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Still recovering from surgery (see Crazy Crohn’s) but hoping to return to work next week, I treated myself to a night at the 18th Festival International Jazz à Liège. Although not feeling so great that day, I knew medicine was on the way. It came in the form of Abdullah Ibrahim.
I got to know South-African jazz artist Abdullah Ibrahim through the excellent documentary Abdullah Ibrahim: A Struggle for Love (cine plus, 2004) and just this one track called Zimbabwe on an eclectic compilation album of African hits. I immediately fell in love with his music, both powerful and sober, and bought his album Abdullah Ibrahim: A Celebration (enja, 2005) with recordings from 1973-1997 as a further introduction to his work. Not only his music appealed to me, but also his strong personality: spiritual, independent, generous, creative, authentic…
His performance last weekend in Liège started with a half-hour delay, giving everyone a change to find a comfortable seat. Then he stepped on stage, sat down at his piano and played non-stop for over an hour. The piece was called Senzo (the Japanese word for ancestor), an intense act of mediation and improvisation. To me it seemed as if he was creating a steady stream of musical landscapes (see Jazz à la Flamande), some as seen from a train passing at tai chi speed, others made out of pictures stitched together to form a panorama, constantly switching between purely abstract sketchings or blueprints and highly detailed, sunlit (I guess mostly South-African) sceneries.
Supremely beautiful! One of the most intense concerts (if not THE most intense concert) I have ever experienced. No need to tell you I felt really invigorated afterwards.
Last weekend, the Brussels Jazz Marathon kicked off a new season of Belgian jazz festivals. Here’s my shortlist:
6-7 June 2008: Jazz à Liège- You certainly should go see Abdullah Ibrahim perform on Saturday. I think of him as a landscape artist, using his sound to picture the most imposing sceneries. And he does all this with the ever gentle resoluteness of a down-to-earth tai chi master.
10-13 and 17-20 July 2008: Gent Jazz Festival- Top of the bill in the pure jazz section are Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Diane Krall and Wayne Shorter. In the fusion confusing section you’ll find Erykah Badu, The Neville Brothers, CocoRosie and many others.
14-17 August 2008: Jazz Middelheim – My personal favorite (see How to Spell Belgium – Part I). I’m looking forward to hearing Jef Neve perform with his Groove Thing. And it’s always a pleasure seeing Belgium’s only living jazz legend Toots Thielemans (he’s 86!) on stage again.
2-5 October 2008: Jazz Brugge - It focuses on European jazz, offering a colourful cocktail of styles and influences, ranging from free jazz to Hungarian folk music. Not all of it my cup of tea, but when consumed in moderation it proves to be highly enjoyable.
Have a jazzy summer!
