Going Dutch @ The Lit & Phil (afternoon session) - January 22

(Review/photos courtesy of Ken Drew)

The expectations of this Dutch All-Dayer had been well and truly set the previous evening at the Jazz Café – what a Taster that was!

Now for the programme proper.  The format ran as 3 sets, each with one established group of players preceded by a new grouping.

2pm:  Oli Brice on bass, John Dikeman on sax, Onno Govaert on drums.  Dikeman was 'leading' but Brice and Govaert stuck to his heels and followed unrelentingly to the end.  Dikeman was certainly on form and overall it was a HUGE sound and a great opener.

2:20-3:00 Ab Baars on reeds, Wilbert de Joode on bass, Martin van Duynhoven on drums. A quieter journey, again 'led' by the sax although this time there were music stands (and therefor some pre-arranged pieces) involved. The first piece lasted just a few minutes of very thoughtful and dynamic playing, but provided an excellent introduction for what was to follow. Baars moving from sax to clarinet lowering the pace even more.  Good use of the space for some quite dramatic silences, and crashes from van Duynhoven. This was inspired by Messiaen's musical fantasy of sonority - mostly birdsong, but maybe there was a hint of Rhapsody in Blue (to my ears!) but overall some very thrilling, dynamic and thoughtful playing, each player reading each other perfectly. One piece in particular was very quiet but all the more sonically interesting for it. The audience appreciated it all. 

3:15pm:  Reinier Baas - guitar solo.  Mesmeric, rhythmic, flowing and shimmering sounds - hints of John Renbourne and Gordon Giltrap (to name two non-jazz guitarists, for some of the playing techniques displayed) coupled with a generally subtle use of pedals. A very unique sound built on many techniques and simple use of a few pedals on the floor (apart from a short spell of over-use of the volume pedal at one point, tending to excess). The left hand chord fingering was a joy to watch, including the creation of harmonics from Reinier's right hand plucking & hammering the strings.  Towards the end de Joode joined in for a short lively piece - as if chasing each other!

3:40-4:15 "Feecho" - Kaya Draksler on grand piano and Onno Govaert on drums. A very long piece, reminiscent of Messiaen and Schnittke etc.  A wonderful duet, with beautiful playing and interpretation on the piano concluding with Messiaen flavours, including a perfect combination of low-end notes blended with high-end notes trembling then diminishing to quietness.

A joy to behold!

4:30: Oli Brice on bass, Faye MacCalman on reeds, Wilbert de Joode on bass. Two Bass's plus sax!! Ok, so we'd had a brief insight into this at the Caff the night before. Starting with both basses, quickly bringing out rich harmonics from each.  MacCalman soon joining in with clarinet, diving in and out of the two complementary basses - bird-like effects and more. A free piece, yet well-structured in its delivery, with very nice interplay between all three. The second, shorter piece, was more frenetic and intense, and hung together well.

4:55-5:30: Ab Baars on reeds, Ig Henneman on viola.  Viola-with-clarinet, dancing around and following each other in a myriad of rhythms and exploring many sonic avenues. The second piece (around a Frank Schubert piece) saw viola now with sax from Baars much more pronounced and frantic, slowing to a meandering theme in the viola. Finally it is rudely joined by the sax providing a new theme, almost anthemic.  An odd (maybe?) but certainly workable collaboration but overall, quite delicate throughout.  The final piece saw Baars wield a bass recorder (?) but maybe a more compatible pairing of instruments for this style of music.  A nice combination.

And so ended the afternoon session. It was noted by many that the programme timing was very good through the day. Both for the start of the day, throughout the session, and at the end! Not sure if this was a Dutch effect or just a concerted improvement over last year’s All-Dayer.  The format was simple and worked really well - the first group of each set was allocated 20 minutes, yet despite the shortness of these, each group gave it their all and delivered quite exhilarating pieces whether short or long.

Ab Baars (reeds); Reinier Baas (guitar); Olie Brice (bass); Wilbert de Joode (bass); John Dikeman (sax); Kaja Draksler (piano); Onno Govaerts (drums); Ig Henneman (viola); Faye MacCalman (reeds); Jasper Stadhouders (guitar); Martin van Duynhoven (drums).

Ken Drew