A Jazz Forum és Magyarország 3. rész (1988-1992)

Volt egyszer egy lap, neve is volt: Jazz Forum. Európa kettéosztottsága idején, az 1970/80-as években fontos közvetítő szerepet töltött be a kontinens jazzéletében. A Nemzetközi Jazzszövetség Varsóban kéthavonta angol és német nyelven megjelenő magazinja az egyetlen nemzetközi kiadvány volt, amely a magyar jazz eseményeiről is rendszeresen hírt adott. Egyik magyarországi tudósítójaként 1981-1992. között 30 beszámolót és 5 kiemelt anyagot publikáltam benne, amelyekkel most digitalizált formában, folytatásokban a jazzma.hu olvasói is megismerkedhetnek.

Guitar Team

Hungarian guitar player Sándor Szabó and his Belgian colleague Gilbert Isbin recently teamed up for a concert tour, performing in four Hungarian towns. Backed by tabla player Balázs Major, the two guitarists played a mixture of Indian, far-Eastern and European music. Their concerts were warmly received by the public. Sándor Szabó presented his new home-made “guitarvina”, a 16-stringed instrument combining features of the guitar and sitar.

The trio’s first album will be soon released in Holland.

Jazz Forum, 1988/2

Back on Schedule

The change of the usual midsummer date of the Debrecen Jazz Days to late October, was not good news for the biggest jazz event of the country. The program offered a few known names including Chet Baker, Theo Jörgensman, Severi Pyysalo, String Connection, Ulrich Gumpert, the George Haslam Level Two and from local scene György Szabados, the Super Trio, Tamás Berki, Gyula Babos, Károly Binder, and the Hungarian Jazz Quartet. Of course, there were some fine moments (Igor Nazaruk’s quartet from the Soviet Union creating a splash with its elaborate, impressionistic suite), but the absence of a large audience, normal in midsummer led to a half-hearted atmosphere during the concerts.

Fortunately, this year’s plans suggest a hopeful return of the festival’s brighter years, with the Jazz Days scheduled for 21-24 July. Because of the financial contribution of the managing agency, Interconcert, it will be possible to widen the range of invited personalities to include critics, the media and promoters. The Debrecen Jazz Days this year will, as usual, be organized by Hungarian Radio and the cultural authorities of the town Debrecen, 220 kilometers east of Budapest. The program is expected to focus more on the Hungarian and East-European jazz scene.

Jazz Forum, 1988/3

Spring Events

The most exciting jazz event of this spring in Budapest was the March concert featuring the Wayne Shorter Quintet and the Al DiMeola Band. Shorter's heavy funky music and fine improvisations attracted the 8,000-strong audience while DiMeola’s soft Brazil songs were of the same type as his performance in Hungary two years ago.

The Budapest Spring Festival this year offered mostly local groups and international workshops with musicians from Denmark, England and Finland. A more interesting program was scheduled by the Közgáz Jazz Klub, including Elliott Sharp, Marten Aaltena, KIXX and an East-European mini festival. Mention should be made of nationwide tours by two foreign groups, one being leading Polish bass guitarist Krzysztof Scieranski and his jazz-rock trio, the other being the avant-garde double-bass player Peter Kowald from West Germany who played in workshop with Hungarians István Grencsó (reeds), Róbert Benkő (bass) and Tamás Geröly (perc).

Jazz Forum, 1988/3

Jazz From Hungary

This is the title of a 44-page booklet published in English by Interconcert and the Association of Hungarian Musicians with the aim of giving fresh information on the country’s working groups and musicians, that may be of interest to festival directors, managers, radio editors and critics. The author, Gábor Turi, and the editor, János Gonda, selected forty compact units as good representatives of the local scenes deserving wider international recognition and performing opportunities. The range of styles vary from dixieland through hard bop to the free trends, demonstrating the talents of such original candidates as pianists Károly Binder, László Gárdonyi, György Szabados, Béla Szakcsi Lakatos, drummer Imre Kőszegi, saxophonist Tony Lakatos, bassist Aladár Pege, and guitarist Snétberger and the groups the Benkó and the Molnár Dixielands, the Creative Art Ensemble, Dimension, the Dresch Quartet, the Grencsó Kollektíva, Hungarian Jazz Quartet, Makám, the Super Trio, Synopsis and Trio Stendhal.

“Hungarian music has always been rich in talent”, explain the authors. “Our classical artists, vocalists, instrumentalists, conductors and orchestras are welcome all over the world. Jazz musicians have taken the same road. Hopefully they will be provided with a better chance to prove this statement.”

Jazz Forum, 1988/3

Major Events

Jazz, a puplication of the Jazz Department of the Association of Hungarian Musicians, appeared in July in a new format. It is the first Hungarian jazz magazine freely available on newsstands throughout the country. The contents of the July issue included articles on Wayne Shorter, Keith Jarrett and Al DiMeola; reviews of Hungarian jazz concerts and festivals; report from the Jazz Film Salon in Wroclaw, Poland; information on the Hungarian 12-film TV series dealing with the history of jazz, and several other interesting items. The editor of the magazine is pianist/educator János Gonda.

The International Jazz Camp took place in Tatabánya from August 7-19. The students came from several European countries, including Portugal, England, the U. S. S. R. and the G. D. R. There were altogether 150 participants.

The teaching personnel comprised Ed Thigpen (drums, combo), Ernie Wilkins (saxophone, big band), Rudolf Dasek (guitar, combo), Béla Szakcsi Lakatos (piano, combo), János Gonda (improvisation, piano), Rudolf Tomsits (trumpet, combo), and Balázs Berkes (bass, combo). The program included electronic and computer courses, pedagogical seminars, jazz and contemporary music lectures, folklore, mime and modern music. The best parts of the six-hour final concert were recorded.

The Association of Hungarian Musicians has prepared a number of complementary programs for IJF General Assembly, which will take place in Budapest during November 17-20. An introductory concert by young Hungarian jazz musicians will be held at the Artists Club on November 18 and the following day a gala event will be arranged at the concert hall of the Music Academy featuring bassist Aladár Pege, pianist György Szabados and the Super Trio.

Jazz Forum, 1988/5

Recording Boom

1988 has marked a significant change in the record production system of Hungary. It has been the year when the monopoly of the state-owned Hungaroton Record Company broke up, giving room to different labels and private initiative.

The first step was taken by Hungarian Radio which started its own label, Radioton, producing a series of recordings, including American blues singer Jerry Ricks’ debut album.

Another LP has been released by several cultural organizations, including Hungarian Radio, and features the bands of the dixieland festival held in Salgótarján in 1988.

Qne label is run by an independent company Hungaropop, which has released Brass Age’s “Tones”. This sextet, formerly known as No-Spa, was formed in Budapest in 1985. That same year it won the first prize at the competition organized by Hungarian Radio. Its delicate arrangements, by leader and keyboard player Mihály Farkas, contrast the traditional rhythm section with the brass section of the fluegelhorn, trombone and the saxes.

Of course, Hungaroton is also continuing its jazz series. The recent releases include a recording by Aladár Pege’s international Jazz Workshop. The renowned double-bass player, besides his regular working group, is found in the company of Austrians: Harald Neuwirt and Erich Bachträgl, and Yugoslavian Tone Jansa. Richard Kruza’s first solo record, entitled “Qui”, features the leader on synthesizer.

Jazz Forum, 1988/5

Pest Fest

At last the ice has been broken, the Hungarian jazz circuit saw the birth of a new event in July this year, the Budapest Jazz Festival. Over the years the once flourishing national network of jazz festivals, spanning towns like Nagykanizsa, Miskolc, Békéscsaba and Debrecen in the ‘70s, has been shrinking; now only the latter remains on the map. And even the driving force behind the circuit, Hungarian Radio, now looks as if it’s going to throw in the towel. Budapest has other, new arganizers.

Although the opening of a new central sports hall in the capital led to an increase in the number of jazz concerts staged, these were mostly in the fusion vein. It was around the jazz club at the University of Economics, the Karl Marx University, that a small but devoted audience, interested in more open and creative trends concentrated. Here numerous avant-garde concerts have been staged during the past few years, and it was their popularity which led the organizers to feel that the time was ripe for them to get into the groove for a jazz festival. Hence they found a nice, albeit somewhat isolated, locatíon in the Kamaraerdő Youth Park.

And so mid-July saw the first Budapest Jazz Festival, which attracted a thousand-strong audience made up of Hungarian, Austrian, East and West German jazz fans. The international program mostly included musicians who have visited the Közgáz jazz club over the years. In total, 14 groups were presented, all noted exponents of contemporary improvised music. There were the “traditional” free players from both Germanys, Peter Brötzman, Peter Kowald, Helmut Sachse, Johannes Bauer and Manfred Herring, the comparatively conservative saxophonist, Steve Lacy and his trio, the multi-voiced master Phil Minton and his group from England, the Willem Breuker Kollektief from Holland, the electric wizard Elliott Sharp from the States and the David Gattiker Quartet from Switzerland.

However, not all the sets were satisfying, some showed the weaknesses and narrowness of their chosen language. But none of the musicians gave routine or uninteresting performances. One thing that did become clear, was that the so-called European free or improvised music has become normative in its expressive means, and that it now needs special personal messages to fill it with interesting content.

In this respect it was the Soviet Union’s Vladimir Chekasin who stole the show with his extrovert and ironic performance as much related to theater as to music itself. Chekasin is a natural actor for whom music is not an art for art’s sake activity, but an artistic practice engendering musical, social and political associations, its purpose being to reflect the absurdity of life in a grotesque way.

Self-expression was also the keyword for the Hungarian participants. The fruits of many years work are now ripening. Károly Binder, who duetted with clarinetist Theo Jörgensmann, György Szabados, who appeared both in trio and with his own band Makuz, and Mihály Dresch and István Grencsó who performed with their respective bands too, showed themselves to be the most original and creative artists on the local jazz scene. The music of these mature and confident jazzmen gives a special national color to the international palette of jazz, and as such it deserves wider recognition.

Only a week separated the Debrecen Jazz Days from the Budapest Festival, but it seemed more.  Every musical event has its soul or spiritual character, and Debrecen’s, now 18 years old, showed itself to be wearing somewhat thin at the seams. There seemed to be a lack of any exact conception as to what the festival was for, and ad-hoc planning led to a fairly mediocre program that drew far fewer fans than ever before. Although some dixieland and rock-blues bands were invited to widen the spectrum, their inclusion failed to make the festival a success. It’s good music that's needed, no matter what style or category, and good music isn’t always a question of money, nor hard currency. If you say the John Scofield Trio, the Hermeto Pascoal  Group, or Los Papines, you know what you're going to get.  But this isn't enough for an established jazz festival. New faces, experimentation and an updating of atmosphere are needed to keep public interest alive. A festival without individuals gets boring, and this is what ha ppened this year at Debrecen. Although we saw the Polish Trio Priest and Big Cork, Czechoslovakia’s Eckert Quartet, Yugoslavia’s Ivan Svager Group, Béla Szakcsi Lakatos, Csaba Deseő, the Super Trio with American altoist Allan Praskin, big band leader Rudolf Tomsits, and Ferenc Muck’s and Gyula Csepregi’s groups from the local “jazz-farce”, one would be hard pressed to say that there were any specially exciting contributions.

It is not easy to define the spiritual essence of a festival, as it is an amalgam of people, places, musicians, and organizations. And, of course, one’s reaction also reflects one’s interest and mood. What is generally agreed upon however, is that every event needs constant creative renewal. This is the key to the future of Debrecen, which now has a rival in Budapest.

Jazz Forum, 1989/5

Jazz Federation Launched

It was a historical event when the Hungarian Jazz Federation was founded November 10, 1990. The participating musicians, teachers and experts of the first assembly discussed and dcveloped the program and statutes of the Federation. Its goals are the support of Hungarian jazz, the strengthening of its position at home and abroad, the organization and promotion of musical competitions and concerts, the support of young musicians and groups, the extension of jazz education in the country and the representation of Hungarian jazz in national and international organizations, especially in the International Jazz Federation.

The immediate, practical aims of the Hungarian Jazz Federation are the following: to start a regular jazz club in Budapest serving as a meeting point for musicians and members, to produce an information bulletin, to encourage the establishment of regional jazz centers and. in the future, to issue a standard jazz magazine.

The Hungarian Jazz Federation is an independent, non-profit organization relying on sponsorship and economic ventures. It is located in Budapest, at the secretariat of the Trade Union of Hungarian Musicians (address: H-1068 Budapest, Gorkij fasor 38, tel. 36-1142-8927). The first assembly also elected the Board including musicians Tamás Berki, Csaba Deseő, László Gőz and Attila László. The president is János Gonda, and vice-presidents are Lászlo Dés and the long time contributor to JAZZ FORUM: Gabor Turi.

Jazz Forum, 1990/6

Good Times

The Spring of 1991 turned out to be the most ambitious and rich period int he history of Hungarian jazz ever. The concerts of Miles Davis, Stephane Grappelli, Art Farmer, James Moody, many new record releases and the opening of at least four jazz clubs came as a real surprise considering the economic crisis of the country.

There is no other explanation of this jazz boom than the increasing possibilities for private enterprise and initiative. After decades of the paternalist „cultural politics”, the situation now evokes the blossoming freshness and liveliness of springtime. New plans are being made all over the country, new groups, new organizations present jazz as a spontaneous means of expression. A jazz foundation has been set up for the sponsorship of young groups. The mining town at Tatabánya will offer a base for a national jazz information and education center. The previously decaying country festivals are facing a rebirth backed by the ambitious activities of the democratic local councils. The Hungarian Jazz Federation has started preparation for a representative benefit concert on behalf of jazz. So it seems that we are living through a golden era of Hungarian jazz.

Jazz Forum, 1991/2-3

A Tribute to 1956

On stage four musicians. The pianist is on the left, the two reed-men on the right and the “singer” in the m iddle on top of a white table. The flutes begin shaping voices in a slow, silent way and soon the distorted (untuned?) piano joins them. The singer sits still facing the audience and then suddenly starts to recite his text without words. This is a ritual of instruments and voice telling a secret story.

György Szabados composed this musical tribute to the 1956 revolution back in 1984. The 30-minute piece gained its first unrestricted public performance in October 1991, 35 years after Hungary's heroic effort. The composer labels his work a historical song, deriving its form from the 15/16th centuries when the Turks ruled Hungary. The unusual hidden style and non-European metalanguage of the piece reflects 1956 and the age when it was composed at the same time describing an era when the real face of the revolution was still covered by a cobweb of lies. Hence the controlled out-of-time means of expression, the mixture of con-temporary music, jazz and far-eastern elements, and the dramatic intonation. Szabados is not fighting only with the past because at the end of the composition the musicians step out of their roles to beg forgiveness for their long silence.

The Secret Story of the Events is not an easy piece to perceive. Nor was it for the heroes of 1956 to adapt themselves to the long decades of repression after the restoration. The composer-pianist and his men, Mihály Dresch, István Grencsó, reeds, Tamás Kobzos Kiss, voice, did their best to deliver their message to a mindful audience.

Jazz Forum 1992/1

Jazz Celebration

The new board of the Hungarian Jazz Federation, led by drummer Imre Kőszegi as president, started a lively activity in the spring of 1992 with a unique project called “Celebration of Hungarian Jazz.”

The aim of the project, spread over three weeks from April 24 through May 16, was to promote contemporary jazz music through concerts by fifty groups. The program covered several cities, including Békéscsaba (the opening concert), Cegléd, Győr, Tatabánya, Pécs, Szombathely and, of course, Budapest. In the capital four jazz clubs – Merlin, Biliárd 9,30, Számalk and St. Christoph, hosted the concerts. The participants represented a wide scope of Hungarian jazz, from traditional to neo-avantgarde. Aladár Pege, the Babos trio, the Kőszegi Quartet, the Vukán trio, Shabu Shabu, Brass Age, Molnár Dixieland, Károly Binder, János Gonda, Csaba Deseő, Kati Bontovics, György Szabados, Mihály Dresch and István Grencsó were featured in the program.

The opening ceremony took place in Merlin, where the Gábor Szabó Prize, the first Hungarian award for outstanding jazz contribution, was presented posthumusly to the late drummer Gyula Kovács, who had just died weeks before the ceremony. The medal, designed by painter Lászlo Gyémánt, went with 30 thousand forints. The concert featured the London Jazz Composers Orchestra.

The Celebration of Hungarian Jazz, though oversized a bit and lacking a real breakthrough, was a good starting point for an annual program with the aim to draw more attention to the local jazz scene.

Jazz Forum, 1992/5-6

Gonda’s Microcosmos

János Gonda, musician, teacher, editor, author, former vice president of International Jazz Federation, long-time correspondent of JAZZ FORUM, turned 60 this year. The interna­tionally known professor of jazz, who has enormously contributed to the development and institutialization of Hungarian jazz, was presented with a special goverment prize, and the Hungarian Jazz Federation elected him as lifetime honorary president. Gonda started the jazz conservatory in Budapest, which has just recently become a department of the Ferenc Liszt Music Academy. He also founded the Tatabánya International Jazz Camp. The author of the basic jazz handbook, written in Hungarian, he is the ultimate authority in all affairs concerning jazz in his country. Now, after so many years of public service and activities, he resigned from the active presidency of Hungarian Jazz Federation, and plans to concentrate on composing. He has just finished his major composition titled Jazz Microcosmos, after the idea of Béla Bartók’s Microcosmos.

Jazz Forum, 1992/5-6

Előzmények:

A Jazz Forum és Magyarország 1. rész

http://www.jazzma.hu/hirek/2015/05/24/a-jazz-forum-es-magyarorszag-i-resz-1981-1984

A Jazz Forum és Magyarország 2. rész

http://www.jazzma.hu/hirek/2015/05/31/a-jazz-forum-es-magyarorszag-ii-resz-1985-1987