All That Jazz

Cafe Du Sport

Mathew Littlewood Trio

Mathew Littlewood Trio

Mathew Littlewood Trio

Gerard Machado Syndicate

Radha Thomas

Bob Bonastra

Cafe Du Sport

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Strato Various

Brilliant musicians, brilliant show.

Line Up:
Jean Luc Ponty - Violin
William Lecomte - Keyboards
Guy Nsangué Akwa - Bass
Thierry Arpino - Drums
Moustapha Cissé - Percussion

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Truffaz Quartet Live @Alliance Francaise de Bangalore

Erik Truffaz isn't one for stereotypes. He has wielded his trumpet with everyone from electro-tabla wizard Talvin Singh to saxophone great Micheal Brecker with the Arabian influenced Hip Hop and dub sounds of Mounir Troudi finding a place somewhere in the melange.

That he worships at the altar of Miles Davis is worn proudly in every accent, every modal change, every wisp of breath from his lips. I don't mean he's a Miles clone. Far from it. Truffaz has devoured, imbibed and internalised the trumpet pioneer to such an extent that it has merged with his own style, giving it body, shape and even direction but never taking over. From desperate bop runs to the slightest whistle, Truffaz illustrated time and again that he is undoubtedly one of the modern European trumpet masters. In this performance he was joined by the rhythm section of Malcolm Braff on piano, Christophe Chambet on bass and Marc Erbetta on drums. In the newly renovated Alliance Francaise auditorium they ensured that mere jaw drops were too minor a reaction.


The hirsute Malcolm Braff would have probably looked more at home in a rock or blues band (read Canned Heat) but that didn't take anything away from his playing. Blending his considerable licks on the piano and kurzweil keyboard with a true improvisers spirit this big man could do no wrong. When he wasn't eliciting elongated clapping sessions from the audience with super fast finger work he played an understated role, adding just the right chords or scale runs, sometimes reminiscent of Thelonius Monk, another big hirsute piano player of old.

Christophe Chambet is no smiling assassin. He is one of those musicians who coaxes his skills and instrument with the deepest of scowls, his eyes sinking deep into their sockets. He played all over and all around the groove, visiting it once in a way and never sounding out of synch.


There are some musicians that make you squirm because they are so stratospheric, so mercurial and so brilliant. Marc Erbetta was one of those musicians. I'm still reeling from what he did behind those skins and HUGE Zildjian cymbals. I'm still trying to comprehend it all. When Miles said that good drummers would light a fire under the other musicians asses and push their limits he was absolutely right. Marc Erbetta did just that and then some.


This explosive quartet was joined for a couple of songs by Geeta Navale on Veena and a mridangam player whose name I can't remember. Geeta was abysmal, very rarely making her presence felt amidst so much genius. The mridangam player only shined on a slightly messy jughalbandi with Erbetta. Strangely, Erbetta seemed more at ease with the complex Indian time signatures.

It was toppermost till the fusion angle kicked in. We have so many brilliant Indian musicians. Perhaps next time a better match would have resulted in a better light.

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The Cameleon Quartet

Just photos of a brilliant brilliant band playing through their amps and nothing else.No mics for the drummer either but what a performance by this French quartet. Magnifique!

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The Wolf gang

It isn't often that we get treated to a top of the line jazz concert in Bangalore, so by the middle of the second song by The Wolfgang Haffner Group, the crowd was understandably at the edge of their seats. The band comprising Haffner on drums, Sebastian Studnitzky on the trumpet and keyboards, Frank Kuruc on guitars, Christian Diener on bass played a frictionless blend of jazz, rock and electronica ala St.Germain.


Wolfgang Haffner is a consumate drummer, his left hand gentle as a feather, playing quadruplets on the snare, his right hand running amuck on the toms, with the fervour of Keith Moon on a wild night. It is this dichotomy that makes him phenomenal. He was as much at ease playing Billy Cobham type rolls, edging on the complexity of Indian Classical rhythm as he was playing on air almost, gliding his brushes over the cymbals, coaxing the tiniest, sweetest sounds out of them. He was the group's vortex.


Skipping with him with the ease of an upright bass player was Diener, playing a Fender precision of the same colour scheme as that late great bass monster, Jaco Pastorius. The couple of solos that he played showed patient control although he did falter on the faster runs. On the grooves he was impeccable.


Frank Kuruc treated his guitar with kind sensuousness, like he was carassing his love. His effects and minimilistic phrasing ensured that he fit in perfectly in the larger picture. He wasn't flashy by any stretch of the imagination but he was always there to lend the others a helping hand, adding to the fullness of the sound and playing with true emotion.


The funnily surnamed Studnitzky, was equally proficient on Keys and trumpet. Granted he isn't Miles Davis or anywhere thereabouts but like everyone else his addition to the larger picture was tasteful and a joy to hear. He excelled on Wayne Shorter's, In A Silent Way, a song requiring delicacy of touch and oodles of feel.


The fifth member of the band, although invisible also played an integral role. Electronics, especially in a band setting can go horribly wrong. Not with this bunch. Haffner, Studnitzky and Kuruc spun loops, delays, vibratos and straight out boombeats none of which was jarring or out of place. Their timing and use was perfect to accentuate their sound and individual strengths.


I don't know when we are going to get to watch an ensemble of this calibre again but this one has ensured enough manna for my musical soul for some time to come.

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