Improvisation Workshop: Jazz Cafe: October 14

Andy Champion (bass guitar); Wesley Stephenson (drums); Zoe Gilby (voice) and others as mentioned below.

(Review by Ann).

Yet another review written without the benefit of note-taking, but how can you take notes during an improvisation session, I ask you?  Just not the done thing. I thoroughly enjoyed this event, but I think it requires a different mindset, relaxed and open, to get the most from this sort of thing.  It started me thinking about what music is all about, and I believe there are elements of drama involved too, and the experience is visual as well.

It helps that the main organising (not really the right word) musicians mentioned above are very competent. Andy and Wes began, and were soon joined by a sax playing repeated riffs. Karen Rann on soprano sax then joined the duo, with what started off as odd notes but then developed into something bebopish.  The musical conversation flowed well, with each player listening carefully, the secret of this type of music.  The next piece was quite beautiful, with Alan Law on piano, soft gentle wispy sounds.  Zoe then joined the action, extending well beyond her usual scat, with yelps, cries, whispers, and this was the drama, a writer could construct a story from these sounds.  Or maybe others heard something different, the listener brings her/his own perceptions.  Then came the fun, in the shape of A.N. Other, who had a wonderful array of 3-stringed zither-like instruments which he’d made himself, complete with amplification.  He proceeded to play one of these as a heavy metal guitar.  He also had long penny whistles, but without the holes, works in progress.  I tried one which produced various notes according to how hard you blew. By the end of the session there were about 10 people who’d played and quite a few in the audience.  We all joined in for the last piece which was a bit of a free-for-all. I was using my coffee cup and saucer as percussion at the end and it sounded surprisingly ok.

Try it for yourself, and be prepared to join in.  Sorry about not knowing the names of everyone who played.

Ann Alex