Set in a fertile region of Upper Austria, the Inntöne Jazz Festival, created by trombonist Paul Zauner, has long been a must-stop place for jazz aficionados and international musicians alike. Breaking his own record, Zauner gathered on the various stages no less than 31 bands over the three-day festival that ran from July 19 until July 21. With the ears of a connoisseur who does not follow the mainstream paths of the larger summer festivals, the Austrian trombonist enchanted the 3,000 attendees with a vast array of upcoming and renowned musicians from around the globe.
Opening with a duo may seem rather challenging, but the magic immediately worked with Simone Zanchini and Gabriele Mirabassi. Coming from two distinct regions of Central Italy, the accordionist and clarinettist not only share a great love for their cultural musical heritage but were keen to borrow as well from the distant shores of Brazil, notably when playing a piece by Sivuca who passed away in 2006. Sometimes confused at the time with another albino multi-instrumentalist, Hermeto Pascoal, both these musicians seemed clearly to be inspiration for Simone Zanchini, not least in his approach to his instrument. Making reference to their 2021 work around the Pinocchio story (Il Gatto E La Volpe), the two villains, as they nicknamed themselves, were followed on stage by the Sao Paulo trio led by vocalist Monica Salmaso.
Coincidentally or not, the two poetic gigs had a lot in common, notably when the singer performed a tune composed by her pianist, Nelson Ayres, with Italian lyrics written by Gabriele Mirabassi. The poetry in motion continued with songs from Dorival Caymmi and Violeta Parra (her Gracias A La Vida) for which she accidentally found sheet music in German, including it alongside the Spanish lyrics as she thought it would please the audience.
In terms of relatively big names, Bobby Watson and his Post Motown Bop would illuminate the first night with his impeccable band comprising Victor Jones on drums, Curtis Lundy on bass and Jordan Williams on piano.
With the same verve as Bobby Watson’s late gig on Friday, Walter Smith III’s 11am performance on Saturday was certainly the best way to start a long musical day. On one of the last gigs of their European tour, the saxophonist’s repertoire of mainly ballads might not have been the best choice, considering the morning start, but who cares, really, with such a top-notch cast of the usual suspects from the Criss Cross label?
The US presence was even more strengthened when “Good old Captain Kirk” was back on the main stage. Having celebrated his 87th birthday earlier this year, Kirk Lightsey rocked the boat for the fourth night in a row (after three nights at Vienna’s Porgy & Bess club) with the Art Ensemble of Chicago veteran Don Moye on drums and London’s own Steve Watts on bass.
After relaxing in a mellow tone for about two hours, it was time to enjoy Jasper van’t Hof’s more energising gig. The Dutch pianist navigated around his sometime free-jazz infused compositions, pretty much helped in his task by Christof Lauer on saxophone. Late the previous evening we had pianist Emiliano D’Auria’s original Looking For Peace. Jasper van’t Hof shared his concern for amity through Horace Silver’s famous tune, Peace.
Although all musicians receive excellent treatment and are enthusiastic about returning, pianists could experience an even higher level of enjoyment. As Jasper van’t Hof changed his patronym to “Bösendorfer” I’m tempted to anthropomorphose the beautiful piano as such. Indeed, Mr Bösendorfer may have been angry (translated as “böse” in German) at times about some tough weather conditions but it seemed to have enjoyed being played by all the different pianists, even when various objects were placed in the instrument.
When Marta Sanchez went on stage to perform her études for prepared piano project, she hadn’t yet recovered from a painful trip caused by the airline chaos that followed Friday’s infamous CrowdStrike update. Her luggage lost and with it her music scores, she managed to overcome all difficulties, even if she had to play everything by heart in a dress loaned by Paul Zauner’s daughter.
Then Mr Bösendorfer took a nap, being replaced by Mr Hammond as Marc Ribot’s trio grooved in. Highly concentrated with his chin touching his instrument, the guitarist led his crew into “trance-creatic” movements that made us all forget a bit that we were by now suffocating from the heat. Bolstered by Greg Lewis on Hammond B3 and Greg Dyson on drums, Marc Ribot moved from free jazz to Delta blues.
The colours of his music were captured live on canvas by Aurelie Freoua: the French painter and UK resident is back after two years, reminding us that the creation process needs no AI or Microsoft update. Being gifted at capturing the genuine colours of the musicians and their instruments, she is one of those artists connected to the phenomenon of synaesthesia.
Among all the returning guests, the Belmondo brothers, who were last seen here in 2021, were back with an electric project named Dead Jazz. Revisiting the Grateful Dead’s repertoire, the band also had Laurent Fickelson on keys and piano, Jozef Dumoulin on Fender Rhodes and Thomas Bramerie on double bass.
Keeping tight connections with the UK, Paul Zauner invited two bands on Sunday, namely John Surman and his Words Unspoken project, and trumpeter Byron Wallen. Although they play a very different music, they had one thing in common; their guitar player. Rob Luft, the award-winning 29-year-old guitar virtuoso, proved to be a remarkable choice with his lyricism, be it attached to Surman’s aerial play or Byron Wallen’s ethno jazz. At times swapping his trumpet for a conch shell, Wallen gave an interesting talk about The Hidden Leaves, an original piece referring to the samurai tradition: “If you unleash your sword, blood must be spilled.” He actually wrote the piece in Turkey after unexpectedly having his gig cancelled by politicians. Usually, gigs are cancelled when musicians cannot reach their destination, not when they are already there.
If Zauner’s intention was for people to “eat, sleep and breathe jazz”, then we can definitely say he did a great job. In 15 hours of music on Sunday (if you include the first gig of the day at 9.30am), great musical moments happened as well between the main-stage concerts. Playing in the barn (Scheune) on Friday and Saturday and in St Pig’s Pub on Sunday, veteran saxophonist Lenny Popkin and his trio were a perfect fit for the intimate setting. Completed by Popkin’s wife Carol Tristano on drums and French double-bass player Gilles Naturel, the trio interprets standards in a minimalistic way that leaves a lot of space for improvisation. Just like Lee Konitz, Popkin was part of the circle around Carol’s father, the exceptional Lennie Tristano.
All good things must end and dancing in St Pig’s pub to the Afro-Cuban sounds of the aptly named quintet Cuba Sound Club was certainly a fine way to bid farewell until next year, enjoying one last pint of local beer.
***
Inntöne Jazzfestival 2024, Diersbach, Austria, 19-21 July. More information at inntoene.com
