New Orleans Jazz And Heritage Festival

New Orleans Jazz And Heritage Festival

By Martin Z. Kasdan

While many of you were no doubt feasting on burgoo and watching the Derby Parade or other Derby events, I skipped away to the 2003 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, which was the first to expand to an eight-day lineup, Thursday through Sunday April 24-27 and May 1-4. For those unfamiliar with "Jazzfest," it is actually a well-stocked musical gumbo with traditional jazz, modern jazz, blues, rhythm'n'blues (old school!), zydeco, cajun, pop, folk and various genres of rock music. As this is the jazz column, I will pull a Cicero on you and will not mention outstanding performances by bluesmen Duke Robillard, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets with Sam Myers and Jimmie Vaughan. Nor will I cover such other artists as Bob Dylan (about whom opinion was divided - I liked what I heard), Marcia Ball, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, or Widespread Panic (the 20 minutes I caught of them between sets at the Jazz Tent sounded less than stellar). Instead, I will attempt a brief overview of the music dubbed by Rahsaan Roland Kirk as "Black Classical Music," i.e., jazz.

The daytime performances take place on the infield of a racetrack, where numerous tents and stages are set up. Music is performed from 11 AM to 7 p.m. on each day, with a daily admission to the racetrack of $21 (advance) and $25 (gate). In addition to the music, there are craft and art exhibits, too much food to comprehend (crawfish prepared in dozens of ways, alligator sandwiches, more mundane but excellent fried chicken and ... but this is a music magazine, not a food magazine) and the opportunity to dance with several thousand of your closest friends and fellow music lovers.

Space limitations in print require me to mention only a few of the highlights. Garage a Trois, consisting of eight-string guitarist Charlie Hunter, Galactic drummer Stanton Moore, saxophonist Skerik and percussionist/vibraphonist Mike Dillon (both of Critters Buggin') made its first "official" appearance this year. Its short set was well-received, as were performances at a local music store and a late night concert at the new TwiRoPa facility in the warehouse district. Garage a Trois can move from funk to straightahead to twisted comedy reminiscent of the late Frank Zappa.

Among the aging innovators this year were Ornette Coleman, Chico Hamilton and Herbie Mann. Coleman, often credited with being the progenitor of "free jazz," made a triumphant return to New Orleans after appearing some fifteen years ago at an evening concert. At the Jazz Tent, he was accompanied by his son Denardo (his long-time drummer) and Charnett Moffett on bass (the son of 1960s Coleman drummer Charles Moffett). For all the controversy from the 1950s and on into the `60s surrounding Coleman ("he doesn't know how to play," "it's just noise," ad nauseam), there was a delay of several minutes after he took the stage, while his written compositions (perhaps left in the car) were being brought to the stage. His own "harmolodic" theory of music, stressing the simultaneous improvisation of all performers, was showcased in a stunning performance. In a highly unusual twist, New Orleans musicians who had befriended Coleman decades ago, pianist Ellis Marsalis and clarinetist Alvin Batiste, were called onstage to perform with Coleman's trio. While Batiste sounded right at home, weaving his clarinet lines through the accompaniment, Marsalis seemed more hard-pressed to find openings in which to add his piano contributions. Nonetheless, his somewhat more mainstream stylings added an effective extra element to the performance.

Chico Hamilton, one of the drummers most associated with the 1960s "West Coast" sound, has been a major talent scout over the years. Current luminaries who first came to prominence in his groups include Larry Coryell, Arthur Blythe, Charles Lloyd, to name but a few. At 82 years old, he led a group of musicians who looked to be in their twenties and thirties and who may well become part of the next generation of major jazz artists. Guitarist Cary DeNigris was the only familiar name; special accolades go to the saxophonists Karolina Strassmayer and Evan Schwam, while bassist Paul Ramsey interlocked well with Hamilton. The set consisted mostly of relatively short pieces, with Hamilton always supporting rather than overpowering his group. He declined an encore, citing his recovery from surgery, but reminisced about how in the old days he would have taken the opportunity to come back for more.

The following weekend saw the return of Herbie Mann to the Festival. He, too, was recuperating from medical problems and had to be assisted onto stage and from time to time had to take oxygen from a nearby tank. Notwithstanding his frailty, his flute playing sparkled with joie de vivre. This performance was apparently the only one of a series which he did not cancel, wanting to especially honor his commitment to Jazzfest. His "Reunion Band" featured the saxophone and flute of David "Fathead" Newman and the guitar of innovator Larry Coryell. With every solo, Coryell seemed to spark the band to greater heights. (He is booked to perform with his own trio this fall here in Louisville; stay tuned for details). One particular highlight was Mann's hit "Comin' Home Baby." However, Mann was not content to merely recreate this vintage jazz classic. Instead, he rearranged it to fit into a funkier beat than on the original version.

The second weekend also featured performances by the Dave Holland Quintet and the Regina Carter Quintet. Both groups had performed in Lexington earlier this year, so I was curious to see how their Jazzfest performances would sound. Holland has kept his quintet together for some seven years, while also leading an octet and a big band. For Jazzfest, Quintet tenor saxophonist Chris Potter was replaced by Big Band alto saxophonist Antonio Hart, thus creating a different flavor within the mix. Trombonist Robin Eubanks' solos here were more straightahead than in Lexington, where his intentionally smeared lines reminded me of the late trumpeter Lester Bowie. Vibraphonist Steve Nelson shone, while drummer Billy Kilson's impending fatherhood was celebrated by Holland's dedication of "Last Minute Man" to him and his wife.

Violinist Regina Carter played a similar set to the one in Lexington, featuring music from Motor City Moments and Paganini: In Search of A Dream. Her exquisite technique was not limited to her violin, however, as she wowed the audience with her percussion playing and brought down the house with her dancing to "Mojito" (pronounced Mo-HEE-to), a Steve Turre composition from Carter's Rhythms of the Heart.

The Festival ended with weather that was uncharacteristically mild and beautiful. My decision to bypass the Crusaders Reunion at the jazz tent in favor of catching the Neville Brothers on home turf on a main stage turned out to be right on the money. The Nevilles mixed in everything from their homage to Professor Longhair (his classic "Tipitina") to Ray Charles' "Unchain My Heart" in the funk and soul realm, to an unnamed Charles Neville jazz saxophone feature and a rendition of "Caravan" that surely would have won Duke Ellington's approval. I left as Aaron Neville began the Brothers' classic set-closing gospel medley, opting to second-line my way out by way of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. As I ventured to the traditional jazz tent where they were performing, my misgivings about the Crusaders were amply rewarded, when I heard the strains of (believe it or leave it) "Ghostbusters." Well, the waving scarves and decorated umbrellas being paraded to the Preservation Hall veterans left me with a warm glow that the Pop Crusaders couldn't have extinguished. >