The 2nd CCP International Jazz Festival

The 2^nd CCP International Jazz Festival last month was a good way to immerse myself in jazz and its many styles and forms. Previous attempts to play jazz on the piano have proven disastrous so I decided just to listen to it instead of playing it.

It was a change of pace for me to go to the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater) and watch jazz performances instead of the usual classical music that I am so fond of. I was able to watch only two concerts during the festival and the first one, the opening concert, went head on with Tony Bennett’s that happened at the same time just a few blocks away. So it wasn’t a surprise that the audience turnout was less than everyone expected. But that didn’t stop the performers from putting out some great jazz music.

First to perform was blood drum spirit from the USA, a returning group from the first jazz festival back in 2011. Their music has elements of world music with strong emphasis on rhythm. One thing that kept me glued to their performance was the presence of violinist Sam Bardfeld since I haven’t seen a violin in a jazz ensemble prior to this. Up next were South East Asian neighbors Roger Wang from Malaysia and Wayan Balawan from Indonesia performing with their guitars. Up first was Roger Wang with his acoustic guitar performing a mix of familiar tunes like Michael Jackson’s The Way You Make Me Feel along with some regional/local songs with very pleasant/easy listening melodies. Wayan Balawan played next with a very unusual two necked guitar which also has a synthesizer. With this special guitar, he was able to play many notes as if he’s playing the piano and also was able to employ various effects like making his instrument sound like a xylophone, strings and even a chorus.

Brown Fix, Sitti and Brass Munkeys represented the local talent during the second half of the concert. With Brownfix, a very showy Ian Lofamia in his harmonica almost stole the spotlight from the rest of his bandmates. They mostly performed a handful of jazz/blues standards throughout their set. Next was a very enthusiastic Sitti who was backed up with a four piece band. She performed and strutted on stage her signature bossa nova repertoire which she helped popularized some years ago. Last for the evening was the swing/jive band Brass Munkeys led by my cousin Casey Santos (vocals/guitars). Their music is certainly danceable and I’ve seen people dance during their gigs but the CCP audience that night probably felt that they were at a classical concert for they were very reserved. I thought afterwards that the festival should’ve served some wine at the lobby before the concert. That could’ve warmed up and loosened the audience so that they’d be more alive and appreciative during the performances.

Humanfolk
Rodney Vidanes, Frances Escape, Johnny Alegre, Abby Clutario and Zach Lucero

Thankfully, the next concert that I was able to see three days later was better attended and had a more enthusiastic audience. This concert opened with Humanfolk, an Awit Award winning group, led by Johnny Alegre, whose music is a convergence of multiple music idioms like jazz, rock, folk, electronic, ethnic, etc. What followed was completely different music coming from Italian Fabio Turchetti. With an accordion decorated like the flag of France, he played music that I would not typically categorize as jazz but still entertaining. One such fun song that he played had Italian lyrics but the melody and rhythm sounded very French. He was one of the pleasant surprises for me in this festival since it was totally unexpected.

Charito, Mel Villena and Skarlet

Joyful Jazz’s vocalist Jeannie Tiongco dedicated their performance to Maritess Salientes who passed away a little over a month before the start of the festival. Joyful Jazz is the brainchild of Salientes and it was a poignant moment for the group when they performed some of Maritess’ compositions at the CCP Main Theater stage. The A.M.P. Big Band led by Mel Villena is always a pleasure to watch. Villena is quite a character and his infectious energy and sense of humor added to my enjoyment of their set. And the sheer number of saxophonists, trumpet and trombone players was a feast for my eyes and ears. Vocalist Skarlet joined them for a few numbers and her performance of Balut made me look back fondly on Katy! once again. I was so pleased that Mel Villena and his band remained to accompany Charito for her set. One of Japan’s prominent jazz singers, Charito was in her element and showed very good chemistry with Mel Villena, even convincing him do some impromptu scatting. I think that Charito with the A.M.P. Big Band could do a two hour show together and I can imagine it being a fun show. The two concerts of the 2^nd CCP International Jazz Festival that I was able to watch featured at least five music acts. So it was no surprise that the concerts ended up long and late into the night although they started 30 minutes earlier than regular performances at the CCP Main Theater. I am still relatively new to jazz music and I think that it would take some more time for me to really get into it. I think that I still don’t have the endurance to take jazz in huge doses. Maybe, I’ll be on top of things as my jazz knowledge and appreciation increases if ever the 3^rd CCP International Jazz Festival takes place a couple of years from now.