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Belgrade Jazz Festival 2021

Courtesy Tim Dickeson
Dom Omladine/Kombank Dvorana
Belgrade, Serbia
October 26-November 1, 2021
The 37th Belgrade Jazz Festival made a full return to its accustomed international nature, following the late 2020 mostly-Serbian edition. Artists successfully managed to arrive from the USA and various parts of Europe, with no cancellations in the programme. This was also the 50th anniversary of the BJF, taking into account the 'missing' war-years in the divided post-Yugoslavian landscape. As ever, each evening began with a larger double bill concert in the downstairs theatre at 7pm, followed by a shift upstairs to the smaller Amerikana suite, for a 10.30pm double bill, or with the second night's Serbian Showcase, three acts.
It's been a few years since your scribe caught the Florida-born trumpeter

Theo Croker
trumpetb.1985

Dee Dee Bridgewater
vocalsb.1950

Michael Ode
drums
Denardo Coleman
drumsb.1956

Markus Stockhausen
flugelhorn
Sebastian Gramss
bass, acousticb.1966
The Swedish/Norwegian trio of Rymden are now resuming their prolific touring activities, rapidly refining their recent compositions. Their styles are many, incorporating pure acoustic and mangled electronic frameworks, jacking from funk to symphonic, big beat to fragmentation, anthemic to abstract.

Bugge Wesseltoft
pianob.1964

Dan Berglund
bassb.1963

Magnus Ostrom
drumsb.1965
The Serbian Showcase opened with


Ksawery Wojcinski
bass, acousticb.1983

Paul Lovens
percussionb.1949
The following pair of outfits were all-Serbian, in their ranks. Drama Quartet featured a line-up of alto saxophone, guitar, bass and drums, operating in the funk-jazz department. Their dense activity sometimes took on an advanced twitching sound, adopting a recent style-pattern, although guitarist Andreja Stankovi? projected a retro 1980s sound. The foursome's aim seemed to be an updating of jazz funk into a modernised incarnation.
Drumbooty presented a mainstream, though energetic, fusion form,with their twinned keyboards joined by alto saxophone, guitar, bass and drums. This was the acceptable face of fusion, for those who might be selective, although for their climax Drumbooty veered towards a freeform state, radiating great power, with a strong Balkan character emerging. The only snag was that, next, both keyboards and the alto began sounding like they were all electronic wind instruments.
Another evening brought another themed gathering, this time with Poland providing the focus, in the main hall. Reed star

Joe Lovano
drumsb.1952

Marcin Wasilewski
pianob.1975

Zbigniew Seifert
violin1946 - 1979
Into The Roots were next up, a trio led by the trumpeter

Piotr Damasiewicz
trumpetb.1980

Don Cherry
trumpet1936 - 1995
The third Polish artist was violinist

Mateusz Smoczyński
violinb.1984
Spinifex are a ridiculously geographically mixed ensemble, with members drawn from Belgium, Portugal, Germany, the USA and the Netherlands. They are sharply arranged, open to a disciplined wildness when soloing, or simultaneously interacting, and pay equal attention to free jazz and spiked rock. Chief composer is saxophonist

Tobias Klein
saxophone, altob.1967

Jasper Stadhouders
guitar, electric
Bart Maris
trumpetb.1965

John Dikeman
saxophone, tenorb.1983
Philipp Moser
drumsThis was almost too much of a good time, as another of the festival's most exciting bands played right afterwards, another mixed-up crew in the form of Angles 8, with players combined from Sweden and Norway. Led by saxophonist

Martin Kuchen
saxophoneAlexander Zethson
keyboardsAt the BJF's midway point, a Norwegian supergroup combining the generations. Veteran bassman

Arild Andersen
bass, acousticb.1945

Marius Neset
saxophoneb.1985

Helge Lien
pianoGhost Horse had the sound of a street band, its horns dominant, with tenor saxophone, trombone and tuba making the most of their lower tones. Baritone guitar, bass and drums completed the roster of this Italian band. There was a stirring communion between Glauco Benedetti (tuba) and Joe Rehmer (bass), underpinning the blasting and jostling horns. Dan Kinzelman swapped to bass clarinet, perhaps feeling that the terrain wasn't dipping quite as low in tone as desired. Benedetti also played his euphonium, as an alternative to tuba. There was 'bone burble and bowed guitar, slow drawling, grooving with heavy effects applied to the latter, heading into a murky psychedelic slow-drive, possessing a growing threat. Ghost Horse climaxed with a stalking minimalist number, the band members softly singing 'Belgrade,' surely their freshly favoured city.
The

Itamar Borochov
trumpet
Maria Schneider
composer / conductorAfter a short break, the second set featured the more expected "Data Lords," Schneider's recent 'hit' tune, operating out of her darker side, as it questions and challenges the negative face of digital communication and dominance. 'Humans, die!,' as an artificial intelligence being might shout. Black clouds billowed, as spider fingers were also found in Schneider's armoury.
Heidi Bayer
trumpet
Johannes Ludwig
saxophoneb.1988
Very soon, a short walk to the Amerikana suite found the mysterious TGB ready for action. They're a Portuguese trio with the slightly unusual line-up of Mário Delgado (guitar), Sérgio Carolino (tuba) and
Alexandre Frazão
drumsThe

Brad Mehldau
pianob.1970

Larry Grenadier
bass, acousticb.1966

Jeff Ballard
drumsb.1963
Ballard took a solo, with a tonal ringing being either slight feedback, or natural theatre acoustics. Mehldau lightly played themes, then made a firmer pounce when embarking on the full improvisation of a solo journey. He played "Dark Turn Of Mind," a tune penned by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, followed by the more familiar "Brownie Speaks" and "All The Things You Are," by

Clifford Brown
trumpetb.1930

Jerome Kern
arranger1895 - 1945

Cole Porter
composer / conductor1891 - 1964
The Belgrade Jazz Festival has managed to successfully navigate the lockdowns of 2020 and '21, partly by luck of timing, either by postponement or fortunate placement of month, and partly through sheer committed tenacity, working through the regulations to present what they were able, when they were able. They were one of the few festivals to leap into a fully international 2021 programme, taking chances on whether borders were open, or whether acts might have to be replaced at short notice. They succeeded in fine style!
Tags
Live Review
Martin Longley
Serbia
Belgrade
Theo Croker
Dee Dee Bridgewater
Michael King
Michael Ode
Denardo Coleman
Markus Stockhausen
Sebastian Gramss
Christian Thomé
Bugge Wesseltoft
Dan Berglund
magnus ostrom
Jasna Jovicevic
Ksawery Wójciński
Sylvester Miklós
Paul Lovens
joe lovano
Marcin Wasilewski
Zbigniew Seifert}, and probably "Turbulent Plover."
Into The Roots were next up, a trio led by the trumpeter {{Piotr Damasiewicz}, featuring {{Zbigniew Kozera Pawe? Szpura Don Cherry Mateus Smoczyński Tobias Klein Jasper Stadhouders Bart Maris Gon?alo Almeida John Dikeman Philipp Moser Martin Kuchen Mattias St?lhl Alexander Zethson Arild Andersen marius neset Helge Lien Hakon Mjaset Johansen Itamar Borochov Ibrahim Malouf Maria Schneider Heidi Bayer Johannes Ludwig Alexandre Fraz?o brad mehldau Larry Grenadier Jeff Ballard Clifford Brown Jerome Kern Cole Porter
Into The Roots were next up, a trio led by the trumpeter {{Piotr Damasiewicz}, featuring {{Zbigniew Kozera Pawe? Szpura Don Cherry Mateus Smoczyński Tobias Klein Jasper Stadhouders Bart Maris Gon?alo Almeida John Dikeman Philipp Moser Martin Kuchen Mattias St?lhl Alexander Zethson Arild Andersen marius neset Helge Lien Hakon Mjaset Johansen Itamar Borochov Ibrahim Malouf Maria Schneider Heidi Bayer Johannes Ludwig Alexandre Fraz?o brad mehldau Larry Grenadier Jeff Ballard Clifford Brown Jerome Kern Cole Porter
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