A Band for the Ages: the Claudia Quintet Plays Holyoke

It’s not often that intellect, passion, and creativity on stage comes together with a receptive audience in the right surroundings. When those stars align, like they did on Saturday, May 27 when the Claudia Quintet performed at Gateway City Arts, the result is transcendent. One’s reaction to music is personal and dependent on many factors of course, but the overwhelming consensus of the 100 lucky people who found themselves at Vitek Kruta and Lori Devine’s resplendent Holyoke hot spot was extremely positive. The standing ovation and resulting encore was but one indication.

John Hollenbeck is a smart cookie, and a talented one. He has managed, with one personnel change, to keep the Claudias (Matt Moran, Chris Speed, Red Wierenga/Ted Reichman and Drew Gress) together for 20 years. That is no mean feat. He has also marshaled the resources to keep his miraculous Large Ensemble afloat (a tour and recording is in the works.) In today’s jazz world, that is very heavy lifting.

Hollenbeck is a commanding, dazzling, melodic drummer. His only unaccompanied solo of the evening began quietly and tuneful, melody emerging from the variety of ways he struck the drumheads. His time on Philly, dedicated to drum legend Philly Joe Jones, was just where you’d expect it to be. All night he provided exactly what the music needed.

He is also a gifted composer, currently teaching the stuff at McGill University, in Montreal. The concert’s set list, all Hollenbeck originals, brought us on a journey through many textures and tempos, eliciting moods of various colors. Post-concert, more than one Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares regular made comparisons to previous concerts by Chris Lightcap’s Bigmouth and Allison Miller’s BOOM TIC BOOM. Although the instrumentation and sounds are different, what they share is a strong compositional voice, which nods to the beautiful, catchy and idiosyncratic, while swinging in many styles.

Tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Chris Speed was last seen in these parts in March, performing with Mary Halvorson’s Reverse Blue. What a pleasure to hear him with the Claudia’s line-up of vibraphone, accordion, bass and drums. His brawn during the swing portion of Philly, was much welcomed. His clarinet joined with Wierenga’s accordion to produce sound beds that were, by turns, plush and provocative. By 6:15 am the next day, he was home to Los Angeles.

Vibraphonist Matt Moran seemed to be at the center of things, the glue or the focal point of the music. Once he played laconic chords along with sax and accordion, while bass and drums were swinging furiously. Other times he was driving the music forward, making like Milt Jackson. Moran, who is childhood buddies with Mystery Train Records owner Josh Burkett, gave a memorable performance last November with the Nate Wooley Quintet at the Shea Theater. His next appearance in the Valley will be at UMass’ Bowker Auditorium in November featuring his nine-piece Balkan/Soul/ Gypsy/Funk band, Slavic Soul Party! In that musical world, Moran keeps his vibes packed and plays traditional Balkan percussion.

Thank god for the accordion. It’s what distinguishes the Claudia Quintet and gives the band its resonance. Wierenga provided dense chordal foundations throughout and took it out when it was his time to improvise. When I told him I had presented accordion master Guy Klusevcek at UMass in 2013, he told me that listening to Klusevcek was what inspired him to pick up the instrument. Nice.

What a pleasure to hear Drew Gress play bass. My friend and colleague Jason Robinson, who uses Gress in his Janus Ensemble whenever he is available, talks about the peace of mind that comes with having Gress on the bandstand. His impeccable time, robust tone and creative response to what is going on about him make Gress a perennial most valuable player. My guess is that John Hollenbeck agrees.

The story of how the band got its name is wonderfully described in Steve Smith’s 2001 liner notes from the first, self-titled Claudia Quintet record. (http://johnhollenbeck.com/sound/the-claudia-quintet/) It illustrates the capricious nature of life and the music that results from it. When openness to happenstance is combined with rigor, creativity and diligence , as it is with John Hollenbeck, you get a seminal ensemble (think Clifford Brown/Max Roach Quintet, MJQ, Bill Evans Trio, Art Ensemble of Chicago, AIR, etc.) The Claudia Quintet is such a band. It will be talked about and listened to a long time from now.

Tomas Fujiwara & the Hook Up Bring Down the Curtain on the 28th Magic Triangle Jazz Series

It is hard to think of a better current working band than Tomas Fujiwara & The Hook Up, who concluded the 28th annual Magic Triangle Jazz Series on Thursday, April 27. That is a bold statement, of course, impossible to quantify or confirm. But the quality of the writing, the musicality of the performance and the ease of execution all point to an ensemble of the highest caliber.

With material composed by the drummer/bandleader and drawn from the quintet’s three releases on 482 Music, the concert had an emotional range and an unpretentious virtuosity that made the 80-minute set whiz by.

Ongoing problems with the UMass Music Department meant we only got access to Bezanson Recital Hall an hour before the performance. But because the instruments did not require amplification, and because the band: Jonathan Finlayson, trumpet, Brian Settles, tenor saxophone and flute, Mary Halvorson, guitar, Adam Hopkins, bass and Fujiwara, drums, were so relaxed and efficient, we were able to start on time.

Over the course of the evening, every musician had an unaccompanied solo turn. It gave us a chance to fully appreciate each of their command and control. Halvorson’s spotlight provided five minutes of sublimity.

She set up loops of sound to play against. She scurried across the fretboard à la Tal Farlow, she skronked like a charter member of the Screaming Headless Torsos. It was a tour de force and an apt illustration of why she is the most celebrated guitarist of her generation. Her spotlight elicited one of the largest ovations of the night.

There are a few dozen elite jazz drummers. Of those, the number who lead bands is smaller, and those who are first rate composers, smaller still. Fujiwara is one of them. We got a chance to hear Fujiwara’s precise and dynamic drumming last month when he performed with Halvorson’s Reverse Blue quartet at Smith College. On Thursday we got the opportunity to hear the full range of his art. Impressive stuff.

With the exception of the bass chair, the personnel of The Hook Up has not changed since the band formed in 2009. That is a rarity in today’s jazz world, and a testament to personal chemistry and engagement. But Adam Hopkins, who replaced Trevor Dunn, who replaced Danton Boller, sounded like a charter member. His booming, rock-solid time anchored the proceedings, allowing the others to frolic and explore the tunes like youngsters at a playground, who know a parent is near.

You probably don’t know Brian Settles. He was born and still lives in the Washington, DC area. Like Rich Halley (Portland, OR) and Tim Haldeman (Ann Arbor), Settles is a major force on tenor saxophone, doing yeoman work outside of New York and beyond the ken of the chattering class. He was a convincing soloist and a strong foil for his front line partner, Jonathan Finlayson.

Finlayson is best known as an integral member of Steve Coleman’s Five Elements ensemble, but he also leads Sicilian Defense, which has two outstanding releases on Pi Recordings. Unlike contemporaries like Taylor Ho Bynum, Nate Wooley and Peter Evans, Finlayson does not extend the trumpet vocabulary. But his tone is one of the great wonders of contemporary music, and his note choices are clear, logical and never ostentatious.

The Hook Up is a perfectly balanced, well-oiled machine that moves far beyond the parochial orthodoxy of todays’ standard jazz fare. Here’s to many more years of growth and exploration for one of our most exciting aggregations.

A Taste of South Africa: Feya Faku Ensemble at UMass

A wonderful confluence of circumstances resulted in a memorable visit to the Valley by South African jazz great Fezile “Feya” Faku and friends on Sunday, April 23rd. The concert that brought Faku from Johannesburg to the theater in New Africa House at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst was a large, happy coming together.

Faku dedicated the performance to his late countryman, Zim Ngqawana, a saxophonist who attended UMass in the early 1970s at the behest of Max Roach.

In the last few months, my friend and colleague Judyie Al-Bilali has committed to turning the history-laden, but moribund basement space in New Africa House into a sovereign, student-centered creative zone. Having cleared the room of broken chairs and desks, Judyie and her students cleaned, painted and reimagined the venue, then set about filling it with theater and music. The created environment, with tapestries, painted doors, jerry-rigged stage lights and couches, became a musical oasis for 85 lucky participants.

When I lamented that Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares’ full schedule prevented us from presenting one of South Africa’s most esteemed jazz trumpeters, Judyie asked, “Feya Faku?” The pieces fell into place when Amherst College Assistant Professor of Music Jason Robinson offered to fund an afternoon workshop.

Boston-based pianist and arranger John Kordalewski, whose 12-piece Makanda Project was featured during Season 3 of Jazz Shares, is connected to the South African jazz scene and served as facilitator for this concert. For his abbreviated New England tour (Connecticut stops at Black Eyed Sally’s and the Side Door Café), Faku insisted on asking Kesivan Naidoo, with whom he has decades of experience, to join them. The 37-year old drummer from East London, South Africa was among the first Masters students at Berklee’s Global Jazz Institute and now lives in New York. Colombian bassist Carlos Pino is earning a degree from the New England Conservatory and has been subbing for John Lockwood in the Makanda Project.

Kordalewski, Amherst College Class of 1976, also has employed tenor saxophonist Robinson in his little big band dedicated to the compositions of Makanda Ken McIntyre. So when Robinson was asked to sit in on the afternoon rehearsal, hopes were high that he would play some that evening. The rapport between Faku and Robinson was so profound he became a full participant.

Faku told the assembled that his older sister’s Blue Note record collection helped shape his interest in jazz, and indeed his approach as a composer and player reflect his debt to that great catalog. The music throughout the 75 minute concert was drenched in blues, swing and tart harmonies. Only the last piece overtly referenced the joyous, life-affirming bounce of South African jazz, but to these ears, the phrasing, scales and the open-hearted nature of Faku’s playing all spoke of South Africa.

It says a lot about his character that Faku turned down a high profile Town Hall (New York) concert under Abdullah Ibrahim’s direction because his own ensemble had a previous commitment. Replacing an ailing Hugh Masakela before 1,500 concertgoers would have been a good career move, but that’s not how Feya Faku rolls.

Naidoo spent two nights with us in Northampton, sharing stories of his family history. His aunt, Theresa Mary Solomon, was Mayor of Cape Town from 1996-98. His great uncle spent 10 years with Nelson Mandela at Robben Island for revolutionary activity. Naidoo shared his musical history, as well. He recently recorded with the great bassist William Parker, and performs in his Artists For a Free World Marching Band, which lends its voice to street demonstrations for progressive causes. He has worked with Joe Lovano, Rene McLean and South African pianists Hotep Idris Galeta and Kyle Shepherd. A powerful and spot on drummer with a built-in understanding of South African rhythms, Naidoo has an easy laugh and a generous soul.

Pino was situated in the middle of the “stage” (an area of concrete real estate a few feet from the audience.) His role was central to the band’s mastery of Faku’s playful, yet complex compositions. He moved his head, his body and his instrument side to side all evening with an expression that evoked joy and concentration. In those moments, I imagined he thought his move from Bogata to the U.S. with little English and few resources, was worth it.

Jason Robinson forsook an Amherst College commitment so that he could play the concert. He seemed genuinely honored and excited to perform. To the less gifted it seems unfathomable that Robinson could meet three of his band mates and see the music for the first time on Sunday and make music of such splendor. The immediate connection between the musicians was a powerful illustration of the power of the arts to transcend difference.