PREVIEW: The Jazzlab, 27 Leslie Street, Brunswick I have a soft spot for nostalgia. I cling on to the familiar. In the jazz scene this year there have been some momentous changes, and I find it all too easy to wish things could stay as they have been. When Adrian Jackson parted ways with Stonnington’s annual festival of Australian jazz, handing the artistic direction to a … Continue reading NOSTALGIA LIVES: THE JAZZLAB OPENS
REVIEW / RAVE Melbourne International Jazz Festival, June 3 to June 12, 2016 One of the most interesting conversations I’ve had during this jazz festival — and I’ve had a few, before and after attending 15 concerts — was about the jazz hero. The person I spoke to was a musician who said he wanted to move away from that approach or model in bands … Continue reading OF JAZZ HEROES AND HIGHLIGHTS
REFLECTION Ravi Coltrane at Bird’s Basement, Singers Lane, Melbourne on Sunday, March 6, 2016 IT HAS been said often in recent months, but there’s a lot of live music happening in Melbourne, plenty of it being jazz / improvised. That can’t be bad. But as venues proliferate, the challenge remains to really get more Melburnians — and visitors to town — off their couches and out there listening, … Continue reading OF BIRD’S, BENNETTS AND BEYOND
