5 members of this year’s Whirlpool played at Inntoene Festival, 14-16 August.
Lior Solomons-Wise (piano), Jonah Phillips (drums), Dom Howard (guitar), Oli Fitzgerald (double bass) and Barney Anderson (guitar)
From Dick Hovenga (Writteninsound.com)
We love discovery festivals where young musicians are still at the beginning of their careers, or where seasoned musicians want to explore new directions. One such festival is the INNtöne Jazz Festival near Passau in Austria. The opening night once again offered tantalizing glimpses of what we could expect over the course of the weekend.
There have been some changes, though. Whereas the festival traditionally took place in mid-July, it has now moved to mid-August, and the large outdoor stage has been reduced in size, meaning that more concerts take place in the barns. It turns out to be an excellent change, contributing to a more intimate atmosphere.
There are plenty of great jazz names here, mostly from the rich European scene. In addition, for the fourth consecutive year there is a so-called Whirlpool: a series of concerts in which a group of young jazz musicians from London’s conservatories present themselves. The musicians are brought together by Oliver Weindling, director of London jazz club The Vortex, who has a better eye than anyone for knowing which young musicians are already ready to take on these concerts.
The festival kicks off on Friday evening on the outdoor stage with the first of two performances by this band. With Lior Solomons-Wise (piano), Jonah Phillips (drums), Dom Howard (guitar), Oli Fitzgerald (double bass) and Barney Anderson (guitar), Weindling has once again assembled a fine group of musicians. The first set, at six o’clock, is still somewhat tentative and exploratory, although several of the original compositions already linger nicely. The talent is certainly there.
The set played by the same group at eight o’clock, now in front of a much larger audience, is a significant step up. The musicians play more freely, and it becomes increasingly clear in which directions each of them is developing individually. It also becomes clearer which teachers from London’s rich jazz scene have influenced them. They take more risks, create more tension within the pieces, and the solos are stronger and more convincing. Two fine concerts for attentive listeners.
Day 2 (15 August)
First, let’s go back to the young men of Whirlpool, because they are playing two more sets today. It’s a shame that this isn’t taking place on the large Scheunebühne, because they could have attracted a much larger audience there. The Pig’s Pub, however, turns out to be a good place to continue the progress they showed in the second set the previous evening.
Talent comes in many forms, and it’s a shame they didn’t have the opportunity to get together in London before these performances, because that talent would have come through even more strongly by now. What is clear is that these musicians already possess the conviction and determination that put them firmly in the spotlight. Their own compositions—those by guitarist Dom Howard immediately stand out the most—are already quite strong and, once fully developed, are going to have considerable impact.
These musicians make a fine collective, with double bassist Oli Fitzgerald already being invited to accompany bands on their European tours. The Whirlpool sessions are intended to give young musicians a platform, and for the fourth time Oliver Weindling (of London’s Vortex jazz club) has succeeded in bringing together a diverse and well-balanced group of musicians who have chemistry—something I could already sense after this Saturday evening…