REVIEW Melbourne International Jazz Festival, 17 – 26 October 2025 The night after this year’s MIJF I went to a concert. A jazz gig. There was an international vocalist, albeit an expat, visiting from Switzerland. The other musicians had been on stage during the festival. It was a sublime experience. It showed how well the improvised music Melbourne had been blessed with over the 10 … Continue reading Music is the best weapon
Indigenous Artist in Residence, Noongar woman Bumpy. Image: RM REVIEW Melbourne International Jazz Festival, 18 – 27 October 2024 Each concert has stories. Each listener finds their own. Each player shares some of what brought them to the stage – some of that journey. Do festivals have stories? Yes, but only in the way patrons (and reviewers) collate cues and clues along the way. After … Continue reading No Herbie, but plenty of telling stories
REVIEW Melbourne International Jazz Festival, 20 – 29 October 2023 To pianist Nduduzo Makhathini, the telling of a story can liberate and heal. The Blue Note artist from South Africa told his audience at The Jazzlab on the final night of the festival that performances are moments of emptying, an opportunity for us to dissolve for a second and to think about ourselves in the … Continue reading Glimpsing a collective consciousness
