London Piano Trio - Music under Stalin

Robert Atchison - Violin

It was the strangest of days in London town last Sunday (09/11/2014). Middle-age soldiers in uniform walked the streets with sweethearts on their arms. Behind these, a second wave of wizened veterans brought up the rear, a little slower but still with chests puffed out. Poppies rested beside brightly coloured campaign strips as people swarmed away from the nearby Cenotaph.

Personal emotions, like many other around me, are confused during the red tinted days between Remembrance Sunday and the eleventh hour of the eleventh month. Just as confusing and enlightening was the sentiments stirred up by the London Piano Trio as they celebrated Music under Stalin. For this day marked the 25th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall. On the night of November 9, 1989, the most potent symbol of the Cold War division in Europe tumbled. Earlier that day, the communist authorities of the German Democratic Republic had announced the removal of travel restrictions to democratic West Berlin.

David Jones - Cello

The London Piano Trio of Robert Atchison (violin), Olga Dudnik (piano) and David Jones (cello) split the afternoon into two halves. The first belonged to Georgy Sviridov's stunning Piano Trio in A minor, Op.6. After the interval we were treated to Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Trio in E Minor, Op.67.

The first movement of Sviridov's masterpiece, quickly highlights Robert Atchison's versatility. With bow tapping on string he gives us a tip-toeing tension. It is a peck of a bird, a drip of a gutter and with the cello of David Jones joining too it has a sinister Hitchcockesque edge. You hear the folk influences of Sviridov's early tuition in the second movement, Sherzo. As you would imagine it was vigorous and playful but it also talked of power and strength. There was a sparse modernity during the third that built the tension once again between violin and cello. The pulse was so strong in the fourth, marked Idyll, you almost believed there was a drummer behind St John's mammoth pillars. It had an incredible vocabulary that left us hanging between the height of the strings and depths of Olga Dudnik's piano.

Olga Dudnik - piano

The second half of the day's concert was equally inspirational as cellist David Jones cast a gossamer trance over all of us who sat in St John's Smith Square. You felt the chill and the ethereal qualities of his playing. It was almost suffocating, such was his grip on our attention during the first movement of Shostakovich's Piano Trio in E Minor, Op.67. This was short lived and Robert Atchison was released like a sling shot on subsequent movements. The London Piano Trio gave us everything in this second set, from sprigs of humour to full bloodied devotion to the motherland.

The pounding of proud breasts wasn't the only sound we heard on this day of double meanings. Juxtaposed beside the poetic fantasies we also heard the strings of Atchison and Jones under pressure, notes of pain and tension tempered those of patriotic fervour.

AL.


ps. regular readers will know I started my apprenticeship under Rich Rainlore of Rainlore's World. I was lucky enough to see him at the concert and spend some time with him and his beautiful PA Chetna Kapacee. I hope this means a return to London's live music circuit. We all miss him.

Chico Chica - Tomfoolery

Barbara Snow - Percussion, Flugelhorn and Vocals

Prepare yourselves because this is just an amuse bouche before the main course is served. I was attending the Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea (09/02/2014) in my role as artist-in-residence for critic Mr Rainlore. Along with his able assistant Chetna Kapacee we were here to experience trio Chico Chica who I had previous sketched and written about in 2013. Mr Rainlore will be giving them a fleshier review than I at www.rainloresworldofmusic.net/ in due course, along with my colour sketches. For now be satisfied with a monochromatic pictorial representation but with the words in vivid hues to reflect Chico Chica's witty performance.

With a mixture of Mediterranean flavours provided for the ears, Chico Chica are appetisingly entertaining but it is Tom Hannah poetic brilliance that gets my cerebral juices flowing. This isn't a one man band by any stretch and the stage was illuminated by the sleek satin beauty of Barbara Snow, who immerged from the Palace Theatre's rich lighting as through a Claude Lelouch Vaseline smeared lens. Luckily I regained self-control as thoughts of petroleum jelly along with Snow's singing on 'C'est Ta Chanson' nearly brought an embarrassing end to my tenure with Mr Rainlore.

Hilary Cameron - Flute/Piano/Vocals

Hilary Cameron was the red haired sprite playing piano and flute in the centre of the trio. The clarity of her voice cleansed the Southend crowd during the second set, particularly on 'This Room'. Her calming presence was much needed due to the audience becoming overexcited by Tom Hannah's lyrical high jinx. During the interval I managed to chat to a few members of the 'back row' club. True to form it turned out they were from the Southend branch of the Hannah Clan, describing Tom as the black sheep of the family. A real badge of honour.

Tom Hannah

Tom Hannah got his dancing shoes on once again for the iconic 'A Scientific Fact' with a bit of robotic shuffling and then brought out his angry ant dance for 'Music is Overrated'. Hannah keeps the tongue in his cheek so firmly hidden you never know which side of the coin his lyrics will land. Tails for humour and Heads for the thought provoking poetry that is Hannah's metier. Although he isn't personally the 'Nice guy with an Edge' from his dating song, this sums up his persona perfectly.

Tom Hannah informs us in his introduction that Chico Chica are no chin stroking aficionados. If you believe therefore that there aren't deep pools within their repertoire then you would be wrong. The attention does wander when in repose during some musical interludes but not for long as Hannah's conceptual zeal thrusts deep into your mind just as your guard is lowered.

AL.

Jazz Art Review - Tasting my own medecine

Twickenham Jazz Club
Exhibition

As this blog revolves around a subjective response to music rather than an objective one you may well be sick of my patter. Though in this case my artwork has a legitimate footing to be clinging to these cultural online pages. On 25th May I was lucky enough to exhibit my work at the Twickenham Jazz Club and here is a review of it from Mr Rich Rainlore from Rainlore's World.

Read the review here.

Sally Silver Soprano & Elizabeth Connell Memorial Concert

Elizabeth Connell Memorial Concert

Sylvie Valayre

This was one of the most unusual, exciting and enjoyable nights on duty with Rich Rainlore.

Sally Silver

I love the venue and I'm acquiring a taste for sketching to classical music. Although it was hard work (I didn't have time to draw all the pianists) I responded to the drama of Operatic singing, the facial expressions and sheer power. Obviously it was a Memorial and there were moving dedications to Elizabeth Connell but it was an amusing celebration at times.

It felt a little inappropriate but I found the performance particularly powerful because it stirred my base desires. A little like the attractive cousin you find yourself lusting after at your granny's funeral.
None more so than the seductive Soprano Sally Silver and Sylvie Valayre.

Richard Wiegold

The men were equally captivating and I just wish I had longer to draw Richard Wiegold and Stuart Skelton.

Stuart Skelton

Read Rich Rainlore's extensive review Here!

Jan Ponsford Quartet - Friends Reunited

Jan Ponsford - Vocals

Another new venue and performers to get my teeth into!

Read Rich Rainlore's latest review of the Jan Ponsford Quartet at Jan's Bar
18 Northwold Road, Stoke Newington, London N16 7HR
Sunday 21st April 2013.
Follow this link.

Jan Ponsford's vocalising was a real eye opener and I really enjoyed Terry Pack on bass who was lurking in the shadows.


Terry Pack - Bass

Georgia Mancio - Jazz's popular vote

Georgia Mancio

The public voted with their feet last Thursday (25/04/2013) at Twickenham Jazz Club by standing on them and applauding without constraint. In my short time as TJC's in-house artist this was the most positive response I have seen for any group. Sometimes you keep it simple, a trio, purity of voice, skill and intensity, the stars collide and BANG!

The performance had started much earlier in the day with a hot topic on the online agenda. Just that morning Big Bear Music had announced the nominations for their annual 'mainstream' British Jazz Awards (including TJC's Henry Armburg Jennings, and the imminent Julian Stringle). Despite not being nominated, tonight's guitarist Nigel Price had urged his friends to vote, citing it as a popular poll where the public had a chance to show their appreciation for once. He wrote,
 "The less we vote the more likely it is for the whole "jobs for the boys" mentality or cronyism to creep in."

He was challenged on this point by Jazz royalty's free spirit Gabriel Garrick
"Don't believe the hype!!
Awards only serve to further any existing exclusivity within any given area. They only reinforce more of the same dumb behaviour: that of encouraging blind following."

Nigel Price - Guitar

Nigel is never one to sit on the fence and his reasoning that followed was well balanced but unfortunately too long to reproduce, so here's a snippet,
"...it's still a totally open vote and if we get enough people to cast theirs then it could turn into a true representation of who and what musicians and non musicians alike find most worth applauding on a national scale.
What's wrong with that?"

Colin

Both had a point of course, Big Bear had pre-selected or chosen the nominations, so its wasn't entirely a free vote and yet here was a chance for our voice to be heard. An opportunity I grasped with both hands, well, at least my two digits on my laptop keyboard.

To metaphorically 'live or die' in front of an audience, Nigel Price has laid down the gauntlet this evening. With just three performers on the stage, there was nowhere to hide, although the mood lighting meant they operated like cold war spies in a purple tungsten glow. This was the cleverest of performances, full of subtleties, the trio tonight played their hands with a deftness that teased the crowd in front of them.

Larry Bartley - Bass

Georgia Mancio sat well back from the stage's edge, as though succumbing to an intolerance of 'The limelight'. This only pulled the audience forward and many of us sat with elbows on knees. Earlier in the week I had sketched the multi-instrumental-voiced singer Jan Ponsford for Mr Rainlore and Mancio's voice felt gentle in comparison. First impressions can be deceiving, it seems her power isn't like a wave that crashes over you but that lapping Mediterranean kind which casts the mind adrift into playful daydreams.

Nigel Price is a hard man to read visually, particularly this evening, he was flanked by the tall figure of Larry Bartley and willowy Mancio. This made him look like a grumpy garden gnome who was fishing for imaginary carp, an image that was totally dispelled once he reeled in the audience on the end of his guitar hooks. He looked happy. Excelling on Latin intricacies, like the samba styled Coots tune 'You go to my head'. His solo on 'That old black magic' was granted a standing ovation from TJC dude Colin amongst others.

Zoran Matic

I've drawn Larry Bartley before at Alex Hutton's Friday Nolias residency and knew I was in the company of a fellow artist, so I hope my drawings will find his approval. Larry and I weren't the only artists in attendance and I managed to get a quick sketch of an intense Zoran Matic.

Kelvin Christiane - Sax

Twickenham Jazz Club favourite Kelvin Christiane joined the trio for a superb Stanley Turrentine finale on Soprano and then chaos ensued. Price had earlier urged the public to vote for their heroes and his plea hadn't fallen on deaf ears. They stood and kept applauding until an encore was granted, confusion reigned because of Mancio's imminent Stansted flight to Germany and the Jazzahead Festival/Conference. She sacrificed her precious sleeping time and gave the people what they wanted.

Later that night a bewildered Nigel Price commented
"The crowd literally went mental!
It was a bit disconcerting in a way.
Very odd."
Well you asked for the people's opinion.
They voted for you, Georgia and Larry.

We still stand up for what we believe in!

AL.

Martin Alvarado - Mikko Helenius - Fire and Ice

Martin Alvarado - Fire

Recently I had the pleasure of drawing Martin Alvarado and Mikko Helenius at Lauderdale House, Highgate on 21st March 2013.

With a special guest appearance by Juan Maria Solare.

Read Rich Rainlore's hot review on Rainlore's World - LINK HERE



Mikko Helenius

Nick Meier and a Sirkis Smile

Nick Meier - Guitar

I've just finished sketches of the Nick Meier group at Pizza Express, Soho (19/03/2013) for Rainlore's World.
Check out the review HERE.

Sketches of Nick Meier, Asaf Sirkis, Demi Garcia, Lizzie Ball, James Pearson and Pat Bettison.



Lizzie Ball - Viloin & Vocals

Rainlore's online artist-in-residence

Rich Rainlore

I'm really chuffed to announce that I'll be working more closely with critic/observer Rich Rainlore over the coming year. I'll be his official artist-in-residence and 'live' sketcher at many of the gigs he'll be attending for his website Rainlore's World.

Rich is no stranger to the visual side of music after plying his trade for many years as a photographer, so he knows just how difficult it can be to produce the goods in challenging conditions. He is a sympathetic and knowledgeable collaborator who I know I'll enjoy working with over the next 12 months....and hopefully long into the future..

It is no surprise that since I've been working with Rich, I have gained confidence in my own writing.

I made this quick sketch of him at Joanna Strand's CD launch, The Forge, Camden in 2012. It was the first gig we worked on together and I haven't looked back since.

AL