Kevin Mackenzie's Vital Signs
CCA, Glasgow
THE guitarist Kevin MacKenzie was the second jazz musician to receive a Creative Scotland Award from the Scottish Arts Council. This concert was the premier performance of the music he created for that project.
His proposal involved bringing together musicians from the realms of both jazz and folk., areas in which there has been a great deal of productive interaction in Scotland in the last decade. MacKenzie has often been involved in that exchange, and has worked as much in one camp as the other.
That combined experience has left him well-placed to undertake this type of challenge, and the resources provided by the award allowed him to call upon a larger ensemble than he would normally be able to do. The nominal division of the personnel would place accordionist John Somerville and fiddlers Aidan O'Rourke and Chris Stout in the folk camp, with saxophonists Phil Bancroft and Martin Kershaw, pianist Chick Lyall, bass player Tom Lynne and drummer Tom Bancroft representing the jazz side. In practice, though, all of these musicians are flexible enough to cross over any notional divides. Although not strictly a suite, MacKenzie chose the overall title of Harmony: Diversity for the music, reflecting both the coming together and the variety of his sources.
jazz was certainly the primary colour in his musical palette, couched in very contemporary, freely expressive idioms. The guitarist grafted a wide-ranging set of influences and allusions into that framework driven by some notably funky drumming from Bancroft, and decidedly tricky, jagged rhythm patterns.
The fiddles and accordion were used to provide variation of colour, timbre and texture in the ensembles, and proved more affective after the interval when they were more prominent in the sound mix.
The bulk of the soloing was shared between the jazz players, with MacKenzie and tenor saxophonist Phil Bancroft particularly prominent, closely followed by Martin Kershaw on alto saxophone and Chic Lyall.
The music sounded well prepared, and made a striking impression on first hearing.
KENNY MATHIESON
