I haven't been to NYC Winter Jazz Fest since 2020. In 2022, it seemed like it was going to rebound, post-pandemic. Then a surge cancelled in-person performances yet again a few weeks ahead of the date. Last year, with JazzTimes gone and having only contributed a few short album reviews to The New York City Jazz Record, I didn't feel right going.
This year, things felt different. I'd been away too long, so why not make the journey. On top of that, it was announced in December that JazzTimes was coming back from the grave - for a second time - so it seemed like the moment to immerse myself in the music. If that wasn't enough motivation, a few days before leaving Pittsburgh, I was given the assignment of writing about NYCWJF's Manhattan Marathon, which took place last Friday on stages around town.
With the California fires raging at the same time, it was hard to fully rejoice in my good fortune. Many musicians were losing everything at that time. But the entire weekend left me a good sense of community - people that care for one another and always have the thoughts of others close at heart, especially while they were playing.
My dispatch on the Manhattan Marathon can be found here. I have included some other photos from those shows below as well.
But Thursday comes first.
Another thing I haven't done - in over a decade - is ride the Amtrak train from Pittsburgh to New York. After flying once or twice, I opted for the Megabus for most of my trips to Winter Jazz Fest. It was comfortable - especially if I reserved the front seat on the upper level - and affordable. These days, Megabus is a shell of its former self (details forthcoming in the next post). The only bus leaving Pittsburgh leaves at Christ O'clock in the morning, too early for me to check in at my hotel. So the train it was. It takes all day to get there but the scenery is great.
Winter Jazz Fest officially began on Thursday, January 9 with four stand-alone shows at three different venues. My stop was (Le) Poisson Rouge, to catch Fay Victor with her Herbie Nichols SUNG project, in which she takes the compositions of unsung Blue Note pianist Nichols and adds lyrics to them. Their album, Life Is Funny That Way, came out on TAO Forms last year.
Jazz vocalists are often a tough sell for my ears, including ones who dabble more in avant-garde circles, taking sonic ideas from free jazz players and adapting them to voice. But Victor was magnetic onstage, commanding everyone's attention. Her performance plunged into the power of the lyrics and what they meant. "That was a journey, wasn't it," she asked after the band finished "The Culprit is You," an adaptation of Nichols' "2300 Skidoo," after a taking us on such a trek. The observation couldn't have been more accurate, especially in light of the country at this moment.
Victor's band included Michael Attias (alto and baritone saxophone), Tom Rainey (drums), Ratzo Harris (bass) and Anthony Coleman (piano), all of whom played on the album. Attias was an especially good foil for Victor, in terms of soloing. "Lady Sings The Blues," the Nichols/Billie Holiday co-written song, was played rubato, with everyone stretching out and digging into the space provided by that arrangement. The quintet also provided that they knew how to swing hard, with Victor ending the set with some solid scatting with Attias picking up from there.
I caught a little of Sophye Soliveau's set before heading to my next destination. Brandee Younger isn't the only jazz harpist, as Soliveau commanded the huge instrument, singing while playing. The opening tunes of her set seemed rooted as much in R&B as jazz, which the audience dug.
As I looked around the room, fully feeling like the small town guy in the big city, I recalled that the room once was the Village Gate, where one of my earliest favorite recordings was made: Herbie Mann's "Coming Home Baby." My dad had it on a pre-recorded, coverless cassette that was like an EP (that song on one side, three shorter tunes on the other) and I used to try an imagine what the room looked like where the group was playing. Although when I was three, I didn't fully grasp it was a live recording (the only applause comes after Hagood Hardy's vibes solo), let alone that it was at the Village Gate. Thursday wasn't my first time in the room, but my first time making the connection.
The Village Vanguard was not a venue that took part in the festival, but having only been there once, I made a point, while still at home, to see if I should check it out . As luck would have it, pianist Kris Davis was there all week, so I bought a ticket online to make sure I'd get in. (In 2020, there was quite the line to see Julian Lage, though I did finally get a table.)
When people say there are no bad seats at the Vanguard, they're right. But my stars were lining up that night because the picture below was taken from my seat.
Yes - I was right in front of the piano. I could have touched Kris Davis. But that would be rude. So would the act of trying to take a picture during her set. The Vanguard specifically frowns on such things and I may be a tourist but I'm not an ugly tourist. The phone stayed closed. All I needed was a scoop pad.
Robert Hurst (bass) and Johnathan Blake (drums), who also appeared on Davis' Run the Gauntlet album, joined her for the week's residency. The pianist took the stage with focus and a commanding presence, reaching into her instrument to hold the piano strings as she struck the opening notes of what I believe was "Knotweek." Blake, who sets up his kit with each drum at the same height, astounded with a skill that often took jerky passages and gradually reshaped them into funky 4/4 grooves. Hurst skillfully locked in with Davis' left hand during a version of Steve Lacy's "The Flame." He continued to drone and slide during that tune, while the piano splashed over him.
This was followed by an interlude with a delicate flow that recalled Paul Motian's compositions. It turns out, it was "Beauty Beneath the Rubble," which was written by Blake. The set ended with "Run the Gauntlet" the title track to the trio's 2024 release. Hurst's wild arco solo led to some hammered left hand chords from Davis, as Blake thundered away on his kit. Interestingly, as loud as Blake was, the set-up of the room insured that he never drowned out the piano or bass.
Note: The Vanguard has a one drink minimum, but considering the mood that night, and that my signature gin and soda was only $10, I bought two.
FRIDAY NIGHT PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS
Violinist Jenny Scheinman's All Species Parade kicked off the Friday night Manhattan Marathon.
Dancer Julianna Cressman joined Scheinman's group, playing up the lyrical qualities of the music with her movement.
Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith, played a rich, flowing set at Performance Space NY.
Saxophonist Josh Johnson, who played on Saturday with the group SML and has played with Jeff Parker, performed a solo set with electronics that turned his horn into a whole section.
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