The final concert of the SPARK mini-fest began with an hour of free improvisation from seasoned and highly respected musicians, saxophonist Martin Kershaw and guitarist Graeme Stephen, aided and abetted by drummer extraordinaire Corrie Dick.

Evoking Eddie Prévost, Dick seemed to use every part of the kit as well as various small percussion instruments, whilst Stephen, other than a few extremely impressive flurries, mostly provided texture and atmosphere. It was Kershaw, with his panoply of sax noises, who tended to introduce any new motives. It was beguiling and provided a meditative space which seemed to be appreciated by most in the audience. Scotland’s answer to The Necks?

 

Following this was more through-composed Jazz from Luxembourg-based power jazz drummer Michel Meis who joined Scottish bassist David Bowden and his accomplished colleagues (trumpeter Johnny Woodham and pianist Alan Benzie). A mixture of the two leaders’ own, beautifully lyrical compositions, tested to the max the considerable technical chops of all the band. A quiet interlude came half way through with a charming ballad of Bowden’s, the name of which I unfortunately could did not catch.

It was a delight to have such contrasting sets on the same evening, underlining what a very broad church Jazz is. Indeed the whole weekend was replete with riches, the fruitful interaction between Scottish and Luxembourgish musicians being as important as the cost-effectiveness of bringing less than full bands over from Luxembourg. Bravo to the organisers!