Perth Festival, New Focus: The Classical Connection
St John’s Kirk, Perth, 27/05/24
Perth Festival, New Focus: The Classical Connection
New Focus: Euan Stevenson (piano), Konrad Wiszniewski (saxophones)
Scottish jazz duo New Focus comprises pianist/composer/arranger/improviser Euan Stevenson and Glasgow-born saxophonist Konrad Wiszniewski, playing tenor and alto instruments. Their show ‘The Classical Connection’ explores the influences of classical composers on the great jazz exponents and is part presentation, larger part performance. Most of the pieces are jazz staples, starting in the style of a classical composer, then morphing into a jazz style with some composed but mostly improvised elements. St John’s Kirk was the venue on the night of Monday 27th May for their concert as part of this year’s Perth Festival.
They opened with a dreamy piano intro, joined by alto sax for improvisation on an original theme by Euan Stevenson. This segued into a similar treatment of his piece ‘Green Park’ with tenor sax. Euan, who did all the talking, then introduced Jerome Kern’s ‘All the Things You Are’ starting in baroque style in the right hand, becoming contrapuntal with both hands, then transitioning to a fully syncopated and improvisatory jazz dialogue with the alto sax. Billy Strayhorn’s classic ‘Take the "A" Train’, which became the signature tune of Duke Ellington’s band, then started as a Mozart sonata, before taking off as the jazz staple it is (yet the Mozart influence, once pointed out, remained evident).
A short discussion of the fondness of jazz musicians for the key of D-flat major was introduced by a wee guessing game for the audience of classical and popular pieces in that key: we had snippets of Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lune’, the Chopin Nocturne Op 27 No.2, Variation 18 from Rachmaninov’s ‘Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini’ and Vangelis’ ‘Chariots of Fire’, before segueing into a jazz treatment of Jobim’s ‘Girl from Ipanema’. The pianistic styles of Erroll Garner, Art Tatum and even Oscar Peterson were then described and linked to that of Franz Liszt, before Liebestraum No.3 got the Erroll Garner treatment. Thoroughly marvellous.
After the interval, Euan began with a tender version of the Burns classic, ‘My Luve is Like a Red, Red Rose’ with delicious jazz chords, joined by the tenor sax with elegant ornamentation. This segued into an original melody by Euan, ‘Leonard’s Lament’, dedicated to Leonard Cohen, with rhythm in the style of John Coltrane. We learned that John Coltrane loved both bagpipe music and Indian classical music. The famously reciprocated mutual influence of Ravel and Gershwin was then celebrated with ‘Nice Work If You Can Get It’ segueing into ‘They Can't Take That Away from Me’, the latter beginning with a gorgeous slow drag. Erik Satie’s ‘Gymnopédie No.1’ then received the Gershwin treatment, with a piano intro and an alto sax solo, played with exquisite vibrato by Konrad. This segued into Miles Davis’ ‘Flamenco Sketches’, their Phrygian mode melodies highlighted by Euan’s very Debussy-like arrangement.
Cole Porter’s ‘Love for Sale’ in a really funky arrangement with some pretty wild stuff from Konrad’s tenor instrument wound up the programme, to tumultuous applause, rendering an encore inevitable. Euan introduced his original piece, written on the birth of his daughter Flora and eponymously dedicated to her. A classic A-B-A form with a piano intro, the tender melody taken up by the tenor sax in dialogue, a solo piano ‘turn’ section, and a reprise of the melody. Very lovely. Everybody was humming the melody as they left the church. The Classical Connection is a music-lover’s treat. Highly recommended.