Set in the beautiful surroundings of Cluj-Napoca’s central park, a short walk from the old town of the (unofficial) capital of Transylvania, the International Jazz in the Park competition is the offspring of the eponymous larger festival that has been held since 2013.
As early as 2015, a small competition was already organised and as the years have passed, it has become bigger, attracting many competitors from around the world. This year, 13 bands shared the competition stage after having been selected from over 200 participants. This free three-day festival also showcases special guests from Romania and elsewhere on the bigger stage.
This year’s edition was won by the French band Daoud, a group that impressed the audience from the first chords. They won a prize of 5,000 EUR and an invitation to perform at the Jazz in the Park festival from August 30 to September 1, which will take place in the Ethnographic Park of Cluj-Napoca.
The festival organisers aim to support young bands, setting the maximum participant age at 35, while seeking to expand and elevate the Romanian jazz scene. They provide opportunities for selected participants and, notably, offer the winner a two-year contract with the Jazz in the Park team, enabling them to perform at different European festivals.
On day one, as Germany was losing against Spain in the UEFA championship, Berlin-based drummer and producer MAGRO and his crew played hip-hop infused music clearly influenced by Herbie Hancock’s futuristic 1983 Rockit single. With a top-notch crew notably involving Igor Osipov on bass, things got even better when rapper MC Rapturous joined them for a few tunes, ending the show with the audience dancing to their ferocious beat. Among the Romanian competition bands, a quartet from Timisoara known as Nonconformist Anthology stood out, notably due to the lively contributions of multi-reed player Alexandru Ciocan.
On the Special Guests stage, Liam Shortall, a native of Glasgow, presented an impeccable gig with his band Corto.Alto. Having released a new single every day for 30 days, he obviously had enough material for a full-length show. The trombonist and bassist alternated his instruments, having cut his teeth playing trombone for the Scottish National Youth Orchestra.
As a beautiful finale for the day, Cluj native and vocalist Elena Mîndru was joined on stage by her husband Tuomas J. Turunen on the piano, David Hences on violin, Michael Acker on bass and Bogdan Durdevic on drums. Residing in northern Finland where she is, among other things, director of the Oulu Music Festival, she was happy to spend some time in her birthplace, singing originals in both English and Romanian.
Less electric but more eclectic, day two featured in the competition category a very young Ukranian trio that showed that maturity and youth can be on par. The aptly named jazz-family trio ShekBand features two brothers and one sister. The 18-year old Artem Shekera on double bass is the oldest of them all, Maksym Shekera on drums the youngest at barely 14. The 16-year old pianist and harpist Anna Shekera notably featured her own arrangement on the harp of the French traditional Sur Le Pont D’Avignon.
Grooving high, the Norwegian Lyder Roed Quinte, taking the name of the trumpet player with brother Aksel Roed on saxophone, delivered a mainstream act perfectly mastered and inspired by the masters (mainly Roy Hargrove). Still on the competition stage, the all-female Subconscious Trio from Italy featured music from their debut album Water Shapes. Sharing composition duties Monique Chao on piano, Victoria Kirilova on bass and Francesca Remigi on drums displayed a high level of creativity and musicality. Belonging rather to the singer-songwriter category, German guitarist and vocalist Anna Hauss was perfectly coupled by her double-bass player for her well-crafted originals.
We all know about our five senses and some of us are using our sixth sense from time to time but what about the seventh sense? Well, it’s simply the best name chosen by a Bucharest based band led by bassist Laura Benedek. This dynamic modern-jazz group formed in 2019 showcased their debut album Light In Chaos before leaving space for Roberto Fonseca and his Cuban colleagues. With his new project and tenth album, La Gran Diversion, the brilliant Cuban pianist pays homage to the Buena Vista Social Club of which he had been a member. Taken back in time with a nice background screen, we danced to the sound of a 30s modernised mambo. Fonseca’s gifted hands set the pace for the horn section and I was tempted to rename the band Buena Vista Social “Cluj”. With such a crew, including double-bass player virtuoso Felipe Cabrera, you can never go wrong, can you?
Day three started under a scorching sun, the temperature having risen continuously over the sunny weekend. As musicians and their instruments had to cope with the heat, the audience tried to make use of the shade provided by the surrounding trees. While most bands used their own material, Cluj native pianist David Luca started his set with a cover of Night In Tunisia shortly followed by an original before continuing with a Charlie Parker tune. At the same time, on the special guest stage, vibraphonist Razvan Florescu and his quartet skilfully blended his diverse influences, creating a highly entertaining performance. Shortly after Razvan Florescu, the jury members came on the stage to announce the various winners, namely the Shekband for best composition, Nonconformist Anthology as best Romanian band, Zouratié Koné trio for audience award, MAGRO and Lyder Roed quintet respectively for third and second place.
Being one of the favourites, notably after having been selected for a Jazzahead showcase, French trumpeter Daoud and his band of the same name found time between performances at Montreux and Juan-les-Pins to make it to Cluj and won this year’s competition. If he had followed his doctor’s advice, Daoud likely would have postponed a portion of his tour, having undergone appendicitis surgery just 10 days before. Given this and adding they were tired from travelling, the band was still quite energetic. Daoud is probably set for a skyrocketing career after signing for ACT Music which will release their new album next year. Daoud’s music is the kind of modern jazz that attracts a broader audience, including people who do not necessarily fancy jazz.
Like many festivals of this kind, the success of this event, which depends on solid sponsors, owes much to a team of passionate individuals who go above and beyond to ensure that both jazz aficionados and families have an unforgettable experience. Thanks are due to Alin and the rest of the crew for the great work.
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International Jazz in the Park competition, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, 5-7 July 2024
