Festival International de Jazz de Montréal 2023

Festival International de Jazz de Montreal
Montreal, Quebec
June 29-July 3, 2023

The 2023 festival continued the broad offering of free shows that was so prominent last year. They were frequently strong enough to vie with the ticketed concerts (which were also quite diverse and featured marquee artists from jazz and adjacent fields, as always). The festival is proud to boast that two-thirds of the concerts are free. They are certainly not all "free jazz," but they are accessible to all.

June 29

French-Lebanese trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf brought his contemporary electric jazz as the inaugural show on the gigantic outdoor TD Stage: certainly the most prominent outdoor stage, and possibly the stage with the highest audience capacity in the entire festival. It is amazing to see jazz presented in such a setting, complete with several huge Jumbotrons to give the audience a close-up view of the action on the distant stage. The set list featured music from his most recent album, Capacity To Love (Mister Ibe, 2022). It is eclectic stylistically, with jazz funk, rock and hip-hop prominent in the mix, and although the live show lacked the cast of star-studded guest musicians and actors on the album it was an exciting presentation that went down well with the large crowd. Maalouf's Arabic background is always part of his trumpet lines, and he also had a traditional Arabic stringed instrument in the band, but the sound is a smooth fusion that is easy on the ears of pop and jazz fans alike.

American keyboardist James Francies brought his trio with electric bassist Burniss Travis and drummer Jeremy Dutton to the much smaller free outdoor stage Pub la Traversée (Quiet Square) for two shows. They played a more experimental version of contemporary jazz: mostly electric, but Francies played both piano and synthesizer. Even when they were grooving there might be abstract sequences. At one point Dutton played a long unaccompanied drum solo, followed by the angular bebop of the mash-up of Thelonious Monk's "Rhythm-A-Ning" played over Francies' "Freedmen's Town" from Purest Form (Blue Note, 2021).The leader played wild running piano lines, followed by a memorable bass solo with an octave divider (which gave Travis access to several octaves on his six-string bass). The late set concluded with a kind of stuck record groove, featuring a manic keyboard solo on top.

Guitarist/vocalist George Benson came to the stage with nearly 50 years of history in jazz and pop, and he did his best to meet the expectations of the fans of all of that music. The show began with the vocal features that dominated the set (Benson spent most of the time as a vocalist, picking up his guitar periodically). " Feel Like Makin' Love" was a Roberta Flack cover from In Your Eyes (Warner Brothers, 1983), and James Taylor's "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight" came from Songs and Stories (Concord, 2009). Benson picked up his guitar for this, contributing a bluesy solo. The ballad "Nothing's Gonna Change My Love For You" from 20/20 (Warner Brothers, 1985) featured lead lines from second guitarist Michael O'Neill, a vital contributor throughout the concert. Benson told the story of his first performance in Montréal at the Esquire Show Bar at age 19 (after first joking that he had no idea where Montréal was before the gig). Percussionist Lilliana de los Reyes joined Benson at the front of the stage to sing a duet, then was given her own showcase singing one of her favorite soul songs. She took full advantage of Benson's generous gesture. The audience gave an energetic clap-along on "Never Give Up on a Good Thing" from The George Benson Collection (Warner Brothers, 1981) before he launched into his early instrumental hit "Breezin'" from the album of the same name (Warner Brothers, 1976). The tune also featured one of several strong piano solos from music director Randy Waldman. The set concluded with "Give Me the Night" from the album of the same name (Warner Brothers, 1980). The energy had the audience on their feet and included some of Benson's most abandoned guitar playing. Benson was presented with the Montréal Jazz Festival Spirit Award, which recognizes the quality and innovation of an artist's body of work. The statue is modeled on trumpeter Miles Davis, which prompted recollections about working with him. The band returned for two encores. "This Masquerade" (another track from Breezin') gave him the chance to do some of the trademark vocalese doubled by his guitar, and the concert finally ended with his hit version of "On Broadway" from Weekend in L.A. (Warner Brothers, 1978).

June 30

The early show at Le Gesù was Tiny Habits, a Boston-based folk-pop trio made up of vocalist/guitarist Cinya Khan and vocalists Judah Mayowa and Maya Rae Champian. Their music is not even jazz-adjacent, but it was perfectly suited to the intimate venue. It was immediately clear that they had attracted a devoted fan base that was younger and more female than the average festival show. Their opener "Hemenway" from their debut EP Tiny Things (Harbour Artists & Music, 2023) established their audacious vocal harmonies: their sound is based on a distinctive blend that makes use of lots of chromatic content. After "One More" they said they were thrilled to be in Montréal for the first time, and having just come off from a tour with a full band, they were delighted to return to their original acoustic trio form. During their signature tune "Tiny Things" many audience members held up Tiny Things signs, further evidence that they were already hardcore fans. When introducing their first unreleased song they pointed out that they had only released six songs! They had clearly established a strong fan connection very quickly. The set also included covers like the Harry Styles song "Matilda." From the beginning, the group has featured distinctive cover arrangements to establish their sound while building an original repertoire.

The John Scofield Trio's performance at the historic Monument-National was delayed for 45 minutes by a fire alarm (which may have been triggered by stage smoke). Scofield jokingly thanked the audience member who pulled the fire alarm, saying that he used the delay to catch up on email. The group (with bassist Vicente Archer and drummer Bill Stewart) opened with the fast bebop of "How Deep," followed by the Carla Bley ballad "Lawns," which was recorded on A Moment's Peace (EmArcy, 2011). Stewart is a longtime playing partner, and Archer was a great addition, contributing melodic solos as well as solid timekeeping. Scofield acknowledged the older folks in the audience with his cover of the Bob Dylan/Byrds tune "Mr. Tambourine Man," which featured a double bass solo. Miles Davis was represented by his classic "Budo" from Birth of the Cool (Capital Records, 1957). Double bassist Ray Brown's "Ray's Idea" gave the trio another great bebop tune to work with, providing another great guitar and bass solos, along with a drum break. Scofield thanked festival founder Andre Menard before launching into a jazz/funk tune with looping. The encore was Cowboy Jack Clement's "Just a Girl I Used to Know," most recently recorded on Country For Old Men (Impulse!, 2016). Scofield made a point of quoting some of the lyrics: clearly the song means a lot to him.

Drummer/composer Mark Guiliana brought his quartet to the opening session of Le Gesù's late-night Jazz Dans La Nuit series. He was joined by longtime band members tenor saxophonist Jason Rigby and bassist Chris Morrissey, along with frequent collaborator pianist Jason Lindner. "Jersey" from Jersey (Motéma Music, 2017) is an older tune named after Guiliana's birthplace. It started at a deliberate pace, with a long-note theme and a heartbeat drum rhythm. Once it got going it was full of explosive dynamics and energy. The dynamic range the quartet exhibited throughout the set was striking: it is rare to hear such deliberate use of dynamics for emotional effect. "Our Essential Nature" from The Sound of Listening (Edition Records, 2022) gave the leader the opportunity to solo over its odd-metered vamp. "Mischeaf" from the album of the same name (Edition Records, 2023) came from the same sessions as The Sound of Listening and included gentle inside the piano sounds as well as powerful tenor saxophone. The band performed "Family First" from the album of the same name (Beat Music Productions, 2015) as an encore, in recognition of the many family members who were in the house.

July 1

Rodrigo y Gabriela is usually described as a Mexican acoustic guitar duo, and flamenco guitar remains the core of their musical style. But they also embrace heavy metal music and the electric guitar, which was immediately apparent in the dramatic opening of their concert at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier. The sound was loud and distorted, and the lights were bright and intense. It was an experience worthy of a top-flight arena rock band like Pink Floyd. The bright white lights gave way to orange lighting and an acoustic guitar duet. Gabriela told the audience that they were delighted to be back at the festival. The show continued with both musicians moving freely around the stage: sometimes they sat close together and played acoustically, but often they were on opposite sides of the stage. Gabriela was a whole rhythm section: strumming, plucking, and banging on the body of her guitar while shaking her head like a heavy metal dude and sometimes pogoing at the same time. Rodrigo frequently played the guitar hero role, soloing on electric guitar. On the new tune "Don't You Want It" Rodrigo switched to lap steel guitar. The encore began with Gabriela playing solo, which served as a corrective to anyone who thought she was anything other than an equal partner. Rodrigo joined her on acoustic guitar before moving to electric for the second encore.

Moon Hooch occupied Le Gesù's late-night slot. A band made up of two saxophonists and a drummer: sounds like it might be a free jazz ensemble, especially given the traditional booking habits for the venue. But no: this is a dance party. The energy level started out at 11, and before long they had the audience on their feet and dancing in the aisles. Michael Wilbur (tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass saxophone, synthesizers, soprano clarinet and vocals), Wenzl McGowen (tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, contrabass clarinet and synthesizers) and Cyzon Griffin (drums and percussion) sounded like at least four people, with the help of synthesizers. Both horns also covered bass lines: the power of bass saxophone and contrabass clarinet cannot be overstated. They have an impact comparable to the tuba in the band Sons of Kemet, and the entire band had similar dance energy as well. This is a band that started out busking in New York City, and they retain the untamed street energy required by that setting.

July 2

Sunday afternoon began with composer Tim Brady's Instruments of Happiness—100 guitares électriques at La Grande-Place du complexe Desjardins, Place des festivals. 100 electric guitars, 4 soloists and 4 conductors premiered Tim Brady's "Because really big jazz guitar chords: sound like this!" in the large open shopping mall space. There were four antiphonal groups, each with its own lead guitarist and conductor, so it was possible to move around in the space and hear varying balances between the groups. The music began with the four groups passing a chord around before the soloists introduced trills, glissandi with a slide, and melodic themes. After repeated ostinato patterns there was a crunchy chord to end. There had been rehearsals for the lead guitarists, as well as ones for the individual groups. But the festival performance was the first time that all of the performers played together. Due to the large space and the distance between the groups, it was decided that improvisation would not be part of this performance, even though it was included in the score. The second performance was similar to the first in broad outline, and it is hard to know how it might have been different if there had been more improvisation. It was still a glorious racket, encompassing passages of delicate beauty along with the sort of big blasts of sound one might expect from 100 electric guitars in the same room. This was a free event and drew a large and enthusiastic audience on the main floor and the next floor above the atrium, where they could look down on the action.

The great Tunisian oud player and composer Anouar Brahem performed three nights of concerts at the festival in 2011. This year he returned with a retrospective show with The Amouar Brahem Quartet that blends some of his quartet standards and songs from his older albums. He was joined by frequent collaborators Klaus Gesing (bass clarinet and soprano saxophone), Swedish electric bassist Björn Meyer (also known for his work with Nik Bärtsch's Ronin) and percussionist Khaled Yassine (darbouka and bendir). This group first appeared on the album The Astounding Eyes of Rita (ECM, 2009). The concert began with unaccompanied bass clarinet, which made it clear that Brahem was giving space to the entire band. Shortly after that he played an oud solo and took a break to introduce the band members. The next piece had a bluesy feel, which included a beautiful unaccompanied electric bass solo. Meyer used so much high register that it sounded like a finger-style guitar. The crowd cheered in recognition of the first encore, and then the group took a rare second encore.

Cuban percussionist Pedrito Martinez brought his band The Pedrito Martínez Group to the Pub la Traversée for two free performances. He was joined by Keisel Jimenez (percussion, vocals), Sebastian Natal (bass, vocals), Issac Delgado Jr (keys, vocals) and Xito Lovell (trombone, vocals). They played hot Cuban dance music, and there was much enthusiasm and dancing from the audience. Martinez sang "Baby, if you give it to me, I'll give it to you," and "Que Palo" before introducing his band mates and wrapping up the show,

July 3

Drummer Nate Smith played his second Invitations show at Le Gesù with funk performers/ producers and special guests kiefer and Carrtoons. Kiefer is a keyboardist and producer, while CARRTOONS is a bassist and producer, and along with Smith they formed a potent funk/jazz trio. Smith said that he was very excited to be working with them, and was astounded that they had accepted his invitation. They had just played "Magic Two: Transit" from FORTY: the lo-fi beat tape (Waterbaby Music, 2014). He never thought he would play it live, and declared that his guests had exceeded all expectations. The tune also featured a big drum solo over a vamp, but solos were not the main focus. Smith was enjoying the grooves, and in a later stage announcement, he made a point of saying that this music was not easy to play. It requires discipline, and he said his playing on this night was in service to his guest's ideas, which were great ideas! A later disquisition was on the topic of "soul," a feeling that Smith found in lots of different music. For the encore, Smith emphasized his piccolo snare drum and a shaker and delighted in playing syncopated rhythms to the audience's clapping.

Herbie Hancock's concert at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier had DOMI and DOMi + JD Beck as the opening act. They played facing each other on an elaborate fanciful stage set, which complemented the roller blades with flashing lights that DOMi used to come onstage. Most of the set came from their debut album Not Tight (APESHIT/Blue Note, 2022). They joked about the album title referring to their fashion choices: it certainly did not describe their musical partnership, which was full of both energy and precision. The song choices that did not come from the album reflected strong musical influences. Wayne Shorter's "Endangered Species" from his album Atlantis (Columbia Records, 1985) was interrupted by a minor equipment breakdown (Beck played a short drum solo during the repair). Continuing in a Weather Report vein, Jaco Pastorius' "Havona" from Heavy Weather (Columbia Records, 1977) gave DOMi another opportunity to demonstrate her remarkable facility with bass synthesizer. "Moon" featured Herbie Hancock on the album version, but they made it work with just the duo. This was one of the songs in the set that included vocals, an aspect of their sound that references contemporary pop and hip-hop.

Herbie Hancock began his set with a kind of medley that he called "The Overture." Explaining that he had been in the music business for a long time and couldn't possibly play all of his songs, he promised to include many of them, and a few would be played at greater length later in the concert. It began with some spacey soundscaping, eventually moving on to an extended piano solo. Guitarist Lionel Loueke rendered the hit "Rockit" from Future Shock (Columbia Records, 1983) as a guitar solo with vocals, which was followed by "Chameleon" from Head Hunters (Columbia Records, 1973). Overtures are usually a brief summation of the main themes in an opera, but this one ran for nearly 30 minutes. Hancock stopped to introduce his star-studded band: electric bassist James Genus (stolen from the Saturday Night Live house band); trumpeter/keyboardist Terrence Blanchard (who composed the score to the 2022 movie The Woman King on Hancock's tour bus); drummer Jaylen Petinaud (a young player Hancock praised as part of the future of jazz); and guitarist Lionel Loueke (who Hancock praised for his singular approach). Hancock paid tribute to his playing partner Wayne Shorter by performing Blanchard's arrangement of the jam-session perennial "Footprints." It included a great guitar solo and surprised by ending without repeating the head. "Actual Proof" from the second Headhunters album Thrust (Columbia Records, 1974) was a favorite concert selection at the time and provided solo space for everyone in the band. "Come Running To Me" from Sunlight (Columbia Records, 1978) featured Hancock's "vocals" using the vocoder. He clearly was enjoying revisiting the technology, because he took a very long solo. The next tune began with an unaccompanied electric bass solo with looper, which was followed by Hancock's keytar solo. As expected, this led directly to the full-length performance of "Chameleon" which ended the show. It must be said that Hancock still brings incredible energy to his shows: there was no encore, but the band had already played for an hour and a half! It's as if he is aging in reverse. A stirring end to the fifth night of the festival.

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