On May 11, the St Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival continued it themed nights with the aptly titled Pure Jazz featuring Uruguayan pianist Gustavo Casenave and St Lucian saxophonist and Caribbean jazz icon Luther François. Held at the 400-seat Ramp at Rodney Bay, a purpose built fabric building that facilitates jazz in an intimate space by the sea, this show showcased virtuosity and Caribbean excellence.
Pure jazz, as its name suggests, veers towards the layman's understanding of what is jazz. Not the freedom associated with improvisation, but dissonance and dexterity that suggest risk, skill and practice, and music that can not be danced to. That was clearly identified with Casenave’s performance. Classically trained, as most musicians of worth are, he balanced studied technique with a keen sense of improvisation and abandon. Fleet fingered flights of fancy that hint at a melody, became the platform for a masterclass of piano playing that bridges classical and bebop. His take on the Broadway classic turned jazz standard All the Things You Are had patrons shouting bravo and saying this level of playing was a rarity here.
[caption id="attachment_1016034" align="alignnone" width="1024"] St Lucian jazz icon Luther François explains his composition to the audience at Pure Jazz, St Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival. - Allen Chery of Grey Card Media[/caption]
His trio, piano, double bass and modified drum – an Argentinian folkloric drum replaced one of the tom toms – filled the space with music that enthralled the packed venue. Odd time signatures defined his music. Latin music and the blues worked to make this an interesting performance for a keen audience in search of the real thing. The bassist, Argentinean Pedro Giraudo plucked, bowed and made his instrument sing, drawl, squeak and bounce around, dynamically driving the rhythm and making a space for modified moods, while drummer fellow Argentinean Franco Pinna had conversations with piano and juxtaposed tempo with a deep well of Latin American rhytmic genre identifiers.
With minimal conversation or banter, the music was front and centre. And the audience took it all in. Stolid silence up front showed that jazz was accepted despite the reality of other genres dominating the festival. This was a more than a concert but a statement. The composition of the audience and their temperament contrasted drastically with the night before. Appreciative applause, sometimes misplaced, peppered when he animatedly hammered and even caressed the keys of the baby grand to dramatically solo.
[caption id="attachment_1016033" align="alignnone" width="682"] Gustavo Casenave thanks the crowd at Pure Jazz, St Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival. - Allen Chery of Grey Card Media[/caption]
Six of nine songs were self compositions showing a range of influences. Sweat moistened his jacket as the warm space heated up with fiery cadenzas. This was a return of sorts for Caseneve as he told the audience that 27 years ago he honeymooned on the island, and now he will play with the Icon, Luther Fr
