical piano at a very young age and attached deeply by the works of famous composers like Bach, Chopin and Mozart. That’s the reason why she has composed some of their masterpieces in her albums.
Aziza has a very unique improvisation method. She brought jazz into a different world, combining classical, new age, fusion, even avant garde touch, opera singing style, and of course mugam as her music. One thing for sure, you will get a different experience in jazz after you listen to her albums. Unique mugam jazz, high skill improvisation, beautiful echoing and chipping voice, blended together, ready to send us into a journey through a different world of magic like we’ve never experienced before.
Discography:
Aziza Mustafa Zadeh (1991)
Always (1993)
Dance of Fire (1995)
Seventh Truth (1996)
Jazziza (1997)
Inspiration - Colors & Reflections (2000)
Shamans (2002)
Contrasts (2006)
Contrasts 2 Opera Jazz (2007) Readmore...
KULKUL
With hundreds of ethnics that come from more than 13000 islands spreading from west to east, no wonder Indonesia has lots of different kind of ethnical music. Almost every side of Indonesia has their own kind of music, and for some musicians these ethnical music often blend with the familiar style like rock or jazz.This time an amazing ethnic-blended fusion comes from the land of Gods, Bali. They’re cool, combining modern japanese-style fusion with gamelan and traditional musics of Bali in one groovy jazz. Kulkul is absolutely amazing, outstanding and genious. With all the respect to all the personnel, the highlight of this group is the drummer, Demas Narawangsa. He’s still 14, but he has started his career from the age of 7, when he won the first prize for Indonesian Expo Drum Competition, back in 2000. When he reached 12 year old, he formed this band along with some friends.Not only Demas is great in this band. The other member performed outstandingly too. Ethnical instruments speak in their songs, such as Balinese gamelan, blended perfectly with guitar, violin etc, in a really fun-playing rhythm. Their performance always speak a lot about Bali through each and every song they play, and it’s unbelievable to experience Balinese music fused perfectly as one with Casiopea’s style.
Kulkul are:
Demas Narawangsa (Demas) (Drum, Kempluk)
Sigit Ardityo Kurniawan (Didit) (Violin)
RM Aditya Andriyanto (Adit) (Keyboard)
Adman Maliawan (Awan) (Bass)
I Ketut Budiyasa (Kendang, Gangsa Pemade, Kulkul)
I Komang Sumada (Flute, Gangsa Pemade, Cengceng Kopyak, Kulkul)
I Wayan Sudiarta (Cengceng, Gangsa Kantilan)
I Wayan Sudarsana (Kulkul, Gangsa Kantilan, Cengceng Kopyak)
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BALAWAN
I Wayan Balawan is a jazz guitarist from Ubud, Gianyar, Bali. He was born on September 1973, and grew up around the Balinese gamelan music environment. He started playing guitar when he was still 8 years old, and made his first band when he was 14 years old. When he reached 20 years old, he went to Sydney to study at the Australian Institute of Music under a scolarship, then he came back to Bali and formed Batuan Ethnic Fusion, where he brilliantly combining Balinese gamelan music and jazz. Until now, he’s considered as one of the most famous and favorite Indonesian jazz guitarist.
Balawan has a really special style. His “Touch Tapping Style” (almost like Stanley Jordan style), a style with eight finger plays to tap the fretboard, covering all the bass, chord and melody all alone. His left hand handles chord and bass, while the right hand tapped the melody, which resembles piano playing. His albums are all great, combining Balinese instruments with jazz fusion. You’ll feel the magical Balinese feeling in the shape of jazz, amazing blend of ethnical eastern side of the world with the western world, all in the plays of brilliant guitarist, Balawan.
Discography:
- GloBALIsm (with Batuan Ethnic Fusion) (2000)
- Balawan (2001)
- Magic Finger (2005)
- Trisum (trio guitarists band with Dewa Budjana & Tohpati) (2007)
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INDRA LESMANA
Download music!: Indra Lesmana-Mimpi Dan Rumah Ke Tujuh
Once upon a time, sometimes around mid 1976, people witnessed the magical performance by a 10 year old boy on stage, a 10 year old boy with ten little fingers dancing on the fender rhodes. A star was born. It was his first appearance on stage, and he’s still making a big impact in Indonesian jazz frame till today. Indra Lesmana was a wonder kid, and will always be someone with very special and gifted talent.
Several years after, he came back to Indonesia, and formed a quartet with his father, Jack and Indra Lesmana Quartet. The other two was Karim Suweileh and James Morrison. When he returned to Australia, he made a latin fusion band called “Children of Fantasy” that only lasted less than a year. Another band was formed after that, called Nebula, with Steve Hunter, Ken James, Andy Evans, Vince Genova and Carlinhos Gonzalves. With this formation he released “No Standing”.This album released in Australia under Jasmine Records, and also in Indonesia by prestigeous Jackson Records.
Two of his albums, “No Standing and “For Earth and Heaven” was released in USA. Two singles, No Standing and Stephanie entered the Jazz Billboard Chart in USA, and also several radio charts at that time.
Indra has made or involved in more than 40 albums in his career. He has tons of solo albums, but he was also joining several bands like Krakatau, Java Jazz and P.I.G (Pra B Dharma, Indra , Gilang Ramadhan). He also produced albums for many other fellow musicians, and personally mixed and mastered more than 20 albums of other musicians. Indra Lesmana also works for Indonesian Idol as one of the jury.
Tons of awards, lots of albums, and more than 30 years of creativity, amazing talent on playing keyboard, piano and some other instruments has made him a legend, an Indonesian jazz icon. It would be really difficult to imagine indonesian jazz world without Indra.
Discography:
* 1976 Jazz Masa Lalu dan Masa Kini (first appearance and first recording of Indra Lesmana)
* 1978 Ayahku Sahabatku
* 1981 Children of Fantasy
* 1982 No Standing
* 1982 Nostalgia
* 1982 Latin Jazz Fusion
* 1983 Women and Children First
* 1984 No Standing
* 1984 Tragedi
* 1984 Yang Pertama Yang Bahagia
* 1986 For Earth and Heaven
* 1986 Karina
* 1986 Gemilang
* 1986 Jack & Indra Lesmana
* 1987 La Samba Primadona
* 1987 Semakin Menawan
* 1988 Kau Datang
* 1988 Ekspresi
* 1989 Dunia Boleh Tertawa
* 1989 Titi DJ 1989
* 1990 Aku Ingin
* 1990 Adegan
* 1992 Cerita Lalu
* 1992 Selangkah Di Depan
* 1992 Hanya Untukmu
* 1993 Biarkan Aku Kembali
* 1994 Tiada Kata
* 1994 Waktu Berjalan
* 1994 Keharidan
* 1994 Bulan Di Atas Asia
* 1994 Ayah
* 1995 Kabut Di Kaki Langit
* 1996 Jalan Yang Hilang
* 1996 Romantic Piano
* 1996 Jalan Hidupmu
* 1996 Menari-Nari
* 1997 Lost Forest
* 1997 Selamat Tinggal
* 1998 Kedua
* 1998 Sabda Prana
* 1999 Saat Yang Terindah
* 2000 Interaski
* 2000 Reborn
* 2001 The Birds
* 2002 Kinanti
* 2002 Rumah Ke Tujuh OST
* 2003 Gelatik
* 2005 Silver
* 2007 Kayon - Tree of life
Awards:
* Best Jazz/Pop Keyboards Instrumentalist - Gadis [1989]
* Best Pop Selling Album : “Aku Ingin“ - BASF Awards [1990]
* Diamond Achievement Awards - De Beers Diamond [1995]
* Best Jazz/Fusion Album – producer : “ Ermi Kullit - Saat Yang Terindah “ - 4th AMI Awards [2000]
* Best Jazz Vocalist - News Music Awards [2001]
* Best Keyboardist - News Music Awards [2001]
* Best Instrumental Song : “ Reborn “ - 5th AMI Awards [2001]
* Best Jazz/Contemporary Jazz Album – producer : “ Andien - Kinanti “ - 6th AMI Awards [2002]
* Best Score/Soundtrack : “ Rumah Ke Tujuh “- Festival Film Bandung [2003]
* Best Jazz/Contemporary Jazz Artist - 7th AMI Awards [2003]
* Best Jazz Song : “Mimpi & Rumah ke Tujuh“ - 7th AMI Awards [2003]
* Best Jazz Arranger : “Mimpi & Rumah ke Tujuh“ - 7th AMI Awards [2003]
* Best Jazz Producer : “OST Rumah ke Tujuh“ - 7th AMI Awards [2003]
* Most Radical Musician : Nokia 7600 [2004] Readmore...
THE HISTORY OF JAZZ
Close to the turn of the century, ragtime, blues and marching band music were the dominating musics in USA. Jazz, or Jass, the first word where it came from, appeared sometimes around 1890’s in the city called New Orleans. Jass combined the elements of ragtime, blues and marching band music. What made it different was the improvisation. Before Jass, musicians tried their best to played what the composer wrote, exactly like it was. In jass, it was all about improvisation. What the composer wrote was just a reference, a point, or guideline for the musicians to improvise around. Some musicians didn’t even know how to read the notes, but the way they play always thrilled the audience with such a spontanious style of music.
If one ask where the word Jazz comes from, there will be many contradicting theories and histories appear. One of the theory has documents showing a factual perspective. Those documents stated that jass, the original word for Jazz, came from the “slang” that had been used at that time by the african-american community, means sex. Why using that slang to a newborn music? it’s because when they were playing, they felt all the joy and enjoyment, satisfaction, just like having sex. Some other documents stated that jass is a word that can be compared to the use of “cool” word, meaning something to do with vigor and energy. Many other versions of course to define where the word came from.
Back to the history of jazz, there are also many stories about who created it. Many believe that it was african american bands just close before the turn of the century. But the use of a term jass as a band name came from white band, the Original Dixieland Jass Band, which also was the first band to record this kind of music on Feb 26th 1917. Their first record named “Livery Stable Blues”, sold easily around 1 million copies at that time. This “New Orleans” style of jazz then used primarily as entertainment for the african-american working class, acting as functional music for dances, parades and funerals, and could also be heard in other places like gambling parlour and so on all around the city.
In 1920s, Chicago had become the new center for jazz due to the migration of a large Black population from the South looking for new job opportunities and a better lifestyle in the North. Along with this migration came the music and musicians that created the New Orleans style of jazz. Now in Chicago, these innovators including pianist/composer Jelly Roll Morton, trombonist Kid Ory, cornetist Joe “King” Oliver, young Louis Armstrong, saxophonist and clarinetist Sidney Bechet, Jimmy Noone, pianist Earl Hines, and began to gain national recognition through their recordings and popularity in clubs. This jazz music, the New Orleans style, and the early recordings of the ODJB, began attracting many young white players who would eventually form their own bands. These musicians included cornetist Bix Beiderbecke, saxophonist Frank Trumbauer, clarinetist Pee Wee Russell and a group of Chicago musicians known as the Austin High Gang, including saxophonist Bud Freeman, cornetist Jimmy McPartland, and drummer Dave Tough. As the popularity of jazz had expanded in Chicago, it would also find its way to Kansas City and finally New York.
In New York, this kind of music grew and popularized so fast. All of a sudden there was jazz-craze in New York, but in New York, jazz became more “sophisticated” and appeared in hotels for higher class segmentation of listeners. Names such as Fats Waller, Count Basie and Duke Ellington began to appear in the musical scene. The expansion of jazz from the traditional New Orleans style of five musicians to larger jazz groups of usually ten musicians became the style in the development of jazz, then later went even bigger and called Big Band.
From those first forms and early developments, in this modern days, there are more than 40 sub genres of jazz in the music scene. It’s fascinating and amazing to see how this music still growing and developing each and every day, and entertaining millions of people. Let’s wait and see where jazz goes in the future.
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THE DEVELOPMENT OF JAZZ
As we know, lots of music genres exist in the world, but there is one kind of music that attracted me the most. It is Jazz. Why? Because listening to Jazz music can make me relax and feel alive, because jazz music is very soulful and creative. Like any other music, jazz has a history of its development that made it become what we hear these days. Interesting things that can be told about jazz history are its origins, its three misconceptions, its education and its forms.
Jazz is an improvisational, Afro-American musical form. Although its melodies and harmonies are influenced by European music, its rhythm is fundamentally African in origin (Williams, 860). The origins of jazz is starting in the latter part of 19th century from black work songs, field shouts, sorrow songs, hymns, and spirituals whose harmonic, rhythmic, and melodic elements were predominantly African. At the outset, jazz was slow to win acceptance by the general public, not only because of its cultural origin, but also because it tended to suggest loose morals and low social status. However, jazz gained a wide audience when orchestras adapted or imitated it, and became legitimate entertainment in the late 1930s when Benny Goodman led racially mixed group concerts at Carnegie Hall (Lagasseé, 1).
Furthermore, Jazz is generally thought to have begun in New Orleans, spreading to Chicago, Kansas City, New York City, and the West Coast. The blues, vocal and instrumental, was and is a vital component of jazz, which includes: ragtime; New Orleans or Dixieland jazz; swing; bop or bebop; progressive or cool jazz; neo-bop or hard-bop; third stream; mainstream modern; Latin-jazz; jazz-rock; and avant-garde or free jazz (Lagasseé, 1).
Beside the origins of Jazz, the other interesting parts of it are the misconceptions. Actually, there are lots of misconceptions in Jazz, but the most widespread is the concept that New Orleans was the exclusive American nursery of jazz. The second is that Jazz was originally African-American music and the third is the racial theory of jazz nurtured since the 1930s by critics in France (Feather, 21).
The first misconception is because a lot of musicians at that time came from New Orleans. And it is strongly connected with a tremendous volume of material that has been brought to light concerning virtually any musician’s background could be tied to the colorful story of the New Orleans brass brands. The second misconception – that is jazz grew wholly out of “African music” – is based on the fact that the music we recognize today as jazz is a synthesis of six main sources: rhythms from West Africa; harmonic structure from European classical music; melodic and harmonic qualities from nineteenth-century American folk music; religious music; work songs, and minstrel show music; with, a substantial overlapping of many of these areas. The last misconception is that more than half of the greatest jazz artists have been Negros; the music stemmed from a specific social environment, originally conditioned by slavery, in which groups of people largely shut off from the white world developed highly personal cultural traits. The truth about jazz is that it was not only from New Orleans, but also from other part of United States that came up simultaneously. Also jazz is came from African-American because when slavery era, they make melodies and rhythm that soon called as Jazz (Feather, 21-23).
Jazz is not only interesting from the history of the music, but it is also interesting from the history of its education. There are some people who are very concerned about the education of jazz music, thus they made School of Jazz and they made The Jazz Educator Journal. In this journal they wrote that Jazz is a purely American cultural heritage. According to Martin Luther, music was “the excellent gift of God”, and by recognizing its value in education, sought diligently for its inclusion in formal schooling. Based on what Rick Arnold wrote, with its inception, one of the functions of the public school was to “Americanize” the vast number of immigrants that were immigrating to this country. Americanization normally meant discarding old customs and values. This function of “Americanization” began to assume a lesser role in public education when, along with the civil rights movement in the ‘60’s came the realization that both cultural heritage and preservation were worth investigating and maintaining (Kuzmich, 7).
In addition, jazz is the music that is reflective of the American culture and peculiar to that culture alone. Only in America can one find a society that not only condones, but actually promotes this type of freedom in virtually every facet of human life. But shamefully, as Americans, they have not only failed in their public school systems to educate their youth to the fact that jazz is a purely American art form, but they have also neglected this valuable cultural heritage to the point that it became, at one time, virtually extinct (Kuzmich, 7-8)
Last but not least, the important thing that can be told about jazz is its forms. There are several forms in jazz music as previously mentioned. These include blues, ragtime, New Orleans jazz, swing, bop, progressive or cool jazz and also the recent trends of jazz.
As a result, Jazz is a very interesting music. Not only about its origins and its three misconceptions, but it is also about the education and the forms of it. Generally, music, not only jazz, has the power to heal. It can help us to relax and feel alive. It was and still is “the excellent gift of God”.
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WEATHER REPORT
Weather Report was an influential jazz fusion band of the 1970s and early 1980s combining jazz and latin jazz with art music, ethnic music, r&b, funk and rock elements (in varying proportions throughout their career). Their music is demonstrative of high levels of compositional[citation needed] and improvisational skill.
Being one of the groups most frequently associated with both fusion and jazz-rock may be seen as ironic, as Joe Zawinul once said in a Down Beat interview he "did not understand what fusion meant" and Pat Metheny once revealed he and Jaco Pastorius sometimes used to talk about how much they disliked that musical style called "jazz-rock".
The beginning
Founders pianist Joe Zawinul and saxophonist Wayne Shorter first met and became friends in 1959 as they had both played in Maynard Ferguson's Big Band. Zawinul went on to play with Cannonball Adderley's group in the 1960s and Shorter with Miles Davis second great quintet where both made their mark among the best composers in jazz. Zawinul later joined Shorter with Miles Davis's first recordings of fusion music as part of the studio groups which recorded In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew, although Zawinul was never part of Davis' touring line-up. Weather Report is, despite this, often seen as a spin-off from the group of musicians associated with Miles Davis in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Initially, the band's music featured extended improvisation, similar to Davis's Bitches Brew-period work, and instrumentation included both a traditional trap set drummer ( Alphonse Mouzon ) and a second percussionist (first Airto Moreira, later Dom Um Romão). The group was unusual and innovative in abandoning the soloist-accompaniment demarcation of straight-ahead jazz and instead featuring continuous improvisation by every member of the band.
Reedman Wayne Shorter further pioneered the role of the soprano sax (taking the torch from Sidney Bechet's, Steve Lacy's and John Coltrane's earlier efforts) and both Zawinul and original bassist Miroslav Vitouš experimented with rock guitarists' electronic effects, Zawinul on piano and synthesizers, Vitouš on upright bass, often bowed, as a second horn-like voice.
Early recordings
Weather Report's self titled debut album Weather Report won Down Beat magazine's Album of the Year in 1971. Although the album features a softer sound than in later years (acoustic bass and no synthesizers were used), it is still considered a classic of early fusion. The opening song "Milky Way" uses a technique by which the piano strings are sounded not by the hammers from the keyboard itself but from Shorter's soprano saxophone playing the notes and causing sympathetic vibrations in the piano strings.
The following year, Weather Report's second album, I Sing the Body Electric, featured their first use of electronics beyond an electric keyboard (a synthesizer and sound effects were utilized). Part of the album was recorded live in Japan, an excerpt from what was then a Japanese-only release. The entire Live in Tokyo double album would later be released as an import and made available in the United States.
Becoming "Funkier"
Starting with 1973's Sweetnighter, Zawinul decided to abandon the (primarily) acoustic group improvisation format and the band started to take a new direction. Weather Report became more funk/groove oriented while adding more structure to both song and improvisational sections. This change would prove to be not the best fit for Vitouš' talents as his relative lack of interest in playing more repetitive, funky vamps would become an issue (parts of Sweetnighter employ an electric bass studio sideman). Eventually this led to his departure and replacement by a fretless electric bass player Shorter knew who was playing with Chuck Mangione's group, Alphonso Johnson. The last song on the album, Shorter's "Non Stop Home", would arguably foreshadow the band's hallmark sound that would appear more in evidence on their next album.
Instability with the drum chair
For its first 8 years of existence the group had difficulty finding a permanent drummer, moving through an approximate average of one drummer per year Alphonse Mouzon, Eric Gravatt, Greg Errico, Ishmael Wilburn, Skip Hadden, Darryl Brown, Leon 'Ndugu' Chancler, Chester Thompson, Narada Michael Walden and Alex Acuña until Jaco Pastorius helped recruit Peter Erskine in 1978. Erskine and Omar Hakim later on were the only Weather Report drummers that played with the band more than 2 years.
Middle Period
Weather Report's breakout album that established its hallmark sound would be Mysterious Traveller from 1974. For the first time an electric bass (performed by Philadelphian Alphonso Johnson) would be used on nearly every song. In addition, general compositional technique would be greatly heightened and Zawinul would exploit improvements in synthesizer technology on the recording. Some of the extra musical effects beyond just the musical synthesizer playing include crowd cheering (taken from an actual Rose Bowl game), space alien sounds, and child-like cries (Zawinul's own son recorded in their home). Mysterious Traveller would begin Weather Report's unprecedented string of four consecutive Down Beat "Album of the Year" awards.
Tale Spinnin', recorded in 1975, made even further strides in utilizing technological improvements in synthesizers. The album also showcased more of Wayne Shorter's soloing to the extent that he probably solos more on that album than any other Weather Report record. Shorter would also record the seminal and well received Latin-jazz classic of the 1970s, Native Dancer, under his own name that same year with the Brazilian vocalist Milton Nascimento. The Weather Report effort won the Down Beat best album award again and the Shorter/Nascimento effort was runner up.
The "Jaco" Years
By 1976's Black Market, the group's music had evolved further from the open-ended funk jams into more melody-oriented, concise forms, which also achieved a greater mass-market appeal. Most notably, this album introduced virtuoso bassist Jaco Pastorius into the group, although he only played on two of this album's tracks. Alphonso Johnson (who played on the other 5 songs) decided to leave Weather Report to play with the Billy Cobham/George Duke Band (a group that featured a young John Scofield on guitar). Black Market was perhaps the most rock oriented studio album by Weather Report, in part due to former Frank Zappa sideman Chester Thompson playing drums on most of the songs (he later would be recruited into the touring band of Genesis). Black Market again won Down Beat's album of the year.
The addition of Jaco Pastorius helped push the group to the height of their popularity. Their biggest individual hit, jazz standard "Birdland", from the Heavy Weather album in 1977, even made the pop charts that year. The group also appeared on television on one of Don Kirshner's Rock Concerts. Heavy Weather proved to be the band's most successful album in terms of sales, while still retaining wide critical acclaim. Pastorius established a new standard in fretless electric bass playing and added two compositions of his own. Heavy Weather dominated Weather Report's disc awards, including their last Down Beat "Album of the Year" award.
Jaco Pastorius appeared on four more Weather Report albums: Mr. Gone in 1978, 8:30 in 1979, Night Passage in 1980, and their second album just called Weather Report, recorded in 1981 and released in 1982. Pastorius departed the group in late 1981 as he had to fulfil touring requirements with his own Word of Mouth Big Band. By the time he left Weather Report, Jaco had begun displaying symptoms of manic depression which would leave him with serious problems later in life.
Owing to Pastorius' professional involvement with Joni Mitchell throughout the latter half of the 1970s, Mitchell hired the Heavy Weather and 8:30 line-ups en masse (although without Zawinul in each case), to play on her studio albums Don Juan's Reckless Daughter and Mingus, respectively.
Down Beat's "One Star" rating
Many of the group's earlier albums had received the highest possible (5-star) record rating in Down Beat's record reviews. However, in 1978 the group recorded the controversial and experimental Mr. Gone, which received only a 1-star review from Down Beat magazine. The group arranged for a rebuttal interview with the magazine to defend their efforts. Zawinul and Pastorius were defiant in their responses to the interviewer, Shorter more philosophical, and Erskine the most reticent of the four. Some say this particular Down Beat review was the most controversial in the magazine's history.
They would make a comeback and follow up with their last album of the 1970s. 1979's 8:30 is considered to be one of their best, combining both live and studio recordings on a double LP release. The group won the 1979 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance for 8:30. Despite the Mr. Gone controversy, the band's follow-up 8:30 tour was probably their most well attended. Zawinul has been quoted as saying there were more stage hands hired for that tour than at any other time in the band's history. The group toured intentionally as a quartet now, temporarily abandoning the percussionist chair.
1980s
The band kept releasing new albums once a year with various line-ups until 1986. A high quality video (Live in Japan — VHS and Laser Disc only) featuring Omar Hakim on drums, Victor Bailey on bass, and Mineu Cinelo on percussion was also released around 1984. This video was released on DVD in 2007 and is currently available.
Weather Report did not manage to match the critical or commercial success they enjoyed during the 1970s during this decade. It was also becoming harder to market jazz fusion as traditional jazz was making a comeback at the time. Shorter and Zawinul mutually decided to disband in 1986 after recording their last album, This is This! Both would play jazz fusion with their own groups for a time before moving on to new styles of music.
Releases since the band's breakup
A "post band" Weather Report double CD, Live and Unreleased was made available in 2002, featuring vintage live recordings during the late 1970s/early 1980s with various personnel. In September 2006 Columbia/Legacy released a Weather Report boxed set, Forecast: Tomorrow. It includes 3 CDs of mostly pre-released material (from 1970–1985, excluding This is This!) and a DVD of the entire September 29, 1978 performance in Offenbach, Germany (with Erskine and Pastorius) not previously available.
A DVD video of the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival performance (featuring the Heavy Weather lineup of Pastorius, Acuna, and Badrena) has become available as well. There also may be a chance that Columbia/Legacy may re-release the 1984 Live in Japan concert on DVD at some point in the future.
Alumni
Other former members of Weather Report include bassists Alphonso Johnson and Victor Bailey, drummer and percussionist Alex Acuña, percussionists Manolo Badrena and Robert Thomas Jr., and drummers Peter Erskine and Omar Hakim.
Brief analysis of the leaders
Josef Zawinul
It was first with Miles Davis, then with Weather Report that keyboardist Josef Zawinul became almost synonymous with the jazz fusion era, contributing a number of genre-defining compositions. One such composition (although not typical) is the band's signature tune "Birdland" from the band's top seller Heavy Weather.
Zawinul's playing style is often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations — simultaneously bebop, ethnic and pop-sounding — combined with sparse but rhythmic big-band chords or bass lines. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder as well as pre-recorded sounds played (i.e., filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive, often beautiful, synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" ("using all the sounds the world generates"). Many consider Zawinul the "best" synthesizer player "in jazz", and he frequently employed over 10 keyboards with live settings of his bands.
Mr. Zawinul passed away on September 11, 2007 after a battle with Merkel cell cancer.
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter's role was not as prominent as it was with Miles Davis during the 1960s and this led to some criticism of the group. However, he is regarded as one of the all time greats on both the tenor and soprano saxophone as well as a composer. At the urging of Davis before he left his band, Shorter began using the soprano saxophone and played it exclusively in Weather Report's debut recording. On later records, he played both soprano and tenor saxophone - sometimes on the same piece. Shorter is known for playing in a quite economical and "listening" style in many WR recordings, often adding subtle harmonic, melodic and/or rhythmic complexity by responding to other member's improvisations. Still, in some situations (with or without WR), he can also be frenetic like, for instance, John Coltrane or Michael Brecker.
Discography
Weather Report (1971)
I Sing the Body Electric (1972)
Live in Tokyo (1972)
Sweetnighter (1973)
Mysterious Traveller (1974)
Tale Spinnin' (1975)
Black Market (1976)
Heavy Weather (1977)
Mr. Gone (1978)
8:30 (1979)
Night Passage (1980)
Weather Report (1982)
Procession (1983)
Domino Theory (1984)
Sportin' Life (1985)
This is This! (1986)
Live and Unreleased (2002)
Forecast: Tomorrow (2006)
YELLOWJACKETS
In 1977, Robben Ford assembled a group of veteran session musicians to record his album The Inside Story. The trio of musicians, which included keyboardist Russell Ferrante, bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Ricky Lawson, soon discovered a certain "chemistry" and musical affinity that led to their formation of Yellowjackets. The Inside Story being mainly instrumental, Robben Ford's record label wanted him to record another album that was more pop and vocal oriented. The group, known as the Robben Ford Group, preferred to pursue the instrumental route, and a "band within a band" was formed. This same group with Robben Ford on guitar recorded digital demos that were eventually accepted by Warner Brothers, and Yellowjackets was born. While Robben's contributions would diminish over the years to being a guest artist, the group known as Yellowjackets would flourish.
Their debut album Yellowjackets made serious waves in jazz radio, garnering public and critical acclaim. Mirage A Trois followed in its footsteps. While they went on a brief hiatus to pursue other projects, they reassembled in time for the 1984 Playboy Jazz Festival, adding percussionist Paulinho Da Costa and their new lead voice, sax man Marc Russo. This landmark concert paved the way for their eventual success both on the Billboard Jazz charts and concert venues around the world, and resulted in the third spicy Yellowjackets album Samurai Samba. 1986 saw the group moving over to MCA Records to record Shades, the title track being written by Donald Fagen (of Steely Dan fame) as a tribute to the many "shades" he heard in the group's music.
With their album Four Corners, Ricky Lawson departed to join Lionel Richie's touring band and was replaced by the versatile William Kennedy. This rock-solid lineup took the Yellowjackets into new territory, exploring world beats and densely-populated soundscapes that reflected a growing maturity in their music. CloudjacketsPolitics, the follow-up to Four Corners, mellows out, and the group sheds some of the electronic elements and starts exploring acoustic sounds. Marc Russo's final recording with Yellowjackets, The Spin, was recorded in Oslo, Norway by noted engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug (well known for his work on the ECM label), and the Jackets proved that they could belt out acoustic jazz with the best!
Greenhouse ushered in a new era. With Marc gone, the Yellowjackets trio would record one of their most adventurous albums to date, featuring ace big band arranger and saxophonist Bob Mintzer on many of the tracks, and string accompaniments on a handful of others. Shortly thereafter, Bob Mintzer became a bona fide member of Yellowjackets. The Jackets also recorded on one of Bob Mintzer's dmp Records projects, One Music. Live Wires captures the group in concert with Mintzer at the helm. The two albums that followed, Like A River and Run For Your Life, reflected a growing interest in straight-ahead acoustic jazz.
With 1995's Dreamland, Yellowjackets returned to their first record label, Warner Brothers, producing their most relaxed, and relaxing, recording to date. Blue Hats is more spontaneous than its predecessors, musically rich and particularly revealing in showing how Yellowjackets have evolved since that landmark first album. Club Nocturne, their latest studio recording, achieves great crossover appeal with the guest vocalists Kurt Elling, Jonathan Butler and Brenda Russell. And while the Yellowjackets of today sound little like the original Yellowjackets from fifteen-plus years ago at first listen, the unmistakable talents of the individuals involved still have the unique signatures that shine through regardless of their musical setting, whether it be blistering-hot fusion or full-blown acoustic jazz. In other words, their music has evolved and matured considerably, but there's no mistaking that it is Yellowjackets you are hearing.
At the beginning of 1999, William Kennedy departed Yellowjackets to pursue other interests, and Peter Erskine joined the group for the balance of the year. Peter had played with Bob Mintzer on some of his big-band and small group recordings, so it was a natural that he would become one of the Yellowjackets. Unfortunately, Erskine's busy schedule would conflict with the band's, and he would depart by year's end without ever having recorded an album with the group.
In early 2000, the Yellowjackets were once again a trio, with Russell, Jimmy and Bob using different drummers as they continue touring throughout the year. Two of the fine drummers they've hooked up with were Marcus Baylor and Terri Lynn Carrington. For 2000, the band also saw a change in management, and Jimmy's long-awaited (and long-delayed) solo recording, Red Heat, was released later in the summer.
In 2001, the band self-released the pivotal live "Mint Jam" recording, with Marcus Baylor now essentially the band's full-time drummer. Since that time, the Jackets signed a deal with the HeadsUp International label, and have since released "Time Squared", the holiday release "Peace Round" and, most recently, "Altered State".
What's In A Name? If you're expecting something cute or meaningful in the naming of the group, you may be disappointed. Russell Ferrante relates the following on how the group's name was chosen: "I wish there was a clever rationale, but there really isn't. At the time we were making our demo in hopes of landing a recording contract, we were still the "Robben Ford Band". We had recorded one record with Robben, (primarily instrumental) but his record company was "encouraging" him do do something more pop and vocal oriented. As we also wanted to continue playing instrumental music, we all decided to form a "band within a band" so to speak. At the demo session Jimmy brought in a sheet full of possible names, most just awful. The one that popped out was Yellowjackets as it seemed to connotate something lively, energetic, and something with a "sting". That's really about as deep as it went. Once you choose a name, you're stuck with it so here we are, 16 years later, grown men playing in a band named 'Yellowjackets.'"
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Thursday, January 29, 2009
JAKARTA INTERNATIONAL JAVA JAZZ FESTIVAL 2009
Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival will be held for the fifth time. For Java Festival Production and the line-up of workers behind it the festival’s success, the fifth edition of the festival is a special occasion indeed as it was not an easy feat to organize a festival as sizeable as Java Jazz Festival.Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival 2009 will be slightly different from the previous years. One of the special treats this year is lower ticket prices. This way, the festival becomes more accessible to all enthusiasts of Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival.
Java Festival Production also wishes to improve the quality of the performances by providing an opportunity for the performers to conduct proper sound check, to guarantee a maximum performance. This year, Java Festival Production plans to feature, among few, Swing Out Sister, Brian McKnight, Roy Ayers, Ledisi, Simon Philips, New York Voices, Matt Bianco, Isao Suzuki, Dianne Reeves, Mike Stern, Oleta Adams, Peabo Bryson, and Regina Carter at Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival 2009.
So, Start marking your calendars! Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival, 6, 7 and 8 March 2009. Take part in the Festival’s fifth celebration at Jakarta Convention Center. Attending the Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival is a part of a lifestyle.
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