Yokohama Jazz Promenade 2007

October 6 and 7
Many venues Yokohama     

Yokohama had jamming in the streets and inside historic halls and hip clubs for its 15th annual Jazz Promenade. For the gloriously sunny weekend, the seagull cries were pushed aside and even the weddings, boat rides and beer-soaked Oktoberfest seemed to fade into the background. While the sight of people walking around with buttons (for entry) may seem like some political movement, it was just the opposite perhaps, everyone out to have a good time. Yokohama turned itself over to jazz for the weekend.

Expanding the number of venues and performers, nearly double from recent years, and almost six times the number at the first year in 1993, the Promenade still ran like clockwork. With no autumn typhoon, the turnout was one of the best ever, over 130,000 people. While performers always come from other countries, this year had musicians from Germany, China, Sweden, Brazil, France, Canada, America, Africa, Holland and Argentina. It was just one more indication of far and wide jazz has spread around the world, and how well it fits into a port city used to international import and export.

If ever a person wanted to be in two places at once, it was looking over the schedule of performers. The conflicts and choices to be made were painful at times, and inevitably longtime favorite groups had to be ignored to check out the new and unknown. So be it. It was always a race to get to each venue early enough to get a seat. Most places were standing room only, but with more clubs offering more music all day, it was not as crowded overall as in past years. Even with the best planning, though, it's only possible for one person to catch ten sets over the two days, and, as in life, good choices were hard to make. However, four groups stood out from the weekend.

Seiichi Nakamaru's BoNoBo Land packed the large Kannai Big Hall for a lovely set of pristine, lyrical jazz. The quintet fit together perfectly, with a sense of timing that was gracious in its equality and lively in its interaction. Drawing on the sleek west coast sound, with plenty of Stan Getz feeling, Nakamura's sax playing was almost a textbook example of how to confidently build coherent, nuanced solos. The tunes were chosen for the space they offered for soloing, and everyone leapt in for their share. The rhythm section of Mika Kawaguchi and Mark Tourian kept the swing deep and fluid, while Hideaki Yoshioka on piano and Yuzo Kataoka took solo after solo with the energy of a late night jazz club and the care and attention that a large crowd in a large hall loves to hear.

Yutaka Shiina's trio with Mattias Svensson on bass and Mark Taylor on drums was superb piano trio jazz. Playing to a standing room only crowd, who seemed well acquainted not only with Shiina's playing but also with the work of the Swedish bassist and in-demand drum master. The piano trio sounded much larger. All three cover their instruments with an easygoing power and turn it into wide-ranging and far-reaching sound. Whether playing originals from Shiina or Svensson or digging into Mingus and Ellington, the trio kept a strong swing and constantly interesting solos. Svensson's bass had a profound, cavernous tone while Taylor's drum solos went from brawny to whisperingly elegant. Shiina of course, kept the chords fresh, with a sense of pushing and pulling the others into always-new territory. It's too bad trios like this one live on the opposite sides of the ocean.

Jazz was not the only music during the weekend, though. Mio Matsuda with Joao Lyra played a delightful set of Brazilian music, backed by two percussionists and violin. The music was acoustic, with Lyra's guitar setting the tone, but felt less introspective than carnival-like. Matsuda's vocals, following the release of her latest CD with Lyra, were strikingly lovely. There was no disguising Lyra's love of the music the five were creating. He pushed everyone forward with his entire body bouncing over the guitar. You could hear his experience gracing the cream of Brazilian music recordings over the past couple decades, and everyone rose to the occasion.Matsuda's voice was passionate, full of life and emotionally nuanced. Whether unveiling the pain inside a fado number, as on her first recordings, or bouncing through a joyously lilting Brazilian song, her voice rang true.

Among the many jazz clubs that opened their space to jazz for the weekend, Little John's was the one most shaken. Nao Takeuchi and friends tore down the structures of jazz tradition for a full-on set of intense free-ish jazz. With Shigeo Aramaki on bass and Tamaya Honda on drums, Takeuchi could take things just as for as he liked. They hinted at melodies, but with no sense of constraint. With the addition of Mikio Ishida on piano, the trio got even wilder and freer. Somehow, the looser and freer they played, the more their musicianship emerged. Takeuchi's breathing was amazing, whether on a pretty song like "So Many Stars" or tearing up a Monk or Miles tune. He played notes without regard to when a sax player would normally pause to phrase. The result on the length of phrased lines and just sheer blowing energy was startling, especially with Aramaki and Honda pummeling the lower regions. No matter what directions the energy took, the band stayed together, opening up new insights and punching breathing holes into standards like "Round Midnight." "Cathartic" would be the word that best sums up their nearly three hours of music.

More than anything, though, the Yokohama Jazz Promenade was an amazing chance to hear the broad variety and high quality of jazz in the Tokyo and Yokohama area. With musicians from all over the world now regularly showing up at the Promenade, the atmosphere has become even more charged and international. Yet, the Promenade has not yet lost is laid-back feel. It's comfy to walk around without hassle, and have freedom to just pick where you go as you go. You can improvise your route as much as the musicians, and no matter where you go, get an amazing selection of great music. A weekend spent promenading, eating, drinking and hearing music would be great anywhere, but Yokohama has a sense of its own special atmosphere, which the city wears very well indeed.

October 10, 2007