A Little Momento of the Summer and the Jazz Fest

by Hanne Lene Dalgleish, Communications Coordinator

It looks be a wet wintery December in Vancouver so we thought we'd provide a few audio-visual aids to remind you about the summer and the 2010 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. Our rock 'em sock 'em (that means we really think she's great) intern, Casey Chan, has cruised through the B-roll that was filmed during the Jazz Festival and picked out a few themes, then grafted them together and created some great vignettes.

I watched over Casey's shoulder as she played them for me, and seeing and hearing the clips really makes you appreciate what a fun and exciting 10 days of music the Jazz Festival is. I always have a blast! Things are starting to gear up for festival in 2011, so perhaps a little bit of last year's vibe will take you smiling into the new year.

Dancing in the Streets
[video]

On the Street Shout Outs

[video]

Artist Shout Outs
[video]

We've transcribed what some of the artists had to say about us:

Mike Stern
Yo I’m here in Vancouver at the Jazz Festival and as usual it’s really a cool festival, it’s like such a great city, such a great festival, it’s a pleasure to be here. I’ve been here about five or 6 times over the years, its not enough I always want to come back, always the best vibe.

Sojourners
Hi I’m Marcus Mosely, [Carl McLelland] and Will Sanders and we are the Sojourners, we are here at beginning of the Vancouver Jazz Festival, one of the great things about this city is the summer time, great parts of the summer is the Jazz Festival. It’s an opportunity for people to come from around world to see how beautiful the Vancouver is and to experience the best music around.

John Scofield
Hi, I’m John Scofield, I started playing the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival wow, many years ago. I can’t count the times I’ve been here; it’s at least 10 times. It’s a wonderful festival because the people are great, and the program is always really good here. It’s so much fun getting to see the other artists for a second and just be in Vancouver because it’s such a special city. You know that if you’re here. We always appreciate the vibe and the feeling in this city. Seems to be very artistic and its good just for music. Its great to be here, great to be involved. I love this festival.

Nils Langren Funk Unit
We are the Nils Langren Funk Unit and we love the TD Vancouver International Jazz festival. So help me FUNKin’ God.

Ola Onabulé
Hello and good evening folks my name is Ola Onabulé, I’m here from London with my 6-piece band. We’ve been here a couple of days, and we’ve just had a shed load of fun. We were part of the Canada Day celebrations yesterday, got involved in all the partying, all happiness, all the fun. And today we are gonna play of couple of sets for you at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. It seems like We’ve had fun and there’s even more to be had. Come and join us if you can, see you later.

Duke Ellington's Sacred Music Fills the Heart

By Rev. Ric Matthews, First United Church

There is a space where symphonies of sound and meaning transport us to different times and places , where our innermost  being resonates with the rhythm and our souls soar with the music, where we touch pain and are touched by Life, where we enter the dark and embrace the Light.

On November 19th  the Sacred Music of Duke Ellington, will take us to that Sacred Space. The notes crafted on paper years ago, the voice in the past that sang those notes into our hearts, the instruments and artists in the room on the night, your presence there in the moment are all woven into the fabric of that sacred space. The music becomes us. We become the music.  The shadows and the light in each of our personal lives are the diversity and discord that, as is the character of Jazz, become a blended experience of sacred music. The voices of the voiceless sing in this space. They disturb us with the disparity between us. They comfort us with the assurance of our shared experiences and needs.  We all are instruments of the discord and of the harmony.  As the music moves us and lifts us, it takes us gently and sometimes robustly to places of distress;  it wings us to places of Hope and Light; it calls us to listen and receive – and it compels us to participate and co-create.  Helpless in its passionate embrace, we touch the Sacred within ourselves, are touched by the Sacred in others and awed by the Sacred between us and beyond us. Once entered and experienced, the Sacred Space leaves us forever changed, at the same time both more vulnerable and more whole.

We enter the Sacred space separately and independently with our individual struggles and joys. In that space we become one collective symphony for Hope and Healing. When we leave we go in separate ways but always remain part of the music that connected us, part of the Hope that continues to sing in our hearts.
November 19th, Duke Ellington offers you a very special gift that you should not miss.

First United Church and Coastal Jazz Present
The Sacred Music of Duke Ellington
Featuring Dee Daniels, Marcus Mosely, Fred Stride Orchestra, the Sacred Music Gospel Choir, Tap Dancer Alex Dugdale.
November 19 at 8PM
St Andrew's-Wesley United Church

Click here for complete concert and ticket purchase information.

Dee Daniels

Marcus Mosely

The Great Classical Joint Reunion: Now that it's over, a look back...

By Kate Hammett-Vaughan

Outside The Classical Joint Coffee House
Provided by Andreas Nothiger personal photo album

Friday night, October 8th, 2010. A night I will never forget. The room was packed with jazz fans and musicians, and everyone was happy. Old friends meeting, chatting, looking at old photographs, enjoying a wonderful slide show of Classical Joint memories. Beautiful.

I have been thinking about what made people so excited about the Reunion (it sold out SO quickly!) and why we (Colleen Savage, Mariken van Nimwegan and I) were each so willing to put so many dozens of volunteer hours into making this one evening happen. I am sure that Colleen and Mariken have stories of their own, but here is mine.

Painting with Sound - Kim Myhr “Mural”

By Ken Pickering

I first began to hear about the young Norwegian improvising guitarist / composer Kim Myhr and his various projects (Trondheim Jazz Orchestra and the trio “Mural”) last year. A number of colleagues and musicians had him on their radar; for instance pianist Benoit  Delbecq was collaborating in a project called “Silencers” and the Molde Festival (directed by my great friend Jan Ole Otnaes) awarded him the Jazztipend prize in 2008, which among other things ($) included a commission for the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra (a special version that included Sidsel Endresen, Christian Wallumrod, Jim Denley and others) for a one hour piece ultimately titled “Stems and Cages”  that was recently released on disc.

My Memories of the Joint

By Gavin Walker

Hugh Fraser Kate Hammett Vaughan, Colleen Savage, Bonnie Ferguson Albert St Albert and Blaine Wikjord

I first became aware of the Joint in the early 1970's. I had just returned from a period of study and travel and found myself involved with the Jazz scene in Vancouver very quickly. I had scored a steady gig with a Jazz-Rock band (in the style of Blood Sweat and Tears and Cold Blood) and was looking for a Jazz scene where I could play some pure stuff. I found it at the Riverqueen on Davie owned by singer Ron Small and his then wife Shirley. I rehooked with pianist/organist Mike Taylor and met and rehooked with many others like saxophonists Ian Berry, Wayne Kozak, Pete Thompson, Dick Smith and met a cat who I only knew by reputation, Nick McGowan. Around this time Nick joined the Jazz-Rock band I was in and we developed a musical relationship.......we both were Jazz players and wanted to play more. The band had a couple of weeks off and Nick called me up and said there was a place in Gastown that had a Jazz    night and was called The Classical Joint at 231 Carrall Street. We went down and found a quartet of players led by the late Al Clooten...I can't remember the other guys but Nick and I sat in for a half dozen tunes and I checked out this little smoky, funky place where people listened quietly and played chess and drink coffee. I met the new owner, Andreas Nothiger, a Swiss-German who said he just bought the place from two guys Joseph and Joel. Joel, I knew but I had just met Joseph only once. I was told by Andreas that the place was really an outlet for folk singers, poetry reading and the like but he liked Jazz as well and classical music. Joel, who was there the night Nick and I played suggested that we come back and play there often. I thought no more of it and got busy with other things.

Fall concert season is like a mini Festival

 By John Orysik, Media Director

Eve Smith performing at the Clasical Joint Gretchen Parlato Benjamin Herman

You gotta love the Jazz Festival. There’s so much great music from all over the world. And it so rich and diverse - virtually all manner of jazz—from ragtime to no time, funky grooves, urban rhythms, world music, vocal stylings – it’s a feast and I love the vibe. The Fall for Jazz series with its six shows is smaller in scale but no less diverse. Kind of a Jazz Festival in miniature. The opening concert—The Great Classical Joint Reunion—is going to be a blast—a once in a lifetime jam session—with musicians and fans coming into town from near and far to get reacquainted. The Classical Joint is a place I checked out on a regular basis during the ‘70s and ‘80s—it was the hub for jazz in Vancouver where I discovered people like Renee Rosnes, Michael Blake, Dick Smith, Phil Dwyer, Hugh Fraser, Gavin Walker, Kate Hammett-Vaughan and so many other players. Also looking forward to the organic improvs of Mural, the inside/outside sax trio led by Darius Jones, fab vocalist Gretchen Parlato from LA, Nuevo tangomeisters Quartango, and Dutch bebop saxman Benjamin Herman whose band will be groovin’ on the tunes of maestro Misha Mengelberg and others.  We’re trying something new this year with our Fall for Jazz Pass. Kind of like a tester for some programs we’re considering for the Festival. It’s a way to case a few gigs you think you may not be ready to make the leap for. Let us know what you think. Also exciting about the series is the Artist Talks. Darius Jones is going to rap with Ken Pickering, Coastal Jazz Artistic Director and I’ll be chatting with Gretchen Parlato about her latest album and other stuff. I hope you’ve had a great summer and like me you’re looking forward to the Fall. See you at the gigs.

Our Fall Season Concert Guide is now available

We're pretty excited about this neat feature for viewing our Program Guide online. We're using Issuu to publish the guide in a cool, interactive way. Click on the image below and watch the guide pop up into Fullscreen mode, now just click through. Easy to read and intuitive. We like. What do you think?

Open publication

European Travelogue - Festivals in July. Part Three: Molde Jazz (Norway)

By Ken Pickering, Coastal Jazz's Artistic Director

Part Three: Ken Pickering goes to Molde Jazz (Norway)


Where were we? Artistic Director on the road or in the air to somewhere - oh yeah! Here’s where we left off. A hellish day of travel but Rainbow and I finally arrive in Norway. Our final flight from Oslo to Molde was packed with musicians and friends – In the Country, Larry Appelbaum, Eivind Aarset and more! New day, new country, new festival - jet lag anyone?





Great view from Reknes Park - overlooking Molde, the fjords and islands

European Travelogue - Festivals in July. Part Two: Nickelsdorf “Konfrontationen”

Posted by Ken Pickering 

Part Two: Ken Pickering goes to Nickelsdorf “Konfrontationen”

After a brief pit stop in Amsterdam (and then I found the hotel and plaque where Chet Baker met his untimely death!) for some meetings and a hang with Danielle Oosterup (agent/manager Michiel Braam, The Thing) and other Dutch friends   I reconnected with my Coastal Jazz colleague Rainbow Robert (who had just arrived in Europe) who would then join me for the next leg of the journey to Nickelsdorf, Austria for the legendary KONFRONTATIONEN 2010 still going strong at 31 years.

The plaque on Prins Hendrik outside the hotel where Chet Baker tragically fell to his death.

European Travelogue- Festivals in July. Part One: Northsea Jazz Festival (Rotterdam, Netherlands)

By Ken Pickering, Coastal Jazz's Artistic Director

Part One: Northsea Jazz Festival (Rotterdam, Netherlands) 

September is just around the corner and that signals the impending conclusion of the international summer jazz festival season. Just a few more festivals left before the days get very short – Mulhouse (France), Saalfelden (Austria), Monterey (USA), Guelph (Canada) etc. – are among the best of those upcoming or are currently taking place.

The Canadian jazz festival season kicked off in June – bringing great music to communities in urban centers across the country. Without a doubt, our celebratory 25th annual VIJF was one of the most enjoyable, gratifying and memorable events ever; an amazing program of the most creative sounds on the planet – Globe Unity, Barry Guy / Michel Gagne, Joshua Redman, MOPDtK, Eric Boeren 4tet with Han Bennink, Schlippenbach Trio, Bill Frisell, Tomasz Stanko, Youn Sun Nah/Ulf Wakenius, Renee Rosnes/Bill Charlap, Harris Eisenstadt, Mario Pavone and so many more!  It was a gas.

As much as we’d like to relax and savour the post festival experience heading into the warm summer months, the Coastal Jazz offices have been a beehive of activity and staff has been extremely busy in every department, as we take the opportunity to begin the process to strategize and re-imagine what the next 25 years might look like for the VIJF.

2010 Festival Photos

All photos are taken by our Festival Photographer, Chris Cameron, or his assistant, Jan Gates. Chris has been with us since the first festival in 1986, where he took an iconic series of photos of the infamous meeting between Miles Davis and Wynton Marsalis. Every year, he captures the spirit of jazz and of the festival with his camera. Happy 25th Chris!

Tue, July 13 ... photos by chris cameron

Fixed Fragmented & Fluid, Artists Portraits

Barry Guy

Day Ten

By Ken Pickering

Five Alarm Funk @ David Lam Park Sun, July 4

A Great Festival by Ken Pickering A huge shout out to everyone  - staff, volunteers, audience and most of all to the enormous array of wonderful MUSICIANS from near and far that performed at this year's 25th anniversary festival! There were so many incredible performances at venues around the city - Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Centre, Commodore, Performance Works, Roundhouse, Ironworks, David Lam Park, Gastown, North Shore Jazz and all the clubs around town - not to forget the evening jams at O'Douls. Music was in the air and great times were had all around. The community experience was unparalleled in my experience and the social aspect of the festival was as amazing as the musical offerings. The festival wove all of the diverse strands of our own scene into a creation that was massive; an international music party that fostered new lasting friendships with musicians, fans, presenters and media from across Canada and around the world. Honestly, for me personnally this was the most gratifying and quite possibly the best festival we've ever produced and simply put, it's the most fun I've had in years. Nobody throws down a music celebration with the love, energy and commitment that has become the hallmark of Coastal Jazz (and our community and family) and the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. With so many great memories - the " Jazz Festival Photo Gallery" is our little way of keeping some of those bright moments fresh and uppermost in our thoughts as we move into a beautiful Vancouver summer. So THANK YOU! TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival -2010- was a fitting 25th anniversary 10 day celebration of everything that we believe in and a very special body of work that we'll remember for years to come.

Day Nine

 By Ken Pickering


Youn Sun Nah @ Roundhouse - fantastic performance
(photo: Jan Gates)

Day Eight

by Ken Pickering

Jazz Festival Photo Gallery

Anna Kalfa (Venue Mgr) @ Studio 700 and Josh Cole (bassist, October Trio) @ Studio 700 for Cat Toren Trio, July 2nd, 2010
(photo: Ken Pickering)

Day Seven

By Ken Pickering

Jazz Festival Photo Gallery

Festival highlight - Youn Sun Nah / Ulf Wakenius - the Korean community was out in full force and
Youn Sun Nah brought the house down (and to tears)!  Achingly beautiful voice with splendid control
and the perfect partner made for the ultimate duo. Material included: Tom Waits, Joao Gilberto, Egberto Gismonti
and some originals. Ulf's solo rendition of Jim Pepper's "Witchi Tai To" was stunning! July 1, 2010 / Roundhouse.
(photo: Christine Fedina)

Day Six

By Ken Pickering

Peter Knight, Erik Griswold, Vanessa Tomlinson (Erik/Vanessa are Clocked Out Duo and the masterminds behind The Wide Alley - the groundbreaking collaboration between Chinese traditional and Australian jazz/contemporary musicians). Peter is the trumpeter in the project and was last at the festival 2 years ago with "Way Out West".

Day Five

By Ken Pickering

Photos from Tuesday

Kid Koala (Eric San) is originally from Vancouver, but has made Montreal his home since the 90's.
Hard rockin', intense evening of music (Slew) - @ the Commodore - June 29th, 2010

Day Three

by Brad Winter

Globe Unity Orchestra

Globe Unity / Schlippenbach Trio and more  Good times always seem to fly by so quickly.  As I write this we’ve already put three days of festival to bed. And what a time we’ve had.  With so many great choices there has probably been no two schedules which are exactly alike.  And happily the opportunity to continue to pursue these individual paths carries on throughout the week and on to Sunday the 4th. My passion’s run to the left of center, non-mainstream improvisers and the good folks of Coastal Jazz have, as always, provided many opportunities to satisfy that proclivity.  A brief recount of some favourite moments follows.

Day Two

By Ken Pickering

Day Two at the 2010 Jazz Festival

Ibrahim Electric in Gastown - June 26, 2010
(smoking jazz/funk/soul trio w. wicked unseen keyboard man)

Day One

By Ken Pickering

Day One of the 2010 Jazz Festival

A handful of shots that only hint at some of the ambience and beautiful moments at the Festival Gala @ VAG on Thursday.

Followed by a few shots from various vantage points on opening night.

 

Mayor Gregor Robertson sits in with Brad Muirhead's band at the Jazz Festival Gala @ the VAG, June 24, 2010. Photo by Jan Gates

Bill Smith accepts JJA "Team Award" for lifetime achievement - (from Fest AD Ken Pickering) -

Coda Magazine, Sackville Records, Jazz & Blues Record Centre/Toronto -

at the Gala on Thursday evening.

Photo by Chris Cameron

Coastal team with Heritage Minister James Moore

Photo by Chris Cameron

Lucas Niggli and Rudi Mahall. Photo by Ken pickering

 

Ron Gaskin (Rough Idea / Toronto), Stanley Zappa, Evan Parker

Photo by Ken Pickering

Susanna Wallumrod @ Performance Works, opening night.

Photo by Jan Gates

Backstage at Fixed Fragmented Fluid on opening night.

Lucas Niggli, Evan Parker, Michel Gagne, Maya Homburger.

Photo by Christine Fedina

A look at Barry Guy's score (partial) of FFF

Photo by Angela Earl

FFF @ Roundhouse, opening night with Barry Guy/Michel Gagné

photo by Angela Earl

Barry Guy / Peter Evans @ Roundhouse

photo by Ken Pickering

Buck 65 at The Commodore Ballroom

photo by Cyrielle Flosi

Katzenjammer at the Commodore Ballroom

photo by Cyrielle Flosi

Katzenjammer and intern Max Harland

at the Commodore Ballroom

June 21-27, 2010

By Brad Winter (jazz journalist / Portland, Oregon – contributor Cadence Magazine)

Brad Winter   Eric Boeren 4tet with Michael Moore, Wilbert de Joode, Eric Boeren, and Han Bennink.

Since 1995: Brad Winter celebrates 15 years @ TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival I'm not exactly sure when I first heard about Vancouver's annual jazz festival.  I know that I read wonderful things about it in magazines like Coda and that one of the DJ's at our local community radio station (Jim "Jacques" Olding) would feature all sorts of great music from musicians that performed there each year.  I knew little about the Canadian Jazz scene and not too darned much more about Europe's contributions.  In 1995 my wife Laura and I agreed that we had to go up there (we live in Portland, OR) and see what the buzz was all about.  I remember having mapped out the gigs I simply had to see.  Among these were performances by Tim Berne's Blood Count, Dave Douglas, Fred Anderson and Hamid Drake.  All accomplished American jazzers of course.  The wild card was to be the trio of Evan Parker, Barry Guy and Paul Lytton. I'd heard a lot about Parker but really didn't know much of his music and I intuited that I had to address this shortcoming.

June 14-20, 2010

By Ken Pickering

Mostly Other People Do the Killing (MOPDtK)

The INNOVATION PASS!!! At it’s core, the festival’s artistic vision is in many ways exemplified by the Innovation and Eclectic series (at the Roundhouse and the Ironworks) and in order to make this music accessible to as many music freaks as possible; from hard core aficionados to listeners that are just interested in hearing some new music, we’ve designed a lovely pass – and it’s one of the festival’s very best DEALS: THE INNOVATION PASS – and it only costs $100 –  (click here for info about tickets) With the Innovation Pass, (space permitting) you can attend up to 28 gigs at the Roundhouse (evening concerts) and 2 shows a night at the Ironworks. Available through: COASTAL JAZZ BOX OFFICE – visit @ 295 W- 7th Avenue or phone 604.872.5200 or 1.888.438.5200 toll free in N. America.

June 7-13, 2010

Articles from the week of June 7-13, 2010
June 7 Introduction to our New Blog
June 8 Barry Guy / Michel Gagné – Fixed Fragmented Fluid
June 9 Han Bennink
June 9 Globe Unity Orchestra
June 11 The WIde Alley

June 11, 2010 ... By Ken Pickering

The Wide Alley Video for "Da Dao Wu Wei / Nothingness is Great"

The Wide Alley Roundhouse Performance Centre - Wednesday, June 30 The major musical discovery of my visit to the Queensland Music Festival in Brisbane in July 2007 was The Wide Alley, a collaboration between musicians Vanessa Tomlinson, Erik Griswold (known as the Clocked Out Duo) and composer Zou Xiangping. The Wide Alley is wonderful, the most successful and inspired blending of contemporary music, jazz and traditional Chinese traditions that I’ve yet encountered and the project reflects their ongoing studies of Sichuan street music, folk music, and opera percussion. A 10 piece ensemble divided equally between Australian avant garde/jazz and Chinese traditional musicians, this project represents a cross cultural meeting that is innovative yet accessible.  A haunting other worldly and mysterious music that intoxicates the senses, the composers draw inspiration from Chengdu’s oldest neighbourhood know as The Wide Alley.