JazzFest 1 - a long way from the Steel City, and a hidden surprise

First big music festival of the summer (and my first full summer in Ottawa) and a meditation on the steel city on the Don, Sheffield. The previous time I saw Robert Plant, in Sheffield way back in 2002, it was in a packed-out university venue. Not a shade on the crowd gathered in Confederation Park on 23rd June, though. According to a fellow attendee, this was maybe the biggest crowd ever at JazzFest?! Due credit to support act Bahamas - new to me but the band, with frontperson Afie Jurvanen, payed a good mix and received more than a polite response from the ever-growing audience, and not just for a few lines of Led Zeppelin.

Thunder and lightning added to the atmosphere as Robert Plant and the Band of Joy (including Grammy winner Patty Griffin) took the stage with a 'jazz time' take on Black Dog. The majority of the set comprised songs from recent albums Band of Joy and Raising Sand, with the combined vocals of Plant and Griffin and talents of the Band creating a captivating, supple sound. Plant also included solo hit 'Down To The Sea' as well as What Is And What Should Never Be. Potential setlist (from setlist.com):

        Black Dog
        Down to the Sea
        Angel Dance
        What Is and What Should Never Be
        House of Cards
        Somewhere Trouble Don't Go
        (vocals: Buddy Miller)
        Monkey
        A Satisfied Mind
        (Vocals: Darrell Scott)
        Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down
        Ocean of Tears
        (Vocals: Patty Griffin)
        Black Country Woman
        In the Mood
        Please Read the Letter
        Misty Mountain Hop

        Encore:
        Gallows Pole

The 2002 Plant concert sticks in my mind as one of the best I've seen. This concert, although with a very different setlist, was no less impressive.

The rain arrived, slowly at first, during Plant's show, and quite a few people went to the OLG stage to shelter from the rain and encountered local band The PepTides, who, according to this week's interview with Apartment 613, were performing with a band for the first time!

A name relatively new to me, but I think it will become much more familiar. There are 5 singers with The PepTides along with 5 band members. From their very varied setlist, I caught references to Scissor Sisters, a touch of Chic, UK bands The Sugars and (first album era) The Pipettes, plus a bit of Kitty Daisy and Lewis, to name a few. A lot of thought had clearly gone into costumes and set design, so maybe add cabaret to the list! A very very enthusiastic (and slightly damp) audience, including an impromptu dance towards the end of the show, listened to a series of 'acts' comprising songs mostly from recent album For Those Who Hate Human Interaction. I purchased this after the show but have yet to sample. I look forward to doing so and to future PepTides shows in the city.

Music, Poetry and Cake (Gateshead and Lanchester)

Piano at the ready! (by M) After a good few months prep, the concert Piano Music and Poetry (organised through the Gateshead Piano Workshop folks) came around pretty quickly. As one of the participants, I was excited and also a little nervous about the prospect of a Paying Audience. The work paid off, as all the performers were excellent! Well appreciated by the compact audience. The format was in relation to National Poetry Day which was on 2nd October. Each performer chose a poem either in direct or indirect relation to their piece. A summary of the programme: Alan - Liszt Consolation No 4 and Mozart Adagio in B minor Graeme - Chopin Nocturne Op. 62 No. 2 with 'Uncertainty' by Adam Mickiewicz me - Clara Schumann, andante con sentimento with 'Clara Wieck und Beethoven' by Franz Grillparzer Jim - R Schumann Kinderszenen 1 and 7 with 'My child, we were just children' by Heinrich Heine Ernie - Debussy Clair de lune with excerpt from 'Fêtes g...

Sounds of JUNOfest

Classical JUNOs performers Something of a musical melange weekend but an excellent set of events! Eschewing some of the bands and artists we knew, we chose less familiar sounds for our JUNOfest experience. First up was the Classical JUNOs in Concert event at the National Arts Centre , featuring both nominated performers and composers. The mix of contemporary music was brilliantly played by Christina Petrowska Quilico , Susan Hoeppner , Heather Schmidt and the New Orford String Quartet . Quilico amazed the almost 100-strong audience with her performance of Derek Charke's Sepia Fragments in a reduction for piano; I found this piece a really captivating mix of earthly and ethereal elements. Quilico's second performance was of Ann Southam's Glass Houses No. 5 , an hypnotic piece which sounded both fiendishly difficult to play but also very clean and unembellished. Susan Hoeppner's excellent performance of Eldin Burton's Sonatina for Flute and Piano got the po...

Pigeon Funk

Notes on a very random purchase. Earlier today I acquired Venetian Snares 'Rossz Csillag Alatt Sz ü letett ' purely on the basis of the language and artwork. Its certainly something different - and most definitely not pop. After a bit of searching: Venetial Snares is, according to Wikipedia, the performing name of Aaron Funk, who seems to specialise in experimental tracks in odd time signatures. Article here . The sleeve notes for this album (whose title is Hungarian for 'Born under a bad star') poses the question: what if, for just a day, we could both be pigeons? Interessant. Apparently this concept (a day in the life of a Hungarian pigeon) is non-typical of Venetian Snares sound, but one could ask, does Mr Funk do 'typical'? On first listening, the sound of this CD mixes classical/traditional Hungarian sounds and breakbeats. but aside from that? Definitely a 'listen for yourself' artist; try the website , fan site or myspace .

PrettyInScarlett

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