“There are some good signs, some happy coincidences here,” commented Vincent Bessières (*) in his onstage introduction before this concert, the first in a Jazzdor Festival under his artistic directorship. He, Strasbourg mayor Jeanne Barseghian and Isabelle Chardonnier, head of culture (DRAC) for the Grand Est region, all made a point of thanking Philippe Ochem, who had programmed this concert, and whose thirty-six years running Jazzdor cast one of the best examples and the longest and most benign shadows in European musical culture.
L-R: Vincent Bessières, Jeanne Barseghian, Isabelle Chardonnier. Photo © Teona Goreci
Among the good signs which Bessières was referring to was the fact that two of three musicians on stage had heard earlier that day that their albums had been nominated for a Grammy.
This concert date was just past the midpoint of a European tour, so there was – perhaps unsurprisingly – an ease of communication all round. But the surprise was the direction which pianist Danilo Pérez, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Adam Cruz chose to take the mood.
As the evening progressed, the carapace of seriousness gradually lifted in a quite wonderful way. Each of three of these musicians had showed amply, as ever, what spiritual uplift, what complexity, what invention they are capable of, but progressively the mood just lightened.
Danilo Perez. Photo © Teona Goreci
Maybe there are few musicians alive who can do childlike wonder and joy quite like Danilo Pérez. His complete flexibility as to where a phrase can go, how long it will last, his mesmerising gifts provide constant surprises for the listener. But that freedom has another side. Leaving aside all the expensive chords on a Steinway, he started to concentrate gleefully on the cheaper buttons of his electric keyboard, such as the cowbell or the “fa” sound (this is a family show, right?).
John Patitucci. Photo © Teona Goreci
That desire to be playful and to induce laughs and smiles took over, By the end he had the audience on its feet, singing, clapping, enjoying the moment. There was a wonderful feel of community in the room. And Patitucci and Cruz had thoroughly creased up with laughter. I think I have been at one other gig with a similar progression, and that was when Enemy with Kit Downes turned their set and their rhythmic switch-backery on another opening night, that of the very first Sparks & Visions in Regensburg (REVIEW), into a birthday party for James Maddren, but this one had an even more innocent kind of joy.
Totally uplifting, this opening night of Jazzdor Strasbourg 2025 was a very special concert indeed.
SET LIST (all compositions by Danilo Perez except ‘Cosa Linda’)
Whistle through Adversity
Rediscovery of the Pacific Ocean
Panama Libre
Beloved
Gratitude
Cosa Linda (Avelino Muňoz)
Lumen