ISN’T IT GRAND, NORWEGIAN BAND

REVIEW Ausjazz blog picks some highlights from the 2012 Melbourne International Jazz Festival: All up, Ausjazz went to all or part of 15 MIJF gigs this year. This is an attempt to pick out some highlights, though there will be posts about individual concerts when time permits. A few explanatory notes: First, I chose not to review the Opening Gala: The Way You Look Tonight … Continue reading ISN’T IT GRAND, NORWEGIAN BAND

MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL 2011 — PREVIEW

Saturday, June 4 — Monday, 13 June It’s eclectic. It’s like an octopus. Yes, just when you thought the word eclectic had become too hackneyed a term, there is really no better way to describe this year’s MIJF, which had its program launch at 6pm today. The program devised by Sophie Brous is indeed wide-ranging, broad-based, extensive, comprehensive, varied, diverse, catholic, all-embracing, multifaceted, multifarious, heterogeneous, miscellaneous … Continue reading MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL 2011 — PREVIEW

In tune with life

INTERVIEW BRANFORD Marsalis is no stranger to Australia, and he has two loose front teeth to prove it. The saxophonist, who in early days played alto with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and mostly tenor and soprano with his brother Wynton’s quintet, first visited with Sting in 1986, touring for five weeks and developing a love for Australian football. “We played with the production crew in … Continue reading In tune with life