The Eric Legnini Trio Concert

The Eric Legnini Trio performing

Jazz music lovers once again gathered the Ayala Museum to witness the performance of the Eric Legnini Trio composed of pianist Eric Legnini, bassist Thomas Bramerie and drummer Franck Agulhon. Their performance is still part of FrancoPhil, the 2011 French cultural season in the Philippines, organized by the Embassy of France to the Philippines and the Alliance Française de Manille.

I do find watching jazz performances very interesting since I go there not having any idea as to what the programme would be. According to the press release, the trio is on tour in line with the release of their album Trippin but unfortunately, this album isn’t released locally. Fortunately for me, I was able to hear a bit of their music during the opening of the French Film Festival since it was played at the background during the cocktail. But that wasn’t enough for me to have a clear grasp of what their music was really all about.

So the only thing left for me to do was just to relax and enjoy the concert which I did. The music that they played that evening I think is an ideal companion when enjoying a glass of whiskey during rainy nights. As always, the variations that a jazz pianist does always leave me scratching my head because I find it very difficult to learn. Yet the trio told me that I could still learn how to play jazz on the piano. Compared to the Colina Serrano Quartet who performed about a month before, the Eric Legnini Trio had a more laidback sound and repertoire.

One piece that I really liked was called Casa Bamako, a track from the album Trippin, which has a sweet bass line and a clear African music influence since Bamako is the capital of Mali. Hearing this piece made me disappointed when I found out later that the trio didn’t bring any of their CD’s with them to sell. I told Thomas Bramerie how I reacted to hearing such a strong African influence in their music and my disappointment with the absence of their CD’s for sale. And he responded by teasing me more saying that their newest album called Vox has Afro beats in it.

I enjoyed the concert although I spent some time listening with my eyes closed in order to shut the other senses and so that I can really hear the music. Many times with jazz music, I tend to wander off and let the music be relegated to the background. That is the reason why I had to actively listen to the performance. What I really enjoyed most was the time after the concert when most people already left and I was able to have fun with the Steinway & Sons piano that was provided by Lyric. Martin Macalintal, the Audiovisual Attaché of the French Embassy, also played a few bars on the piano as well. And to top it all off, I was able to try the double bass for a bit and I had no other than Thomas Bramerie himself teaching me how to play a few notes. The instrument is heavy and the strings are hard and if I keep at it, my fingers would be calloused so I guess that I’d stick with the piano for now.

Thomas Bramerie teaching RAd the bouble bass

Audiovisual Attaché Martin Macalintal

RAd with the Eric Legnini Trio