Dhafer Youssef Ankara Concert, August 1st 2013

It has not been even 6 months since Dhafer Youssef has given a fantastic concert in Ankara Jazz Festival with his fabulous quartet. This time, the nice square of Cer Modern Art Center was the concert place yesterday for this fantastic musician. In addition to their quartet configuration (Dhafer Youssef, Kristjan Randalu, Audun Erlien and Chander Sandjoe) we had Eivind Aarset on guitar, Hüsnü Şenlendirici on clarinet and Aytaç Doğan on kanun. The band has  previously performed with Hüsnü Şenlendirici and Aytaç Doğan in İstanbul and North Sea Jazz Festivals and gathered very good reviews.

Many of latest performances of Dhafer Youssef are including his great compositions performed with a tensional and energetic European Jazz style. He is using his oud and incredible vocal to give the oriental taste. He is not only a member of the band but also a conductor directing the transitions and solo performances. I think it is a great idea to include Turkish musicians to the band and what we see as a result is proving that the musicians are really excellent choices. Hüsnü Şenlendirici has real good reputation among musicians all around the world. My questions in some of my interviews were for learning European musicians’ knowledge for Turkish music and musicians. Not surprisingly, they are generally answered as “Hüsnü”. He is always improving his old school style for clarinet with academic work and integration. I have listened to Aytaç Doğan first time yesterday. He is just great. I will surely follow him more closely.

The performance has started with the quintet version. The piano entrance of Kristjan Randalu was great again. His style is really as soft as silk. Audun Erlien was always there at the back with electric bass – strong and solid with the drummer Chander Sandjoe. Different that the previous concert, Chander Sandjoe was a bit more silent. The solo performance of Kristjan Randalu in around middle of the concerts, I think, is the most important highlight of the night. Eivind Aarset was responsible almost for all electronic background. He, with his laptop open in his front, was a great ingredient in the resultant beauty. The overall sound was amazing. I should mention here that the previous concert’s hall and the square of Cer Modern have very poor acoustic conditions. However what I have experienced in the previous concert in Meb Sura Hall was the best I have ever heard at that place. Same has applied yesterday and I, again, have listened to the best sound created in the square so far. It is obvious that Dhafer Youssef is caring about that and the sound engineer from Berlin (he was in Ankara for both concerts) has a big contribution in that. This experience forces me to make a comment that if musicians care about the good sound then the good sound is achieved.

The entrance of Hüsnü Şenlendirici and Aytaç Doğan to the stage in later performance was good and bad at the same time. Aytaç Doğan was the shining star of the day. He was like playing all the time with Dhafer and the band. The way he is carrying the melody in his solo performance was incredible. It’s the first time I am listening to Hüsnü Şenlendirici in such a configuration; but I can easily say that especially in the first parts, his accompanying to Dhafer Youssef’s high register vocal was not successful enough. From beginning to end there was also a serious clip-like problem in the sound of clarinet. Especially their intense duo performances in high frequencies are generally destroyed with this unwanted noise. However, I should admit that Hüsnü Şenledirici was just like a master in his solo performance and their duo with Aytaç Doğan. Moreover, the following performances of Hüsnü Şenlendirici with the band were better.

Ankara audience had a real good participation in the concert considering the holiday time and ongoing Ramadan. As far as it is seen in the ovation part they liked what they listened to.

North Sea Jazz Festival 2013 - A Visitor's Notes on Festival and Some Performances

It's been almost 20 days since I had experienced my best days of jazz ever. These dreamy days have been lived in North Sea Jazz Festival 2013. You know; when you have so many data in your hand, you generally do not know where to start. That’s why I have waited so long to write an overall review of what I lived in my first North Sea Jazz Festival. I am intentionally predefining my review as “what I lived in North Sea”, because in my opinion a normal human being can live at most quarter of what’s going on throughout these three busy and jazzy days.

Since this review is written also to give general information for any possible new participants for following years, I’d like to start with a little bit about the organization, place and travel from abroad. The festival has been held since 1976. The place was Hague until it is decided in 2006 that Rotterdam will be the new home for North Sea Jazz Festival. You can easily arrive at Rotterdam in at most 30 minutes from Amsterdam Airport. The city is small. Therefore it is never a problem to reach to the Ahoy, the port on which the festival is held. All you have to do is to stay at a hotel near to a subway station. With its beautiful view, my hotel Inntel was, for instance, was a nice place for being on the line of subway to Ahoy and near to the Central Station, where the train from Amsterdam touches to Rotterdam.

Although it was my first time in North Sea Jazz, I had a general opinion about the festival, mostly thanks to some of my jazz enthusiast friends who has been participating in the festival for years. Additionally, started from the day I have decided to join and begun to plan my schedule, I was a bit aware of what has been going on every year in this incredible organization managing more than 150 performances with 1200 artists in three days in 15 stages. 

In spite of all these previews of mine for the festival, I was simply in the state of OMG when I saw the crowd in front of the Ahoy at 2.30 pm, almost two hours before the doors of Ahoy opened in the first day July 12th. I have never seen this many people gathered to listen to jazz by paying almost 70 Euros for a single day or 200 Euros for three days (I am not counting at least two plus concerts for each day priced 15 Euros or 30 Euros). I have also observed that many people could not find 3-day or 1-day ticket at the first day. I have heard that at least 30000 visitors have come to Ahoy each day for the festival. I have bought the tickets almost two months ago to prevent such things and I advice the same for all future participants.

Let me give some information also about the physical structure of Ahoy. There are four floors including the entrance floor. Most of the performance halls are at the entrance, floor 0 : Nile, Maas, Congo, Congo Square, Mississippi, Amazon, Darling and Hudson.

Only Mississippi and Congo Square are open air places. Rests of these halls are concert halls in different sizes.

Smaller ones, which are mostly resembling to fairly large jazz clubs, are located on upper floors: Yenisei on first floor, Madeira (and Tigris) on second floor and Volga on third floor. I have to mention that some other places in which many exhibitions, resting places, VIP events and interviews are realized: Central Square is in the entrance level to take something to eat and to sit down while watching previous year’s legendary concerts or the ongoing performances of celebrity musicians in the biggest hall Nile. Birdland is for VIP events. Jazz Cafe is on the first floor for questions & answers and interviews. Mekong is on the third floor for Jazz Art exhibitions. In addition to these, there were many stands near to Central Square which includes exhibition and sales of CD, LP, instrument and hi-fi speakers. There were many drink stands and fairly enough types of food places most of which are located near to Central Square and some of which (mostly smelly ones) are located outside on the open air way from Nile to Hudson passing through Mississippi.

  

Considering 2013’s program I can easily say that the styles of the music (although its main genre seems to be jazz) tried to be distributed in almost all aspects or kinds residing in the vicinity of jazz. From hard-bop to Nordic, from Latin to avant-garde, from R&B to funk and from soul to blues. Therefore, I think the participants’ profiles were widely distributed in age, hometown and wealth. All these different styles seem to be consistently distributed to different places. For instance, bands having a real American Jazz style were generally in Hudson. Terence Blanchard, Branford Marsalis, Roy Hargrove, Charles Lloyd and Ron Carter have all performed in Hudson. We also saw some names from other schools in this hall, who are certainly affected by mainstream jazz such as Avishai Cohen, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Monty Alexander, Michel Camilio, Zakir Hussain and Eliane Elias. Amazon can be shown as the biggest hall for jazz. It is mostly used for plus concerts whose tickets are sold individually. Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Diana Krall, Dee Dee Bridgewater and David Sanborn’s concerts were all in Amazon. Two symphonic performances, EST Symphony and Eric Vloeimans and Limburgs Symfonie were also in Amazon where a big stage is needed. Darling and Congo were hosting generally bands performing with a higher energy level and decibel with many electronic contributions. Robert Glasper with Lionel Leouke, Next Collective and Electric Masada from Darling and John Medeski from Congo can be given as examples. 

From the snapshots I have added to my review you can easily see that the most crowded place for jazz lovers was the indoor way between Amazon and Hudson which includes also the entrance of Darling. This path was generally blocked when a long queue for a well-known name in Darling and start or finish of another important name’s performance in Hudson are coincided. Maas and Nile are giants of the place. The celebrities such as Sting, Santana, Jamie Cullum, Bonnie Ratt, Steve Winwood and John Legend were listened at Nile. Jazz, Funk (even Soft Rock) and R&B singers with big bands were generally at Maas. Gregory Porter, Gretchen Parlato, Ben Harper, Anthony Hamilton, Brecker Bands Reunion can be given as examples from Maas. Madeira, although it is on the lower lines in the daily program sheets, can be one of the most important places for real jazz lovers in North Sea with its line-up such as Kenny Barron, The Cookers, Willie Jones, Steve Coleman, Steve Swallow and Carla Bley. Yenisei and Volga have been the place generally for qualified European Jazz musicians such as Mathias Eick, Yaron Herman, Ivo Neame and Martin Tingvall. Outdoor performance places Mississippi and Congo Square were generally presenting big bands featuring soloists or entertaining rhythmic groups. Anat Cohen has performed in Mississippi. I should also tell you that we have a Turkish singer performing in Missisippi: Karsu Dönmez.

In this three days program most of my time has passed in Hudson, Amazon and Yenisei. Madeira was the place that I’d like to be very much in but I generally waited at the door because of its small capacity.

For all these three days – since it is my first time – my main policy was to listen to as many different musicians as I can achive. However I have also chosen three performances for each day which I’d like to experience on a good seat from beginning to end. Between these three performances I was planning to see small partitions from some names that I have never seen before on the stage. This way, I saw at least seven performances each day in almost 9 hours. 

During realizations of these plans, most of the time, walking between my main performances to small partitions became a real rush and a stressful act. This also sometimes prevented me from comfortably eating and drinking. But you know, who cares eating when there is good music playing. My single mistake, I think, was to divide some performances into two when two of my favorite musicians exactly coincided at the same interval. The organization has no contribution to this, everything is a result of my vast musical taste and hunger. I strongly recommend you not to do that division and to decide on one.

Let me also shortly review each performance I have joined. The first day has started with a single piece from Anat Cohen and Royal Conservatory & Codarts Big Band in Mississippi. Then I was at the fabulous performance of Terence Blanchard, Brice Winston, Fabian Almazon, Joshua Crumbly and Kendrick Scott in Hudson. Terence Blanchard was as perfect as he usually is. The pianist Fabian Almazan and the drummer Kendrick Scott were highlights of the concert. The single mistake that I have seen during the festival may have happened in this performance: the announcement system mistakenly worked twice and told something in Dutch in the middle of Terence Blanchard’s performance.

My second station in July 12^th was Amazon for a single piece from Eric Vloeimans, Martin Fondse and Limburgs Symfonie. The compositions were brilliant. Congo was the next place to hear again just a single piece from John Medeski with Martin & Wood. They have a great album together. Their performance seemed to have gathered many listeners from this festival.

Then, for my second concert in first day, I passed immediately to Yenisei, where Mathias Eick performed with Andreas Ulvo, Audun Erlien, Andreas Bye and Kenneth Kapstad. Yes, you did not read it wrong or I did not write it mistakenly. We simply had two drummers on the stage with two full drum-sets. I was really wondering this performance since the one in İstanbul just before North Sea was cancelled. The pieces were mostly from his ECM album Scala. Many electric ingredients and two drummers turned the concert into a very tensional one. It was a good concert when evaluated in general but I was expecting a better one considering overall sound created. I think Yenisei is a bit problematic place for music performances because of its low ceil heights considering mostly mid-frequencies. Mathias Eick's followers know very well his unique sound from the trumpet which has many layers that should certainly be given to the audience in a live performance. Moreover, the sound produced seems to need a bigger hall. I think Darling could be a better place.

Diana Krall was waiting in Amazon for the first plus concerts of the festival at around 9 pm on July 12th. I have never listened to her lively before. Listening to jazz celebrities is always a strange experience for me. You know, big concert halls, cold and far away stage and lots of fans around are not the things a real enthusiastic jazz listener like. Diana Krall is an important jazz vocal however. She sings flat – I mean real flat. Many find this boring but less know that singing flat – like talking in daily life – is a real difficult thing to do. During her beautiful performance she sang many songs from really earlier times of jazz and blues. She also has covered some Neil Young’s wonderful compositions – this was my favorite part in the concert. I had to leave Diana Krall’s last two or three performances to have a look at Santana and Monty Alexander Trio Plus. Santana was just a big show at Nile. The Hudson’s door was almost stuck because of the crowd. What I see was a big applause from the audience after each piece. As far as I have experienced in last two pieces, Monty Alexander Trio Plus’ concert was just great even resulting an encore which is rare in North Sea due to tight schedule.

My first day has finished with two coincided performances – the incredible Roy Hargrove Quintet and our qualified European pianist Yaron Herman. I have chosen Roy Hargrove as the entrance. Both performances were telling stories from different worlds but with same level of beauty. Roy Hargrove’s compositions and performance were great again. I should admit that I hardly left it.

July 13^th has started with Gretchen Parlato and Gregory Porter in Maas with a full house. What a wonderful voice they both have. Their duo performance was just touching. Before E.S.T. Symphony, I have seen a single performance from Sangam project of Charles Lloyd, Zakir Hussain and Eric Harland at Hudson. When I was passing to Amazon I have tried to enter Madeira for Kenny Barron’s Platinum Trio but the door was closed and there was a long queue. As far as I have heard from my friends, Kenny Barron’s performance was fabulous.

My first beginning to end concert in second day was E.S.T. Symphony in Amazon, a symphony project achieved by composer/conductor Hans Ek, bassist Dan Berglund and drummer Magnus Öström whose names you will remember as the living members of one of the best European jazz trios in jazz history Esbjörn Svensson Trio. After Esbjörn’s passing away we can see this symphony project as the most important work Magnus and Dan are presenting together. I had seen them in İstanbul three day before their North Sea performance and wrote a detailed review about that great concert. The line-up is changing in each E.S.T. Symphony concert. There were many different names in the premiere in Stockholm and İstanbul. Here in Rotterdam, we had Yuri Honing on saxophone, İbrahim Maalouf on trumpet, Kurt Rosenwinkel on guitar, Yaron Herman and Martin Tingvall on piano. Since the interval defined for the concerts are not long enough in North Sea we had some missing pieces compared to İstanbul and Stockholm such as Seven Days of Falling. Again, an interesting difference is that there are trumpet players in Stockholm and Rotterdam but we did not see a trumpet player in İstanbul. The Amazon stage was big enough for the big orchestra and the sound was very good compared to a bit problematic sound created in İstanbul.  The stage placements are a bit different too. Magnus, Dan and other soloists were at the forefront right after Hans Ek. I learned that they were preferring to be at the back but the stage structure of Amazon caused them to do this. I am excluding the incredible Marius Neset in İstanbul, but I think soloist performances were generally better in North Sea than what we listened to in İstanbul. Even Magnus and Dan were a bit more energetic. I think two most important parts of the concert were İbrahim Maalouf’s wonderful and oriental contribution with his quarter-tones to the piece Behind The Yashmak and the guest appearance of Jamie Cullum in the last piece Love is Real. Besides I have at last met face to face Wilfried Rijsemus, a real jazz lover from Holland with whom I share many interests in jazz for a long time especially for E.S.T. stuff.

After E.S.T. Symphony concert I was planning to see Willie Jones III in Madeira but what I see was again a big queue and closed doors. Again friends joining the concerts mentioned me that what I am missing was another great performance. Before passing to my second plus concert to Amazon I wanted to have a look at Eliane Elias, Randy Brecker and Marc Johnson at Hudson. The concert was fairly good but mostly for looking for a calm Brazilian sound.

Chick Corea and The Vigil at Amazon was a real promising concerts for most of us with Christian McBride on bass. I have lately listened to these two great musicians with the incredible Brian Blade on drums in a wonderful concert. The musicians and compositions were surely all good but I think because of our great expectations the overall performance was not satisfactory.

After an early exit from Amazon I found the opportunity to join Questions and Answers of Magnus Öström and Dan Berglund in Jazz Cafe in the middle. I found the forefront seat and I barely noticed that the woman I am telling “excuse me” while passing was Dee Dee Bridgewater waiting for her turn after them. I made some contributions and asked some questions. I also found some time to talk to my heroes after the event. It was again very depressing to remember Esbjörn’s death.

The last part in my second day was including three single performances from The Cookers in Madeira, Zorn at 60 Electric Masada in Darling and Talking Cows in Volga. The Cookers were really good. The Electric Masada has the highest decibel I have ever heard in a jazz festival. I just had a snapshot look at John Legend’s performance in Nile and ran away from R&B. The end of the day was wonderful with the incredible duo of Michel Camilio and Tomatito. They were really energetic and lively. The compositions, arrangements and overall sound in Hudson were really touching.

The last day has the most difficult schedule for me. I was mostly at Hudson because Kurt Rosenwinkel, Branford Marsalis and Avishai Cohen were there too in consecutive performances.

To start with Kurt Rosenwinkel’s performance was not what again the audience expected but anyone should respect the great technique and sound of this fabulous guitarist. Eric Revis was very good in this performance as well as he is in Branford Marsalis Quartet. When I have found some time I had a look at Ivo Neame Octet in Yenisei which includes Jasper Høiby on bass. In other words, 2/3 of the qualified trio -Phronesis- was on the stage. I have listened to their performances till the end. They were just great. Next to this I also found the chance to see Marcus Miller: The Renaissance at Nile. It was a great show for jazz. Considering the non-jazz line-up in Nile in three days Marcus Miller’s concert was a very important one gathering this many people just for jazz. The compositions and the musicians’ energy were just awesome.

Next Collective is a kind-of-new sound from USA with Gerald Clayton on piano. We had also the great Christian Scott on trumpet. Their compositions are carrying also European tastes and the album is a real success. Since Branford Marsalis Quartet was at Hudson for the following performance and I would see Next Collective in New York in following days I convinced myself to see just the entrance piece of this good concert in Darling.

It was more than a full house in Hudson in Branford Marsalis Quartet’s Concert. We have noticed that there were something wrong when Branford could not come instantly to stage when presented and the problem became evident when we saw that he is trying to fix something in his instrument while his friends are keeping the performance going on. I am not sure but I think the instrument has broken while being carried by airways. Fortunately, after the first performance another musician has made a soprano saxophone to reach to Branford Marsalis and we have listened to a great concert. Joey Calderazzo, Eric Revis and Justin Faulkner were just amazing. Can you believe it? The instrument is hardly working, it is replaced then, you are facing this problem lively on the stage, your friends have to compensate your absence by changing arrangements and you can still return for a great performance. All my respects and WOWs are for Branford Marsalis. This was my first time for his quartet. Their duo performance with Joey Calderazzo was just touching in İstanbul and I was looking forward to listening to the quartet. I got what I expected.

Between Branford Marsalis Quartet and Avishai Cohen Quartet I tried to see Steve Swallow Quintet in Madeira and Joe Lovano in Amazon. I have managed to enter Madeira and at last could see Steve Swallow and Carla Bley together on the stage. Amazon was closed due to high demand.

I have listened to Avishai Cohen Trio before. The quartet configuration and the other musicians were all new for me in live performance. The energy level of Avishai Cohen Quartet in Hudson at the entrance was very low and I think the drummer could not join the event with an enough concentration at first. Later on, the band found their best state and Avishai has started to impress audience again. The encore was a classical solo performance from him: Alfonsina Y El Mar. The last jazz concerts I have seen in the festival were Robert Glasper Experiment with Lionel Loueke in Darling and Ron Carter and WDR Big Band in Hudson. Besides, after his fantastic concert in İstanbul, I wanted to listen to Sting again this time in Nile considering also that Branford Marsalis will be on stage with him. It was just a wonderful end to this fabulous festival.

If you are a jazz lover, YOU HAVE TO GO TO NORTH SEA JAZZ FESTIVAL.

If you are interested in jazz but new, YOU SHOULD GO TO NORTH SEA JAZZ FESTIVAL.

If you are not listening to jazz, YOU MAY GO TO NORTH SEA JAZZ FESTIVAL. 

E.S.T. Symphony İstanbul Konseri, 10 Temmuz 2013

Trio'su ile yakın zamanın unutulmaz caz müzisyenleri arasına giren İsveçli Esbjörn Svensson aramızdan ayrılalı yaklaşık beş sene oldu. Bu yazı grubun davulcusu Magnus Öström ve kontrbasçısı Dan Berglund'u da içine alan ve Hans Ek'in grubun önde gelen bestelerine saksafon, trompet ve gitar partisyonları içeren orkestral düzenlemeleri ile gerçekleştirilen E.S.T. Symphony konserlerinin İstanbul ayağından hemen sonra kaleme alındı. E.S.T. Symphony'nin dünya prömiyeri 10 Haziran'da Stockholm'de gerçekleştirildi. 10 Temmuz'daki İstanbul konserinin hemen ardından 13 Temmuz'da bir konser de Rotterdam'da North Sea Caz Festivali kapsamında verilecek. Henüz tarih ve yerler belli olmasa da bir kaç konser daha verileceği kulağımıza gelen bilgiler arasında. 2003 yılında Esbjörn hayattayken benzer bir orkestral projenin de hayata geçirildiğini hatırlatalım. Konserlerde Dan ve Magnus dışında piyano, saksofon, trompet ve gitar için de farklı şehirlerden, farklı iyi müzisyenleri "line-up"da görmek mümkün. İstanbul'da Dan Berglund ve Magnus Öström'e piyanoda Jacky Terrasson ve Michael Wollny, saksofonda Marius Neset ve gitarda Sarp Maden eşlik etti. Stockholm'dekinin aksine İstanbul'da trompet sanatçısı yoktu. Düzenlemelerin sahibi Hans Ek konserde İstanbul Filarmoni Orkestrası'nı yönetti. Bu arada İstanbul konserinin Mezzo TV'de yayınlanmak için kaydedildiğini de hatırlatalım. Konser öncesi E.S.T. hayranlarının heyecanları gözlerinden okunuyordu. Hem bilindik besteleri duyacak, hem de yeni düzenlemelerin sürprizlerini dinleyeceklerdi.

İlk parça 2006 yılında çıkan Tuesday Wonderland albümünün de giriş parçası olan Faiding Maid Preludium'du. Performansın girişinde İstanbul Filarmoni Orkestrası'nın yaylılarını iyi duyduk ve bence konser genelinde orkestranın performansı oldukça iyiydi. Ancak çok iyi icra edilmelerine rağmen, sesleri arkalardan gelen baslar zayıf ve ziller oldukça parlaktı. Düzenleme muhteşemdi; ancak yaylıların ve zillerin yükseldiği yerlerde ses karmaşası biraz fazlaydı sanki. Perküsyon ve kemanların yardımı ile Esbjörn'ün hemen ölümünün ardından yayınlanan Leucocyte'den Ajar'a geçiş yapıldı. Bu bölüm klasik bir pastoral düzenlemeydi.

E.S.T.'nin 1999 yılında ACT firması ile yollarını kesiştiren From Gagarin's Point of View albümü ile aynı adı taşıyan mükemmel bestenin düzenlemesi için Sarp Maden ve Michael Wollny sahneye geldi. Belki de armonize edilmeye en uygun eseri budur E.S.T.'nin. Bir kaç yenilik dışında, ritim hızına ve piyano partisyonlarına kadar neredeyse albüm kaydı ile aynı doğrultuda bir düzenlemeydi. Gitarın katkısını çok fazla duyamadım.

When God Created the Coffee Break parçasında piyanist Jacky Terrasson ve saksofoncu Marius Neset sahneye geldi. Jacky Terrason'un bu performansında piyano biraz donuk olmak ve geriden gelmekle beraber Esbjörn'den dinlediğimize göre yer yer biraz daha enerjikti diyebilirim. Magnus Öström'ün inanılmaz hızlı vuruşlarının ardından düşen tansiyonla kulağımıza gelen üflemeliler ve devamındaki Jacky Terrasson solosu oldukça iyiydi. Magnus Öström'ün müthiş başarısına rağmen bu ilk üç performansta akustik olarak davuldan çok iyi sesler gelmediğini söylemek zorundayım. Normal kayıtlarda Dan Berglund'a ait olan partisyonların saksofona verildiği müthiş düzenlemeye Marius Neset'in katkısı etkileyici ve büyüktü.

Sanırım gecenin hem en iyi düzenlemesi hem de en iyi performansı Seven Days of Falling'di. Piyanoda bu sefer Michael Wollny vardı. E.S.T.'nin bu önemli bestesinin sadece Dan Berglund'a ait dört adet giriş notası seyirciyi heyecanlandırmaya yetti. Albüm kayıtlarında piyanodan dinlediğimiz ana tema bu düzenlemede saksofona verilmişti. Marius Neset görevini hakkıyla yerine getirdiği gibi özellikle bu parçada doğaçlamaya çıktığı bölümlerde çok dikkat çekici bir performans sundu. Kontrbasın saksafon ile duoya düştüğü ve piyanonun bu ikiliye yumuşak ve minimal dokunuşlarla eşlik ettiği bölümler de muhteşemdi bence.

Wonderland Suite'e orkestra şefi Hans Ek'in ayrı bir eseri olarak bakılabilir. Diğer düzenlemelerden farklı olarak Hans Ek burada Tuesday Wonderland albümünden Dolores in a Shoe Stand ile başlayan, Goldhearted Miner ve Goldwrap ile devam eden geçişler ve geriye dönüşler içeren çok başarılı bir süit bestelemiş. Girişte yine saksofonun, Esbjörn'ün çaldığı piyano partisyonlarını aldığını görüyoruz. Dolores in a Shoe Stand bölümünde Sarp Maden, Marius Neset, Michael Wollny, Dan Berglund ve Magnus Öström'den oluşan quintet tansiyonu ve uyumu yerinde çok iyi bir performans sundular. Özellikle Sarp Maden'in solosu dikkat çekiciydi. Goldhearted Miner bölümüne gelindiğinde, Esbjörn'ün albümde parçaya pastoral bir hava katmak için piyanonun içine kağıt koyarak çaldığı yerler Hans Ek'in düzenlemesinde flütler tarafından icra edildi. Goldwrap kısmı başladığında enerji tıpkı E.S.T. konserlerinde olduğu gibi iyice yukarı çekilmiş durumdaydı. Magnus Öström'ün performansın bel kemiğini oluşturan flanger efektine yakın bir etki bırakan ritmi ve hemen ardından gerçekleştirdiği inanılmaz solo bu davulcunun neden Avrupa'nın en iyi davulcularının başında geldiğini bir kez daha gösterdi. Wonderland Suite, Sarp Maden ve Marius Neset sololarının yardımıyla Dolores in a Shoestand ana temasına yapılan geçişin ardından sonlandırıldı.

Serenade for Renegade düzenlemesinde piyano partisyonları bu sefer gitara, yani Sarp Maden'e verilmişti. Sarp Maden'in doygun ve uzun tonu bu düzenleme ve bestenin özü ile oldukça uyumluydu. Sarp'ın eşlik eden flütlerle beraber parçaya oldukça mistik ve hatta oryantal bir katkı sağladığını söyleyebiliriz. Sarp Maden'in genel olarak konser boyunca katkısını çok başarılı buldum.

Dodge the Dodo'yu iyi bilenler bu parçanın E.S.T. Live '95 albümüne 1999 yılında yapılan kaydı ile giren versiyonun From Gagarin's Point of View albüm kaydından çok önde olduğunu da bilir. Zaten genel olarak dünyanın en iyi ses mühendislerinden Ake Linton'ın ekibe stüdyo kayıtlarında da katkı sağlamasına kadar üçlünün canlı performanslarının albümlerinin çok ötesinde iyi olduğunu söylemek yanlış olmaz. 2007 Live in Hamburg albümü sanıldığının aksine Viaticum'dan daha fazla dünyada tanınmalarına sebep olmuştur. Hans Ek'in piyano partisyonlarının bir çoğunu yine gitar ve saksofona verdiği bu düzenlemenin performansının girişi de 1999 yılındaki canlı kayda çok yakındı. Oldukça enerjik bas ve "snare" vuruşlarının altında Magnus Öström'ün kalp atışı gibi "kick"leri bizleri eskilere götürdü. Michael Wollny'nin piyanoya sert ve donuk vuruşları, Sarp'ın ve Marius'un ana temayı taşıyışı oldukça başarılıydı. Dan Berglund'un bas yayını eline alması ve o kendine has distorsiyon efekti, müziğin olduğu kadar bizlerin de tansiyonunu arttırdı. 

E.S.T.'nin Tuesday Wonderland albümünde yer alan ve benim en favori bestem olan Eight Hundred Streets By Feet'e yapılan düzenleme, bestenin naif ve melankolik havasına uygun olarak oldukça yumuşak ve derindi. Esbjörn'ün piyanodaki ellerinden birini yine piyanodan dinlerken diğerini zaman zaman gitardan, zaman zaman da saksofondan dinledik. 

Hans Ek, Wonderland Suite'e benzer şekilde Viaticum albümüne de Viaticum Suite'i yazmış. Bu düzenleme için albümden Viaticum, 88 Days in My Veins ve Unstable Table and Infamous Fable parçaları seçilmişti. Viaticum ölmekte olan insanlara verilen son yemek manasına geliyor. Bu sebeple beste oldukça karanlık. Albümde Dan Berglund'un dip basları ile edindiğimiz bu duygu Hans Ek'in düzenlemesinde bas yoğunluklu üflemeli enstrümanlarla bizlere sunulmuş. 88 Days In My Veins bölümünde Michael Wollny'nin kontrbas ile olan uyumu ve Unstable Table and Infamous Fable bölümündeki viyolonsel partisyonları dikkat çekiciydi. Unstable Table and Infamous Fable'da albümdeki gibi müzikal duygu açısından kontrolden çıkan arka üçlü, son bölümde Dan Berglund'un mükemmel kullandığı yayı ve Magnus Öström'ün kısa ve etkili "kick"leri ile en başa Viaticum'un ana temasına geri döndü.

Sarp Maden, Jacky Terrasson ve Marius Neset'in sahneye yeniden geldiği son performansta Strange Place for Snow albümünün ve E.S.T.'nin belki de en sıkı performansı Behind The Yashmak'ı dinledik. Dan Berglund tarafından gerçekleştirilen girişin hemen ardından Marius Neset ana temayı aktardı. Albümde ve E.S.T. canlı performanslarında olduğu gibi doğaçlama bölümünü başlatan tetiği çeken ve parçayı enerjisi inanılmaz yüksek noktalara çıkartan müzisyen, "snare" üzerinde adeta dans eden harika davulcumuz Magnus Öström oldu.

Son performans biter bitmez, ayağa kalkan seyirci, artık trio cazı severler arasında efsaneleştiğini düşündüğüm E.S.T.'nin yaşayan iki üyesi Dan Berglund ve Magnus Öström özelinde bu performansa imza atan bütün müzisyenleri, orkestrayı ve şef Hans Ek'i uzun uzun alkışladı. Eminim Esbjörn Svensson da sahnede müzisyenlerin ve koltuklarda dinleyicilerin arasındaydı. Ön sıralarda ağlayanlar oldu ve ne yalan söyleyeyim; benim de gözlerim yaşlıydı. O sırada Hans Ek'in yanına giden bir genç, Esbjörn'ün ölüm yıldönümünü hatırlatan bir kartonu kendisine verdi. Hemen ardından kırmızı kartonda Gezi Olayları'nda hayatını kaybeden gencecik insanların isimleri yazılıydı. Alkışın dozu bir kademe daha arttı. Esbjörn'e ait karton bisten sonra Dan ve Magnus'un da elindeydi. 

Biste neredeyse her Esbjörn Svensson anma konserinde olduğu gibi Love is Real çalındı. Vokalde Korhan Futacı vardı. Charlie Haden'in oğlu Josh Haden tarafından Seven Days Of Falling albümünün Believe Beleft and Below parçasına yazılan sözlerle ortaya çıkan ve aynı albümün son parçası O.D.R.I.P'in sonuna "hidden track" olarak Josh Haden'in kendi vokal performansı ile eklenen bu parçayı seslendirmek çok kolay değildir. Çok farklı vokalistlerden dinlediğim bu parçayı en iyi yine Josh Haden'in seslendirdiğini düşündüğümü söylemek zorundayım. 

Başından sonuna, E.S.T. Symphony konseri İstanbul için unutulmaz bir konserdi. Ben hiç bir caz konserinde sanatçıların bu kadar fanatikçe alkışlandığını görmemiştim. Açık söylemeliyim konsere katılmayan İstanbullular çok şey kaçırdı. Ancak belirtmekte fayda var; sanırım satılan bilet sayısının Gezi Olayları'nın etkisiyle az olması sebebiyle konser küçük salona alınmıştı. Oldukça büyük orkestrayı ve fazla katmanlı eserleri göz önünde bulundurduğumuzda küçük salonda zaman zaman yansımalardan kaynaklı olarak seste problemler yaşandığını ve özellikle asıl önemli performansların gerçekleştiği bas, davul ve piyano üçlüsünün seslerinin kimi zaman kaybolduğunu veya niteliğini kaybettiği söylemeliyim. Yine belirtmekte fayda görüyorum; E.S.T.'nin 2005 sonrası bir çok canlı performansında, albüm kayıtları ve miksajında yanlarında yer alan ve zaman zaman ekibe sağladığı gerçek zamanlı katkılarla grubun adeta dördüncü üyesi gibi olan ses mühendisi Ake Linton, ortaya çıkan sesin niteliğini ilk birkaç performanstan sonra toparladı. Bu da kıyasla uluslararası platformdaki ses mühendislerin bizdekilerden farklı olarak canlı performans esnasında sanatçıdan beklemeden kendi kararlarını alıp durumu kurtarmalarının ne kadar önemli olduğunu gösteriyor. Bu arada bu yazının sonunda sanırım yine eskiden beri E.S.T.'nin menajerliğini yapan Burkhard Hopper'ın bu kadar çeşitli müzisyeni bir araya getirmekteki başarısını kutlamam gerekiyor.

E.S.T. Symphony Concert in İstanbul on July 10th

It's been more than five years that Swedish pianist Esbjörn Svensson of unforgettable E.S.T. passed away and left us all alone. This review is written just after the İstanbul concert of E.S.T. Symphony Project, which is based on orchestral arrangments made by Hans Ek including the drummer Magnus Öström and the bassist Dan Berglund from the trio. The world premiere of E.S.T. Symphony was made in Stockholm on June 10th. After the concert held in İstanbul on July 10th, the next concert will be at North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam on July 13th. Even if the dates and places are not announced I have heard that there will be some other concerts. I should also mention that a similar orchestra project was accomplished in 2003 while Esbjörn was alive. In E.S.T. Symphony concerts, it is possible to see many different musicians from different countries in the line-up. We have listened to Jacky Terrasson and Michael Wollny on piano, Marius Neset on saxophone and Sarp Maden on guitar in İstanbul. Sarp Maden was the Turkish contribution to the project. Hans Ek, the arranger for the concert set list, directed the İstanbul Philharmonia Orchestra in İstanbul. Let me also remind you that the İstanbul concert was recorded and filmed for Mezzo TV. 

The excitement of the audience could easily be seen in their eyes just before the concert. This was not surprising because they would listen to the well-known compositions with many surprises.

The first performance was Faiding Maid Preludium, which is also the entrance to the album Tuesday Wonderland(2006). We have heard the strings of the orchestra very well at the introduction and the orchestra's performance was generally fairly good. However the well performed bass tones, which are coming from the back, were powerless and the well played cymbals from the drum set were too bright. The arrangement was excellent but the sound was too crowded when the strings and cymbals were high. In the last part, the composition was transferred to Ajar from the album Leucocyte by means of percussion and violins.

Sarp Maden and Michael Wollny has come to the stage for a great arrangement of the fabulous composition From Gagarin's Point of View, which has the same name with album that made the trio meet ACT label in 1999. It may be the most suitable composition to be harmonized.  Except some new adds, it was a very similar arrangement with the original composition.

When God Created the Coffee Break has invited pianist Jacky Terrasson and saxophone player Marius Neset to the stage. Even the piano of Jacky Terrasson has sounded a bit cold and dry to me at first, I can say that it was from time to time a bit more energetic compared to what we hear from Esbjörn in this composition. The woodwinds of the orchestra and solo of Jacky Terrasson have taken role after the tension is getting low when fast and strong touches of Magnus Öström ended and they were just perfect. Magnus was artistically very successful but I should say that the first three performances were acoustically not appropriate considering the sound of the drums. The contribution of Marius Neset to the partitions that was originally played by Dan Berglund in the album was huge and amazing.

I think the best arrangement and performance of the night was Seven Days of Falling. Michael Wollny was on the piano this time. The first four notes from Dan Berglund for this very important composition of E.S.T. were enough to excite the audience. The main theme, which was played by the piano in the album, has been carried by the saxophone in this arrangement. Marius Neset, not only has done the work sufficiently, but also has performed a great solo in this part. The instants created when the double bass stayed with saxophone as a duo and when this duo is accompanied softly by the piano were incredible.

Wonderland Suite can be seen as an individual piece of Hans Ek. Different than the others, Hans Ek composed a suite which includes many transitions and turn-backs consisting of Dolores in a Shoe Stand in the entrance and result, Goldhearted Miner and Goldwrap in the development. We have seen that the piano partitions are played again by the saxophone. The quintet including Sarp Maden, Marius Neset, Michael Wollny, Dan Berglund and Magnus Öström gave a very tensional and harmonious peformance. Sarp Maden's solo was especially impressive. The pastoral aura given by Esbjörn by putting papers in the piano, is given by flutes in Hans Ek's arrangement. The Goldwrap part was the most energetic part of the concert similar to old E.S.T. performances. The flanger-like effect and solo of Magnus Öström (who is giving the fundamental to E.S.T. for years) showed us why he is one of the best drummers in Europe. Wonderland Suite has been ended by the main theme of Dolores in a Shoe Stand carried by means of solo performances of Sarp Maden and Marius Neset.

Serenade for Renegade's piano partitions were given to the guitarist Sarp Maden. The saturated and long tone of Sarp Maden was in a deep harmony with the original composition. We can easily say that Sarp has given a mystic and even oriental taste to the piece with the help of flutes. I should mention that Sarp Maden was very successful throughout the concert.

It's been known by the listeners of E.S.T. that Dodge the Dodo of the live record from 1999 which is placed in E.S.T. Live '95 album is far better than the studio record in the album Gagarin's Point of View. More than that, I think it won't be wrong to say that live records of the trio was better than their studio-recorded performances until the world famous audio engineer Ake Linton has started to contribute also to the studio records from 2005. The album Live in Hamburg (2007) was a more famous album than the Viaticum contrary to the general belief. The entrance of this arrangement of Hans Ek, whose piano parts are again given to the guitar and saxophone, was very near to the album version. We have been carried to the old times by the deep heart-beat-like kicks of Magnus Öström which are well beneath energetic bass line and snare drums. The hard and cold touches of Michael Wollny to the piano and the performance of Sarp and Marius in the main theme were all fairly good. The bow performance of Dan Berglund and his authentic distortion tone has increased the tension of the music and the audience to a very high level.

The arrangement made for my favorite composition Eight Hundred Streets By Feet from the album Tuesday Wonderland was soft and deep, similar to melancholic and naive original composition. One hand of the Esbjörn on the piano had been given to the saxophone and guitar.

Hans Ek has also written a suite to Viaticum. There were Viaticum, 88 Days in My Veins and Unstable Table and Infamous Fable in Viaticum Suite. Viaticum means the last meal given to a man who is dying. For this reason, the composition is very dark. This feeling which is given by Dan Berglund in the album was given by brass instruments played from bass lines in the concert. The harmony between Michael Wollny and the double bass in 88 Days In My Veins and violoncello performances in Unstable Table and Infamous Fable were good. The trio behind has turned back to the main theme of Viaticum with short and sharp kicks of Magnus Öström in the end.

The last performance was the incredible piece of E.S.T. from the album Strange Place for Snow called Behind The Yashmak. Sarp Maden, Jacky Terrasson and Marius Neset were the guests in this important tune of E.S.T. Marius Neset has given the main theme just after the entrance made by Dan Berglund. Similar to what has happened in the album, the musician who has pulled the trigger to start the improvisation and carried the energy to incredible levels was Magnus Öström.

The reaction of the audience to this wonderful concert was a long standing ovation. They were applauding all musicians on the stage among which Magnus Öström and Dan Berglund were precious of the night. I am sure that Esbjörn Svensson was with them and us all night. There were people crying in front seats. Let me tell you that I have also cried a little bit. A young men has given a small banner board to Hans Ek on which a tribute word to Esbjörn was written. Just after that he has also given a red banner board on which the name of the people who has been killed during latest Taksim Gezi Park events in İstanbul is written. The level of the applause has been increased then. The board for Esbjörn was also given to the Dan and Magnus after the encore.

It was Love is Real what has been played in the encore similar to many tribute concerts for Esbjörn. Korhan Futacı was on the stage for vocals. The lyrics of Love is Real has been written by Josh Haden, son of Charlie Haden, to the Believe Beleft and Below composition from Seven Days of Falling of Esbjörn Svennson Trio. Josh Haden's own vocal performance is in the same album's hidden track after the piece O.D.R.I.P. The vocal performance of this piece is a very difficult one and I think it is always Josh Haden who has performed the best for it. 

From beginning to end, I think, E.S.T. Symphony Concert was an unforgettable one for İstanbul audience. I have never seen a jazz concert that has been applauded this much fanatically. I should mention that the ones that could not join has missed an incredible concert. However, it is necessary to point out that the concert hall was changed due to low ticket sales as a result of latest events in İstanbul. Considering complicated sounds of the arrangements and big orchestra, there were many reflection problems in the small hall and the main important parts of the sound belonging to the solo instrumentalists at the back has lost its quality many times during the concert. It is also beneficial to point out that Ake Linton has recovered many problems successfully after the first couple of performances and I think this should be a lesson for our sound engineers in Turkey. As a last point, I should congratulate the success of Burkhard Hopper since he has organised this fabulous and difficult event including many musicians having different timetables.

Melody Gardot İstanbul Jazz Festival Concert on July 5th 2013

It was just another Friday when I was travelling from Ankara to İstanbul again for another İKSV Jazz Festival concert. This time, I left my office to experience the highly reputed live performance of my favourite singer Melody Gardot. She impresses me deeply with her incredible technique, magic voice and wonderful compositions for a long time.

I think on July 5th it was the first time that İstanbul Culture and Art Foundation held a concert in gardens of German Embassy in Tarabya. The stage was implemented just after the entrance from the sea. The audience could see the sea just behind the stage while sitting in the gardens and watching wonderful buildings around. The attention and attendance to the concert was high. The audience, some of whom were sitting while others were standing, listened to Melody Gardot in a windy and a moist night of İstanbul.

The entrance of the concert was made by wonderful instrumentalists as it should be in similar qualified vocalist's concerts. Irwin Hall on flute, saxophone and clarinet, Mitchell Long on guitar, Chuck Staab on drums and Aidan Carroll on bass... Frankly, I have not known about them before the concert and after searching for these good musicians, I learned that they are all stand-alone qualified ones in their own projects.

After the improvisational and energetic introduction made by this quartet, Melody came to the stage and sit on to play the piano accompanied by applauses from the audience. The performance has surprisingly turned out to the Rain from the second and the most important album of Melody, My One and Only Thrill. The groovy and modern approach of the drummer Chuck Staab was impressive in this performance. I am attracted by the well designed sound system started from the first minute I heard Melody's vocal even if there was the wind. Melody's vocal was as intense and touching as it was at studio records and I think many people were deeply affected by this pure voice. The wind barrier that is made for the saxophone was a proof of how carefully the sound system is handled. Two pieces Goodbye and Mira, from the album Absence, which are intensively impressed by Brasilian music, were played  later on. We have listened to the Goodbye also in a different arrangement. Melody made a small talk after the performance Mira. The following piece was Cesaira Evora's wonderful composition Saudade and it was another important performance of the concert. After that Melody told us about her first, interesting and magic day in France.

The transference of this magic to us was accomplished when Melody Gardot has left the stage to Irwin Hall's solo performance after making everyone close their eyes. Especially then, I have felt that we were experiencing an extraordinary performance designed excellently with its style of address and fiction. Irwin Hall has played tenor and alto at the same time for a while. After that, among most important pieces of the second album, Les Etoiles (The Stars), Baby I'm a Fool, Who Will Comfort Me and So We Meet Again My Heartache from the album Absence are performed in very similar arrangements to album versions. We also listened to Melody's guitar playing meanwhile. During intervals between pieces we listened to wonderful quotes from Melody Gardot about music and life. Considering her emotional contact with the audience and her artistic posture in front of the microphone I think she is an extraordinary jazz singer. The excitement has risen to the highest state after Melody has obtained permission from The Ambassador for the audience to come to the green area just in front of the stage to dance. After this last performance and an intense ovation, Melody has performed in the encore with a new composition from the next album, Preacher Man, whose main theme is the bad slavery period in American History.

After having talked with this wonderful musician after the concert I can tell you that she is as modest and sincere behind the stage as she has been seen while performing. She has thrown herself easily into the crowd to sign autographs on albums. I feel myself very lucky that I could find the chance to listen to Melody Gardot in such a wonderful place in İstanbul.