Articles by Frank Rubolino
Peter Brotzmann Tribute Concerts at Cafe OTO
by Frank Rubolino
When the free jazz movement started in the United States in the late 1950s, it quickly spread in the 1960s to Europe where many musicians from the States found a more accepting environment for this form of music. One of the earliest benefactors from this exposure was Peter Brotzmann of Germany, a man who rose over the years to legendary status in the genre. He earned the highest respect from musicians and fans alike due to his innovative style and ...
Continue ReadingEdgefest 2023
by Frank Rubolino
The Michigan town of Ann Arbor, best known as the home to the University of Michigan Wolverines, has another claim to fame in its annual festival of creative improvised music. The appropriately named Edgefest worked its magic for the 27th year, presenting a diverse array of established and emerging talent over a four-day period in October. Eighteen performances were offered, most of which were held in the acoustically friendly Kerrytown Concert House where the audience included a significant number of ...
Continue ReadingVision Festival 2023
by Frank Rubolino
Beginning in 1996, the Vision Festival In New York has been a mainstay for featuring both established and upcoming artists dedicated to playing music outside the boundaries of established mores. Now, some 27 years later, it is still going strong and is fully committed to its original mission. This year, at Roulette in Brooklyn, bassists Joelle Leandre from France and Reggie Workman from the USA were honored for their contributions to the music over the decades. During the six-day festival ...
Continue ReadingNew York's 24th Annual Vision Festival
by Frank Rubolino
Although Europe has a plethora of creative improvised music festivals throughout the year, drawing on a large audience base of appreciative fans, one festival in the USA stands out as the beacon of hope and encouragement for this music in its native land. Now in its 24th year, New York's Vision Festival, presented by Arts for Art, is a rarity on this side of the Atlantic in its scope and artistry. The superstars of the music are honored and respected ...
Continue ReadingAi Confini Tra Sardegna E Jazz 2018 (On the Border between Sardinia and Jazz)
by Frank Rubolino
Tucked away near the southern tip of Sardinia about an hour's drive southwest of the island's capital city of Cagliari is the small community of Sant' Anna Arresi, where for the last 33 years, the festival Ai Confini tra Sardegna e Jazz (On the Border between Sardinia and Jazz) has presented a striking array of artists performing creative improvised music. This year's fest extended over a nine-day period and featured musicians from Germany, Italy, France, Austria, England, the USA, and ...
Continue ReadingThe 23rd Edition Of New York’s Vision Festival
by Frank Rubolino
If one had to pick just one word to describe New York's Vision Festival, it would be consistency. This late May 2018 event, which has been presented annually since 1996, has consistently offered exciting and inspired improvised music, poetry, and dance executed by both seasoned, well-established artists as well as younger, emerging talent. They all have one goal in mind--to produce art that is challenging, stirring, and most importantly, new. In recent years, the Vision Festival has honored one artist ...
Continue ReadingSomething Else! Festival Hamilton 2017
by Frank Rubolino
The Something Else! Festival of Creative Music in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada reached the four-year milestone in June 2017 by offering four days of exciting music by North American, European, and Asian musicians. Zula Music and Arts Collective presented the festival that played at three acoustically friendly venues with both afternoon and evening offerings. A unique feature of this festival was the use of ad hoc groups selected by curator Cem Zafir from various members of the regularly performing acts. These ...
Continue ReadingSardinia 2016: Ai Confini tra Sardegna e Jazz
by Frank Rubolino
Since 1986, the small town of Sant'Anna Arresi on the large island of Sardinia off the western coast of Italy has been home to the festival Ai Confini tra Sardegna e Jazz (On the Border Between Sardinia and Jazz), presenting an array of International innovative jazz artists. The September 2016 edition was no exception, when 20 performances occurred over a 10-day period featuring musicians from numerous countries, including many noted New York and Chicago players. The amphitheater-style venue, Piazza del ...
Continue ReadingVision Festival 2017
by Frank Rubolino
New York's Vision Festival of innovative music marked its 22nd anniversary last month with another stellar lineup boasting pioneers of the avant-garde playing alongside a premier cadre of younger musicians. Presented at the historic Judson Memorial Church in the heart of Greenwich Village by Arts for Art, the festival featured six nights of challenging music, much of it instantly composed. Each year, the festival honors a living legend with a Lifetime Achievement award. This year's recipient was Cooper-Moore, who was ...
Continue ReadingEdgefest 2016
by Frank Rubolino
One of the most consistently satisfying festivals in the USA, or for that matter anywhere, can be found in the college town of Ann Arbor, Michigan, where each fall, a superb lineup of innovative international performers produce music of significance over a four-day period. The appropriately named Edgefest, for the music has always been on the cutting edge, calls the Kerrytown Concert House home. This intimate, acoustically friendly venue showcases world-class musicians who immediately become part of the sprawling Edgefest ...
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