Eurojazzist Randomizer #15: The Making of a Concert | Mariam Wallentin | Sonic Waves | Jordan Smart | Maria Portugal & Music Unlimited
Fresh jazz impressions and recommendations
On Wednesday, we hosted a concert by the Austrian trio HAEZZ at Studio 6 of Radio Belgrade. By now, I’ve probably mentioned this event several times in my columns, but I’d like to add a few more lines from a different angle—the joy of creating a jazz concert.
While the concert audience learns about a band’s performance a few weeks in advance—or even later—our radio team works on the concert for several months. Our first meeting took place at the Austrian Cultural Forum in Belgrade toward the end of last year, when we applied for co-funding, while part of the budget is secured through the funds of Radio Television of Serbia. Since the HAEZZ trio are on the NASOM list of Austrian Music Export, and thanks to the long-standing and positive collaboration between Radio Belgrade and the Austrian Cultural Forum, we assumed there would be no issues with funding. A few months later, this proved to be true.
Even before submitting the application, I got in touch with the band via their official email address listed on their website, as I didn’t personally know any of the trio members. Saxophonist Štěpán Flagar replied, and over the following months he would take on the role of the band’s manager. He confirmed that the band would be happy to perform, outlined the fee and other conditions, and we agreed on June 10 as the date.
After the budget was officially approved a few months ago, our correspondence intensified around a range of technical matters—from airline tickets and accommodation to renting a double bass, as well as certain Kafkaesque bureaucratic complications related to paying the radio portion of the fee. At the same time, we maintained ongoing communication with Štěpán via email and WhatsApp (when something required an immediate response), while I was also coordinating with the Austrian Cultural Forum regarding the financial and technical aspects of their support, as well as the preparation of promotional materials. These activities intensified even further in the days leading up to the concert, as well as on the day of their arrival.
Before I met Štěpán at Belgrade Airport (Martin Eberle and Tobias Vedovelli arrived the following day), we had probably exchanged at least 50 emails and messages on various topics. Although many of them were technical, it also turned out that we share quite a few acquaintances and mutual friends among musicians—both in his native Czech Republic and within the Serbian jazz diaspora in Austria.
By the time we finally met in person, I no longer felt like I was welcoming “some musician from abroad,” but rather someone with whom I share a common joy about the upcoming Belgrade concert, as well as the shared experience of participating in the “jazz life.” The sense that we were doing something meaningful—not just for ourselves, but also for the roughly 80 people who would attend the concert on Wednesday evening (the maximum capacity of the studio), and for many more who would listen to the live broadcast on the Third Programme of Radio Belgrade.
All of us who work “behind the scenes” to make jazz concerts happen should occasionally pause and remind ourselves of everything that is beautiful and fundamentally human about these events. Sometimes you just push through life and take everything you do for granted—perhaps as just another effort in an overloaded schedule or one of many obligations that brings stress, but not necessarily much financial reward. During the HAEZZ soundcheck, I felt this invisible thread connecting us—the three musicians and the three of us from the radio team, alongside me the wonderful Ksenija Stevanović and Ivana Neimarević. A shared awareness and joy that we are doing something meaningful, in every possible sense of the word.
New listens
I was delighted to come across the album Spring Flood by Mariam Wallentin & Vestnorsk Jazzensemble, released by Hubro Music. I first became a fan of Mariam during her tenure with Fire! Orchestra, where she formed a fantastic vocal duo with Sofia Jernberg—I believe their contribution was essential to the ensemble, at least as much as Mats Gustafsson’s and his arranging vision. Of course, she also has a number of her own projects that I simply haven’t had the time to follow, but since I keep up with everything released by Hubro, I was very happy to see this album come out.
It both resembles and differs from Fire! Orchestra. Mariam’s vocal is, of course, unmistakable; the music transcends the boundaries of richly orchestrated jazz and (alternative) pop and rock, yet the authorial sensibility is somewhat different—which is perfectly natural and fine. After a few listens, I’m certain I’ll keep returning to this album.
At the beginning of the month, Swedish pianist Karin Johansson reached out to present the album Sonic Waves, recorded in a trio with Nils Wohlrabe (guitar, electronics) and Hasse Westling (double bass), released on Outerdisk label. The title reflects the content: sonic structures that depart from conventional jazz logic and venture into the realm of free improvisation, with a strong focus on instrumental texture. Although I’ve listened to many similar albums of varying quality, something here immediately clicked and appealed to me. It will probably take a few more listens to articulate exactly why, but for now I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
The third new album I listened to is Jordan Smart’s Above The Street, released by Atlas Forge Records. This is a saxophonist I’ve heard in Vega Trails, Mammal Hands, and Sunda Arc—I like all those bands, and each of them has its own distinct identity. Smart is not a showy saxophonist; he adapts well to the musical context while also bringing his own signature through melodic lines. In this solo setting, the natural associations lean toward minimalistic/ambient/electronic jazz, where Smart once again finds his footing in his introspective musical language.
Jazz Across Europe
I visited the Music Unlimited festival in the Austrian city of Wels only once, back in 2017, when Mary Halvorson was the curator and artist in residence. I liked both the festival and its concept, but as we rarely have enough free time and money for constant travel, I haven’t returned since. This year, the main artist/curator role is held by drummer and composer Mariá Portugal, a Brazilian musician who has been living and working in Germany for years. I first saw her perform about four years ago with Quartabê, an ensemble that originally combined Brazilian musical heritage with avant-garde jazz, and since then she has been involved in a number of interesting musical projects. She even joined my favorite Fire! Orchestra, where she takes on both drumming and vocal roles.
In any case - Mariá Portugal curated this year’s program, which takes place from November 5 to 8, “featuring around 60 musicians from all over the world, with a focus on Latin American artists,” as stated in the initial announcement. She will also perform with her ensembles EROSÃO Percussion Trio and EROSÃO Septet. Highly recommended.