There were many highlights at this year’s Sydney Conservatorium Jazz Festival, and with over 140 artists performing at it was impossible to see them all in the 26 concerts on offer.
So one had to pick and choose carefully and be quite sprightly between acts. For me personally, the following artists were highlights. Kristin Berardi and Mark Sholtez beautifully sang pensive songs from their recent album, Decorate the Silence, that were full of emotion and heartbreak. Berardi’s quiet vocals and her exceptional range were a joy to hear, as were the pensive lyrics of Sholtez. He also played guitar and sang along with an excellent band which accompanied them. Gentle brushwork and soft touch drumming from Ben Vanderwal perfectly suited the vocals, as did the superb contrabass work contributions from Brett Hirst. Steve Magnusson’s guitar solos were also much to admire
contributing to the jazz element in a country style kind of way.
Former 2MBS Ken Weatherly Scholarship holder Lauren White and her quartet exemplified the qualities of top level jazz performers we have in this country. As a contrabassist, electric bassist, composer and a vocalist, she is on point with whatever she performs. Her band was equally outstanding, with Matt Thomson displaying that he is indeed one of the country’s best young jazz pianists at the top of his game, with a standout right hand that was at times mesmerising. Alex Hirlian showed much skill and versatility on the drum kit and Hilary Geddes’s (2MBS Jazz Artist in Residence) improvisation on guitar was, as usual, faultless.
Headliners, Belgium pianist Jef Neve and the Dutch trumpet player Teus Noble, ably displayed how dexterity develops after performing together for over seven years. Both are highly skilled on their individual instruments with a sound that moves effortlessly between jazz, classical and contemporary music.
The last minute added delight of a vocal performance from Australian Johnny Manuel was the icing on the cake of a performance highlight of the day.
The Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra under conductor Florian Ross integrating fully written material with spontaneous jazz improvisation showcased the outstanding future talent yet to
come with some excellent solos from Damon Poppleton (saxophone ), Sarah Purdon (trumpet), Rhys Moore (trombone) Oscar Bruten (tenor) and Justen Yeo (tenor).
Joyful and sometimes exuberant performances were to be heard from the five bands of current students throughout the afternoon. Big thanks and congratulations to Festival Director David Theak for assembling musicians from every state in Australia into a single venue and presenting some newly commissioned and cutting edge works on one magical day of music.
Barry O’Sullivan
Images credit for black and white photos is Stephen Webb