A relaxing and memorable evening was had by all those who attended the Alldis Jazz Trio concert on Wednesday this week. The intimate setting provided by the surround seating was aided by the addition of gels on the lights to soften the mood.
The programme began with the Gounod, ‘Ave Maria’ (originating from the first of the Bach Preludes in C major), where the skilful double bassist gave a lyrical solo, followed by the Faure, ‘Pavane’ with variations and improvisation. Then followed a mix of Bizet pieces with some artful polyphony, a Satie, ‘Gymnopedie’ at high speed, some Handel and Corelli. A highlight of the first half was the Chopin, ‘Raindrop Prelude’ with a clever modulation to D major from the original D flat.
With an extremely tight-knit ensemble, the Classical and nursery rhyme themes lent themselves very well to the jazz idiom. A mix of simple and provocative moods alternated with vigorous and faster music gave great variation to the evening.
The second half included two Brubeck pieces, an original from the trio’s own repertoire and a Jimmy van Heusen jazz standard with virtuosic piano; it concluded with the Chopin, C minor Prelude where the mood was reminiscent of a Parisian salon recital, à la jazz mode!
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