The snow and ice that cover Prague's streets at the moment make every trip outside an adventure, so here's three videos that you can enjoy at home without risking a trip to the hospital with broken bones.
To kick things off we have a rehearsal video from The Wall 2009, a concert in which Czech musicians recreated the legendary Pink Floyd rock show. So why feature it in Prague Jazz? First of all there is a pretty hot saxophone solo from Petr Kalfus, who is now more usually seen playing with the Infinite Quintet. Secondly, it features singer Lada Soukupová who is not only excellent but is also more than capable of delivering a jazz tune or two. Thirdly, on keyboards we have Harry (son of Roger) Waters, who is establishing a name for himself as a jazz musician in his own right.
Next up, following our review of her Joy For Joel album, we have pianist Beata Hlavenková and band. Here they are performing "The Riddle" on Czech television:
Finally, because he's very cool and that's reason enough, here's Luboš Andršt with his Blues Band playing a nice bit of Hendrix:
Showing posts with label Beata Hlavenková. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Beata Hlavenková. Show all posts
Monday, February 1, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
CD Review: Joy For Joel
Beata Hlavenková
Animal Music / ANI 011-2, 2009
The number of young musicians rising to prominence on the Czech scene is impressive. They have a lot to live up to, and with many of the great names of Czech jazz still going strong it is not easy for the newcomers. The old kings have not only retained their stunning technical skills but they also have a lifetime of experience and emotion to pour into their music. That is what makes it so rich. It is inevitable that those with a shorter lifetime have less to draw on, and sometimes that means their performances, while still very good, just don't have that magical special something that separates the very best from the merely better. Something in the depth, something in the tone. Perhaps it is just something in the way they sit at their instrument that conveys so much.
Beata Hlavenková is one of the few that truly bridge the divide. She is one of the younger generation – we have almost three decades to wait until she does her “60” gig – but her music betrays little inexperience. As a pianist the mechanical competence of her playing is strong, but it is more than that. Her compositions are interesting. You can never be sure which direction things are going to go in next. Her live performances can be a roller-coaster, some parts sweet and some parts edgy, uneasy listening for the attentive audient. In this context it is fair to say that we at PJHQ were excited at the prospect of her first solo album finally hitting the shelves.
Joy For Joel is not a typical Czech jazz album. For a start it was recorded in New Jersey, and it was recorded with mainly American musicians. Although Beata usually performs in Europe with more local names here we have Rich Perry on tenor saxophone, John Wikan on drums, Matt Clohesy on bass, and Dave Easley on pedal steel guitar. Regular collaborator Lenka Dusilová is however featured on the recording, providing vocals. Some interesting sounds are provided by Canadian Ingrid Jensen, who plays trumpet and flugelhorn as well as fiddling with electronics.
Joy For Joel is very much a big album, and very much a studio album. The larger band is used to create a larger soundscape; a world of varied textures and moods interwoven together. It does not have a “live in the studio feel” in the way some albums can do. You're never holding your breath, disbelief suspended, wondering if the whole thing is going to crash out of control. To borrow the analogy used so well by rock guitarist Robert Fripp, the album is the love letter whereas the gig is the hot date, and both have their place and their charm. And so here we have the love letter, carefully crafted and pleasingly delivered, and containing some fairly spicy bits for good measure.
Hlavenková is a pianist with a timeless sound. It is rich in melody, with a tempestuous rolling quality that is all about expression. She rarely goes for the obvious, and isn't afraid to leave space for others to occupy. A perfect example of this is the first track, “Jazvečík vo hmle za stĺpom” (B. Hlavenková) which opens with the full spectrum. There's brass from Jensen, a delicate vocal line from Dusilová, light and fluttery sax, the hum of pedal steel, and all are crafted together with piano. There's so much going on but still it feels airy, with Wikan restraining himself to gentle punctuation. Together they move, shift, push forward as a group. Perry's solo is fast but tasteful. There is a moment of peace as all subsides, bar the piano, heralding a tight, twangy excursion on pedal steel before the ensemble finale drives the track home.
“Rainy Afternoon” (B. Hlavenková) leans more on the piano, combining mesmerising patterns and strident chords with a twinkling melody. Clohesy steps out of the shadow, grooving away while Hlavenková moves through a variety of moods and explorations. Again a wordless legato vocal line (this time sung by the pianist herself) adds emphasis and an extra layer to the big finish. It is ambitious stuff.
“Bullerbyn” (B. Hlavenková) is faster paced, bouncy, and a bit more conventional. Jensen plays with clarity, taking time between phrases. “Spring Story” (B. Hlavenková) on the other hand is eleven minutes of mini-epic. It is announced by an extended flourish of piano and voice. From there it is a journey of tension and release as varied ensemble playing builds up in pace and vigour, climaxing with a ferocious blast from Jensen and followed by a rapid diminishing to almost nothing. A repeat of the initial flourish follows, before again rising up joyfully. An unexpected but perfectly placed pedal steel solo adds the extra dimension.
There are other notable compositions on the album, including “The Riddle” (B. Hlavenková) and “4 Days” (B. Hlavenková). The former utilises electronic distortions to create a warped environment (dig the evil piano!), and the frantic beat even hints at modern dance music.
The album finishes with “A Little Something” (B. Hlavenková), the shortest track on the recording, which takes a simple cascading phrase and rides it hard. There are crazy moments of disorder that make it all the more lovely when the melody kicks back in.
If you're going to do a full-on studio album you might as well use everything at your disposal. Joy For Joel is complex, contemporary, well structured, and through the use of pedal steel and electronics it has an uncliched sound. At its core is strong writing and arranging, and there is little doubt that these compositions will also work with a smaller outfit in a live setting.
Czech jazz piano does have many kings. Is it now time to crown a queen?
A full track listing and free audio samples can be found on the Animal Music website.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Monday, August 25, 2008
News: New Beata Hlavenková CDs
Exciting news from Beata: She is currently finishing a CD with Lenka Dusilová and Clarinet Factory, under the name of Eternal Seekers. The album should be out at the end of September published by Respekt, and the release concerts are on the 21 and 22 of October during the Struny Podzimu festival: (http://www.strunypodzimu.cz/en/).
She is also planning to record a new CD in New York in January, featuring musicians including Ingrid Jensen, Jon Wikan, and Rich Perry. The album should eventually be released by Petr Ostrouchov's Animalmusic.
She is also planning to record a new CD in New York in January, featuring musicians including Ingrid Jensen, Jon Wikan, and Rich Perry. The album should eventually be released by Petr Ostrouchov's Animalmusic.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Gig Review: Beata Hlavenková Quartet
AghaRTA Jazz Centrum (“Young Women in Jazz” Concerts)
11th August 2008
Every so often an article appears in the press, or even worse on a website, announcing the death of jazz in Prague. The usual argument is that the creativity and innovation that once defined the city’s music is gone. No longer an act of political or artistic rebellion, and no longer a voice of a people gagged and bound in many other ways, the edge has been blunted. Nowadays, so the story goes, the jazz clubs of Prague offer a bland mush of bread-and-circus jazz-by-numbers for the passing punters. Take the cash, wiggle your ass, thank you very much, goodnight, and please do come again. This is arrant nonsense. While there may be some repertory acts doling out routine routines for the sort of people who wear baseball caps indoors and talk incessantly during the quiet bits, there are many outfits who are pushing the envelope and cooking up music with originality, innovation, and the excitement that has supposedly undergone extinction. For a prime example of this I humbly suggest that you look no further than the Beata Hlavenková Quartet.
Featuring Beata on piano, Rasťo Uhrík on acoustic bass, Dano Šoltis on drums, and Josef Štĕpánek on pedal steel guitar (no, this is not a country band), they are an outfit with a unique and uncompromising sound. Opening the evening with a blast of Thelonious Monk is not for the faint of heart, and the second piece, the original “Four Days”, went from subtle discord to a wide-screen wall of sound.
It did seem to take a couple of pieces for the outfit to settle down. Having the crew from Česká televize loitering around in order to make a live broadcast for their nightly arts slot maybe added an extra air of tension, but at 9:30 Beata did a quick interview for the watching nation and then launched the band into “Spring Story”. An original piece of epic proportions, it was also the point where they really hit their stride. A rolling ocean of different moods, ranging from fragile piano and vocal phrasing to some of the most aggressive ensemble playing I have seen in a long time, it epitomised just about everything good about live jazz. Attacking both the head and the heart it was a thrilling journey of tension and release, and from that moment onwards the Quartet would excel and shine for the rest of the night.
The inclusion of a pedal steel guitar is unusual in jazz, but here this unconventional instrument was put to good use. In places it was used to provide swirling washes of sound in the manner that a keyboard might be utilised, sometimes sweet and sometimes uneasily discordant. At other times Štĕpánek took the lead with rasping solos, sharply delivered and contrasting with Hlavenková’s more restrained piano forays. She is a selfless player, technically excellent but seemingly without the stage ego that many bandleaders enjoy flexing. There were some lovely solos, although it would have been fun to see her lose it totally just once and let rip with furious and violent abandon.
The award for the wildest playing of the night, however, must be awarded to Šoltis on drums. He seemed to be having a one-man party behind the skins, bashing away with uninterrupted joy and humour. Constantly working, both during ensemble playing and as a counterpoint to other soloists, he was clobbering skins, rims, metalwork, and even took an occasional swipe at a nearby chair.
The second and thirds sets were unrelentingly excellent. One of the most pleasing aspects of the Quartet’s music was the variety and complexity of structure in many of their pieces. Sometimes bands can fall into the trap of adopting the same format for every song: some ensemble playing, then the piano solo, then the bass solo, then sometimes the drum solo, then the big finish. There is nothing wrong with this, but it can get a bit predictable if the pattern is not broken. This was certainly not the case with the BHQ: their arrangements were twisting, winding journeys into the unknown. Sometimes an obvious ending was just the beginning of another, more complex section. Solos drifted in and out, taking the listener by surprise. It was interesting. It was thought-provoking. Most of all, it sounded good.
Even the idiotic chatter of some third set arrivistes, laughing and yakking like a communion of gibbons at one of the front tables, could not detract from the dark ethereal soundscapes and the moments of tenderness that this outfit was producing. These halfwits still needed a slap though. When will these inconsiderate apes realise that you go to a music club to listen to music? If you wanted to listen to them you would go to an arse club.
The evening ended with the majestic “Rainy Afternoon”, a more serious and thought-provoking piece than some of the romps that had gone before. No encores, and leave them wanting more. Beata’s outfit is one of the most interesting and different currently on the circuit, producing music that is challenging and demanding of thought, but still melodic and accessible. It is not music to be taken lightly, and like the best music the more you put into your listening the more you will get out of it. What it most certainly is not is two hours of jazz-by-numbers, and anyone who dares to think that the Prague jazz scene is dead needs to see them as soon as possible.
11th August 2008
Every so often an article appears in the press, or even worse on a website, announcing the death of jazz in Prague. The usual argument is that the creativity and innovation that once defined the city’s music is gone. No longer an act of political or artistic rebellion, and no longer a voice of a people gagged and bound in many other ways, the edge has been blunted. Nowadays, so the story goes, the jazz clubs of Prague offer a bland mush of bread-and-circus jazz-by-numbers for the passing punters. Take the cash, wiggle your ass, thank you very much, goodnight, and please do come again. This is arrant nonsense. While there may be some repertory acts doling out routine routines for the sort of people who wear baseball caps indoors and talk incessantly during the quiet bits, there are many outfits who are pushing the envelope and cooking up music with originality, innovation, and the excitement that has supposedly undergone extinction. For a prime example of this I humbly suggest that you look no further than the Beata Hlavenková Quartet.
Featuring Beata on piano, Rasťo Uhrík on acoustic bass, Dano Šoltis on drums, and Josef Štĕpánek on pedal steel guitar (no, this is not a country band), they are an outfit with a unique and uncompromising sound. Opening the evening with a blast of Thelonious Monk is not for the faint of heart, and the second piece, the original “Four Days”, went from subtle discord to a wide-screen wall of sound.
It did seem to take a couple of pieces for the outfit to settle down. Having the crew from Česká televize loitering around in order to make a live broadcast for their nightly arts slot maybe added an extra air of tension, but at 9:30 Beata did a quick interview for the watching nation and then launched the band into “Spring Story”. An original piece of epic proportions, it was also the point where they really hit their stride. A rolling ocean of different moods, ranging from fragile piano and vocal phrasing to some of the most aggressive ensemble playing I have seen in a long time, it epitomised just about everything good about live jazz. Attacking both the head and the heart it was a thrilling journey of tension and release, and from that moment onwards the Quartet would excel and shine for the rest of the night.
The inclusion of a pedal steel guitar is unusual in jazz, but here this unconventional instrument was put to good use. In places it was used to provide swirling washes of sound in the manner that a keyboard might be utilised, sometimes sweet and sometimes uneasily discordant. At other times Štĕpánek took the lead with rasping solos, sharply delivered and contrasting with Hlavenková’s more restrained piano forays. She is a selfless player, technically excellent but seemingly without the stage ego that many bandleaders enjoy flexing. There were some lovely solos, although it would have been fun to see her lose it totally just once and let rip with furious and violent abandon.
The award for the wildest playing of the night, however, must be awarded to Šoltis on drums. He seemed to be having a one-man party behind the skins, bashing away with uninterrupted joy and humour. Constantly working, both during ensemble playing and as a counterpoint to other soloists, he was clobbering skins, rims, metalwork, and even took an occasional swipe at a nearby chair.
The second and thirds sets were unrelentingly excellent. One of the most pleasing aspects of the Quartet’s music was the variety and complexity of structure in many of their pieces. Sometimes bands can fall into the trap of adopting the same format for every song: some ensemble playing, then the piano solo, then the bass solo, then sometimes the drum solo, then the big finish. There is nothing wrong with this, but it can get a bit predictable if the pattern is not broken. This was certainly not the case with the BHQ: their arrangements were twisting, winding journeys into the unknown. Sometimes an obvious ending was just the beginning of another, more complex section. Solos drifted in and out, taking the listener by surprise. It was interesting. It was thought-provoking. Most of all, it sounded good.
Even the idiotic chatter of some third set arrivistes, laughing and yakking like a communion of gibbons at one of the front tables, could not detract from the dark ethereal soundscapes and the moments of tenderness that this outfit was producing. These halfwits still needed a slap though. When will these inconsiderate apes realise that you go to a music club to listen to music? If you wanted to listen to them you would go to an arse club.
The evening ended with the majestic “Rainy Afternoon”, a more serious and thought-provoking piece than some of the romps that had gone before. No encores, and leave them wanting more. Beata’s outfit is one of the most interesting and different currently on the circuit, producing music that is challenging and demanding of thought, but still melodic and accessible. It is not music to be taken lightly, and like the best music the more you put into your listening the more you will get out of it. What it most certainly is not is two hours of jazz-by-numbers, and anyone who dares to think that the Prague jazz scene is dead needs to see them as soon as possible.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
News: CD Alert!
It looks like there will be even more new CDs on the way, with both Matej Benko and Beata Hlavenková taking their outfits into the studio sometime soon. More news when we have it...
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