CCP to host first international jazz festival

Once graced by legendary musical gods such as B.B. King and Ray Charles, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) will be transformed into the country’s biggest jazz lounge when it hosts “The Story of Jazz: 1st CCP International Jazz Festival 2011" this month.

The line-up of Filipino and international jazz musicians and singers performing during the Aug. 23-28 jazz smorgasbord in various CCP venues is enough to leave local jazz enthusiasts breathless. Guest artists from South Korea, Japan, Austria, Spain and the US will “combine their talents with our leading jazz musicians," said CCP President Raul Sunico. An internationally acclaimed classical pianist and music professor, Sunico said the jazz festival is part of the CCP management’s campaign “to democratize and open the institution to events not yet done within its premises." At the press conference announcing the event, he noted that “Philippine jazz figures can compare with the best in the world. Only the venue for their performance is lacking. Delayed as it maybe, it is not too late to start a jazz festival." He added that the festival intends “to show the world that the Philippines can be a serious venue for this genre of music." Giving a sample of what to expect at the festival, Filipino jazz artists Emy Munji, Ruben Reyes, and Joey Valenciano performed “Stompin’ at the Savoy," a 1934 jazz standard composed by Edgar Sampson to honor the Savoy Ballroom, a music and public dancing venue opened in New York City’s Harlem in 1926. They also performed “I Remember April" by Gene de Paul, a song introduced in 1942 in the Abbott and Costello comedy “Ride ‘em Cowboy" that featured Ella Fitzgerald. CCP Artistic Director and Vice President Chris Millado enthused: “Someone said jazz is like liquid architecture. It is a wonderful way of putting it. We are very excited to have this kind of liquid architecture meld with the architecture of CCP." 150 jazz musicians Millado said Filipinos have been described as “the blacks of Asia because of the internal rhythm that we carry." Filipino musicians and singers perform all over the world, even in remote places, such that Filipino travelers often hear a Filipino band playing when they walk into a hotel lobby overseas, he said. Menchi Mantaring, head of the CCP Music Division, said the CCP Jazz Festival “will be a time for the participating foreign and local artists to bond together and collaborate, in this enjoyable language of musical expression." More than 150 jazz musicians are expected to converge at the CCP to jive and jam in various venues, Mantaring said. Participants will share their narratives through lectures and performances of jazz in various styles such as bebop, blues, ragtime, modal, experimental, big band, and fusion, among others. World renowned royal hartigan and blood drum spirit will hold lectures on the evolution of jazz music, the beginnings of be bop, and “free jazz" on various dates. Royal hartigan, who has done extensive research on West African traditional drumming and culture, also lectures on African jazz on Aug. 27. The group will perform “African-American Music: History of Jazz from its African Origins to the Future," be bop, hard bop, and modal jazz during the festival. The story of the how the blues became the blues will be the topic of Joric Maglanque while Japanese jazz guitarist Shun Kikuta will talk about the blues in the modern setting. American jazz guitarist Michael Bourne collaborates with the young Filipino jazz trio Bleu Rascals while Japanese jazz guitarist Shun Kikuta performs with the famous local jazz group the Blue Rats in the Blues Night on Aug. 24. Other featured performers are the Faith Gospel Singers, Cooky Chua, and Bluesviminda. Joey Valenciano talks about the influence of Indian music on jazz on Aug. 25, while Neris Gonzalez and Lowcal discuss Brazilian jazz on Aug. 26. Munji and Majam perform be bop on Aug. 25 at the Silangan Hall. Pinoy jazz Pinoy Jazz is the subject of a video documentary by Richie Quirino and Collis Davis Jr. to be shown free of charge on Aug. 28 at the Dream Theater. Based on Quirino's book, “Pinoy Jazz Traditions," which won the 2004 National Book Award in the music category, the 58-minute video documentary provides the first-ever visual exposition on the development of jazz in the Philippines. The video traces the evolution of jazz from its infancy in 1898, when Filipinos were first exposed to Black music performed by African-American soldiers, to its coming of age when musicians are turning to indigenous sources for inspiration. The documentary incorporates historical still photography, turn-of-the century film footage, maps, old recordings, modern performances, and interviews with veteran and contemporary musicians to present an eye-opening view of the local jazz scene. Other highlights of the festival are the Jazz Singing Workshop by Japan-based Filipino jazz singer Charito and performances by the UST Jazz Band, Austrian jazz quartet Stelzhamma, Korean Soul and Beat Project. – YA, GMA News For more information, please call the CCP Box Office at 832-3704 and CCP Performing Arts Department at 832-1125 local 1605 or visit www.culturalcenter.gov.ph. All photos courtesy of the Cultural Center of the Philippines