Frank Holder is
probably the oldest yet most spirited jazz musician invited to this London Jazz Festival, celebrating
his 90th birthday year and his 70 years in the music business!
Born in Guyana in 1925, Frank Holder
is known as a jazz singer and percussionist.
His instantly
recognizable voice, prodigiousscat singing and percussion skills have
gain him a unique identity in jazz world. Highlights of his music career include an
appearance at theprestigiousRoyal
Albert Hallon the same bill as
the jazz icon, Nat
King Cole.
Frank Holder with his band
My favorite piece he performed in the jazz festival was “ day
in day out”. He combined the introduction and the start of the singing smartly.
“ The next one goes ‘ day in…’”. I thought he was just introducing the title,
surprisingly he was singing already, with his “ Holderish” inimitable twist. The way he was so passionately into the singing
and so briskly played the drum was absolutely misleading, as you probably was
thinking aloud: Am I really listening to a 90 years old musician, or a
possibly 30 years old energetic and enthusiastic lad? If he wasn’t right in front of my eyes, I
would have never believed that this incredible performance was from a 90 years
old jazz player!
Frank Holder with the pianist
When he finished the performance, I went up to congratulate
him while he was sitting by a table next to mine. He even stood up and gave me
a warm hug and kisses on cheeks. Again his amiable
way of treating his fans probably explains another reason for his long lasting success
in the jazz world!
Learn English in the context of Global Traveler's posts
spirited: [ ˈspɪrɪtɪd ] ADJ-GRADED. A spirited person is very
active, lively, and confident. (人)活泼的，生气勃勃的，自信的
Guyana:
/ ɡaiˈænə / Noun. a
republic in northeastern South America; achieved independence from England in
1966.圭亚那（拉丁美洲）
percussionist:
[ pəˈkʌʃənɪst ] N-COUNT. A percussionist
is a person who plays percussion instruments such as drums. 打击乐器演奏者
prodigious
: [ prəˈdɪdʒəs ] adj.so
great in size or force or extent as to elicit awe; 惊人的,奇异的
scat: [
skæt ]N-UNCOUNT.
Scat is a type of jazz singing in which the singer sings sounds
rather than complete words. (爵士乐中不唱歌词的)拟声唱法
on
the same bill as sb.: 和某人同台演出
icon
[ ˈaɪkɒn ] N-COUNT. If you describe something
or someone as an icon, you mean that they are important as a symbol of a
particular thing. 偶像;代表人物
inimitable: [
ɪˈnɪmɪtəbl ] ADJ. You use inimitable
to describe someone, especially a performer, when you like or admire them
because of their special qualities. 不能模仿的;无与伦比的
amiable: [
ˈeɪmiəbl ] ADJ-GRADED. Someone who is amiable
is friendly and pleasant to be with. 和蔼可亲的；令人愉悦的
A Jazz experimental experience at The
Pheasantry theatre in the PizzaExpress, soaking up the London Jazz Festival
atmosphere. The pizza was authentically tasty however it was served a bit
lukewarm.
The jazz quartet started with the renowned pieces such as “ the way
you look tonight” and “ nature boy”, and then Johanna sang a few pieces from
her new album “ Rhyme and Reason”.
I particularly like this title as it employs the
rhetoric alliteration.
In the middle of the concert, she sang
another classic piece “ black coffee”, followed with another few pieces from
her new album, such as “ I carry a heart” etc. Most of the pieces are inspired by
ancient poems or old movies. The last piece, again, she sang the classic piece “
summer time”, adding her “Johannaish” twist as usual. It seems that Johanna
smartly sandwiched her a new album into the classic jazz frame, well done!
A pleasant experience indeed, however,
for a truly wholly jazz experience, the essential instruments such as the piano
and the saxophone were missing. A well-coordinated band indeed, The vocalist
Johanna obviously is the one who wears the pants in the band, lol, ironically/ actually she
was wearing an elegant glittering evening dress tonight.
Johanna Graham’s website
presentsa detailed introduction of this
quartet:
Recently signed by the 33 Jazz label, the Johanna Graham Quartet comprises
the elegant and hugely accomplished guitar phrasing of Martin Bowie, an
exciting and vital drumming talent in Damian Rodd, brilliant and sensitive
double bass from Tim Greenhalgh and Johanna herself on vocals. The journey
began in 2005 when Johanna discovered Martin as he was completing his jazz
degree and the pair began to work together as a duo. In 2008 Johanna
incorporated Tim Greenhalgh on bass, with Damian Rodd completing the quartet
two years ago, forming a tight and enthusiastic team. The band are extremely
popular in Cornwall having
entertained audiences in the south west for many years, and with the release of
their new album, they have been venturing
further afield. Johanna's
captivating stage presence and emotive style puts a fresh spin on jazz
standards, with original compositions and modern classics arranged in her own
unique way, and together the group produce a passionate and exciting sound. The
quartet won the ‘This Is Cornwall Best Jazz Act’ in 2012, and were nominated
for Best Jazz Act in the South West Music Awards.
Johanna Graham is an emotive and accomplished singer and a dynamic
performer. Originally training and working as an actress, her passion for jazz started
with a love of old movies whilst growing up. Her Thespian background lends sincerity and a sense of drama to her
live shows. Her sweet and mellow voice is influenced by the likes of Ella
Fitzgerald, Anita O’Day and Julie London, and her vocal interpretation makes
every performance special and very personal.
Martin Bowie is a Bachelor of the Arts in Contemporary World Jazz. An
accomplished guitarist with roots in blues, funk and acid-jazz and over 20
years experience, his influences include Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Tal Farlow
and George Benson. Martin has worked with artists including New Orleans jazz
ambassador Lillian Boutte, trumpet player Damon Brown and saxophonist Raphael
Ravenscroft, flamenco guitarist Esteban Antonio and Marty Wilson-Piper (guitarist
in The Church and All About Eve).
Tim Greenhalgh, At age 17 Tim discovered the music of Joni Mitchell and Jaco
Pastorius, which inspired him to the fretlessbass, During his 20’s he performed
in a wide genre of music and worked extensively in both the festival and club
scene. Tim has 25 years experience as a bassist, performing with renowned jazz
artists including Damon Brown and Brandon Allen. He is strongly influenced by
the work of John Taylor, Palle Danielsson, Dave Holland, Charlie Haden and Scott
LaFaro.
Damian Rodd is son of pianist Viv Rodd. His musical career started at 14.
Whilst a member of trip hop band Lowpass, Damian toured with Lamb and Tricky, refuelling his love for electronic
music and crossover styles. Since moving to Cornwall, Damian has set up a
production studio (Big Milk) and teaches jazz to degree level. He produced the
album 8am (named album of the week in the London Evening Standard) with his
father and vocalist Kris Gayle. Damian’s influences include Vinnie Colaiuta,
Buddy Rich, Tony Williams & Jojo Mayer.
The Johanna Graham Quartet have performed at the Pizza Express Jazz Club
Soho, 606 Club, Barbican International Jazz & Blues Festival, Birmingham
International Jazz & Blues Festival, Bude Jazz Festival, Teignmouth Jazz Festival,
St Ives Jazz Club, the Groucho Club, London, The National Trust, RNAS Culdrose
- HMS Seahawk, the Headland Hotel, Newquay and the Daphne Du Maurier Festival
as well as extensively across the South West of England.
The first time I heard Diana Krall's voice dates back to my university time, 2003. I was listening to an English learning program called Music English on China Radio International at midnight in my dormitory. At that time, English learning resources were limited and expensive, so I cherished any free opportunity to learn English, especially a quality one. Interestingly, my strong motivation to learn English led me to this unique voice. I still remember that she was singing"Just the Way You Are". At that time I couldn't find an appropriate word to describe this highly recognizable voice. All I knew was that I would never forget it.
I was so attracted to it that the next morning as soon as I got up, I started to research her. I started looking for her CDs everywhere in Beijing. Unfortunately, in most CD stores I asked, people had never heard of her name, as Jazz was a minority genre in China at that time, probably still now. Then I started asking around among my international friends about finding her records. One day in 2004 one of my British friends found one for me when he was on a business trip in Beijing. I was thrilled about that. But again unfortunately we didn't find time to meet up before he went back to London, and he wasn't able to post it to me in Beijing as he couldn't speak Chinese, so he took it back to London. Later he posted it from London to Beijing. This is how I got my first CD of hers - The Girl in The Other Room, a well-traveled one, from Beijing to London, then back to Beijing.
In 2013, I was in Brussels for two months for professional training. As a Jazz fanatic, I certainly wouldn't miss the Gent Jazz Festival, which was one hour drive away in Gent. My partner and I went there on Sunday July 14th, surprisingly to find that Diana Krall was the Central guest, however disappointingly to find that she was there the previous day, the 13th. What a near miss!
Diana Krall Concert Tickets
In 2014, I moved to London. My partner found out Diana Krall's world tour London stop of 2015. It was September, one year away from the tour date 01/10/2015, however all the good tickets were sold out already. That's how popular she was. We could only get circle tickets, which would be quite far from the stage.
In 2015, my partner and I almost had to sell the tickets we got due to our travel plans of Singapore and Bali, but I insisted on keeping them. We had to plan our trips to Asia around the Wallflower world tour tickets. We had to come back to London one day before her concert.
Royal Albert Hall
Yesterday, even still suffering from jet lag, we arrived at the venue, Royal Albert Hall, 45 minutes ahead of time. We couldn't afford to miss any minute of her concert.
At 19:30, 01/10/2015, the concert started. A guy who didn't know where he was from, according to his self-introduction speech, lol, started singing. I thought it was only one song to warm up the event, sadly, he had a booklet in his hand, flipping through to introduce the songs he was going to sing. I was confused and asked my partner: "Are you sure we are in the right place? Maybe they have changed the program". We just got back to London and didn't have time to check all the emails. Perhaps the organizer changed the program arrangement, I thought. As the guy on stage kept singing one song after another, I kept getting more and more worried and anxious. It seemed that even with tickets at the venue, I still couldn't listen to her live.
At 20:00, this guy finished singing, followed with a band switch. Some Audience started to walk out to take a break while more audience started to join in. We were getting more and more anxious and and impatient. We paid for tickets to listen to Diana Krall, but almost one hour was gone and we hadn't even seen her.
Around 20:30, people started screaming and applauding. There she was, with her never-changing mid-length blonde hair, neutral outfit - black suit jacket, white shirt, pants and tall boots, and her cool attitude. " You guys smell so good, look so good too, lol, thanks for being here", with this simple introduction, she started playing the piano skillfully, and singing with her low almost-male unique voice. I was so excited, swinging my body on my seat to her tunes, padding and clapping, especially when she was singing her signature piece: temptation, to the point that my partner said to me:" To me, tonight, you are the real show, lol".
Around 21:15, the band left the stage for her to do solos. she asked: "what do you guys want to hear? Some Fats Waller, or Nat King Cole? You can ask me" She smiled in a cute way. Then there were various shouts and request. Someone near the stage shouted "Your feet's too big". Then she said" OK" and started playing this song. After 3 seconds, she stopped to say" thank you for reminding me of this song it's been a long time that I haven't played this song Alright i will start again". Then she started again. That's her style, offhand, and speaking without "period". If anyone else did it this way, it would have be taken as unprofessional, somehow with her, it was actually kind of cute. She's got that charisma.
At around 22:00, the concert reached its end, leaving all the audience requesting"encore". She came back and played two more songs. Of course it's never enough to listen to her live.
As a talented vocal-pianist, she is in a way similar to Louis Armstrong, who also has a super recognizable voice and plays an instrument- trumpet. Both voices are not taken as "good" voices according to traditional standard, however, they are unique and well-liked by the audience. The difference is that Louis Armstrong is first a trumpeter and then a vocalist, while Diana Krall has always been known as a vocal-pianist. As one of the most successful contemporary jazz vocal, she is the first one to walk out of the shadows of the two most influential female jazz vocalists: Ella Fitzgeraldand Billie Holiday. She's got her own "Krall" twist.
All in all, it's a wonderful evening. After 12 years' searching and expecting, finally, here at the magnificent Royal Albert Hall in London, I listened to her live concert. However, I have to say the organization could have been much better, but for her smoky and sensuous voice, it's all worth it. There, finally, I have found the words.
