{"id":6847,"date":"2015-08-08T11:57:35","date_gmt":"2015-08-08T18:57:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/?p=6847"},"modified":"2015-08-10T11:13:30","modified_gmt":"2015-08-10T18:13:30","slug":"ystad-2015-wrapup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/2015\/08\/ystad-2015-wrapup\/","title":{"rendered":"Ystad 2015 Wrapup"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Jet lag is fading. Before memories of the Ystad Sweden Jazz Festival do likewise, here are brief impressions of events that I have not yet mentioned.<\/p>\n

[New segments of this report were added on August 9]<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Ystad<\/a>364 nights a year, wearing his traditional uniform and playing a valveless horn as long as he is tall, Ystad\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s municipal trumpeter (pictured right) assures the town that all is well. One night each summer, the honor goes to a \"Bobby<\/a>musician on the festival\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s roster of performers. This year, the Seattle trumpeter and bandleader Bobby Medina sent his tones wafting across Ystad\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s rooftops. Rather than repeat himself, Medina did what his jazz nature suggested; he improvised four different trumpet calls and aimed them successively south, east, north and west from windows in the bell tower of St. Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Church on the central square. Among the townspeople and festival patrons listening in the street below were Medina\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s wife and her Swedish family. She is originally from Ystad.<\/p>\n

\"Bobby-Medina-@-Per-Helsa-20150801-Photo-Markus-F\u00c3\u00a4gersten-4\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The next day in the Per Helsas G\u00c3\u00a5rd courtyard Medina played a concert with the band he calls Between Worlds (pictured above). Their extensive repertoire included his original compostions, an Astor Piazolla tango and Luis Bonfa\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Morning of the Carnival\u00e2\u20ac\u009d from the film Black Orpheus<\/em>. In a flugelhorn solo on his danz\u00c3\u00b3n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Forever My Love,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Medina\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s eclecticism and wit produced allusions to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Laura,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Mexican Hat Dance,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d among other quotes. In addition to his solos, there was effective work by the rhythm section of pianist Irving Flores, bassist Pablo Elorza, drummer Santiago Hernandez and percussionist Francisco Medina, the leader\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s son. Medina\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s composition titled \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Paradiso\u00e2\u20ac\u009d had intriguing changes of feeling through the song\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s three sections. His front-line partner, the Brazilian saxophonist and flutist Guto Lucena, was powerful on both instruments. He played a standout flute solo on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Power Surge,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Medina\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s tribute to Sergio Mendes.<\/p>\n

\"de<\/a>In the ballroom of the Ystad Saltsjobad hotel, four other Brazilians, the quartet Bossa Negra, played an hour and a half of the music that in the 1960s moved offshore from Rio, Salvador and Recife to captivate the world. The remarkable mandolinist Hamilton de Holanda and vocalist Diogo Nogueira drew the capacity audience to them by what may seem a simple means\u00e2\u20ac\u201denjoying their work, enjoying one another, and radiating the enjoyment. The apparent ease is deceptive; their level of artistry comes after years of hard work. This was not pop bossa nova, but stuff of the core samba tradition, performed with technical skill and a great sense of fun. de Holanda is a virtuoso of the ten-string Brazilian mandolin known as the bandolim. Nogueira is a Brazilian television celebrity whose exposure has given him millions of fans. As a singer, he has won four Latin Grammys. Bassist Andr\u00c3\u00a9 Vasconcellos and drummer Thiago de Serrinha round out the quartet, providing solid support and occasional solos. Their teamwork and mutual admiration played an important part in the success of the concert. Their deftness in a tricky rhythmic treatment of Ary Barroso\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s classic \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Brazil\u00e2\u20ac\u009d made the beat-skipping seem normal. de Holanda\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and Nogueira\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s announcements in Portuguese were to an audience primarily of Swedish speakers, but communication was complete\u00e2\u20ac\u201das it was with this Brazilian audience in 2012 (we have no video from the Ystad concert).<\/p>\n