As part of the celebrations of European Capital of Culture in Bad Ischl and the Salzkammergut region, the beautiful Austrian equivalent of the Lake District, pianist Roberto Magris from Trieste brought together an international group of like-minded musicians (or “long-standing friends”, as he called them) to join his “Europlane for Jazz” ensemble.
The strong local Jazzfreunde of Bad Ischl, led by Emilian Tantana, which regularly programmes throughout the year, had taken advantage of the situation to arrange two nights of new commissions, celebrating international collaborations with Magris, and, on the second night, the heritage of salt with the local Upper Austrian Jazz Orchestra.
Magris proudly told us that his band came from different Central European countries – Florian Bramböck from Austria on alto & baritone sax, Tony Lakatos from Hungary on soprano & tenor sax, Lukáš Oravec from Slovakia on trumpet & flugelhorn, Rudi Engel from Germany on bass, and Gašper Bertoncelj from Slovenia on drums. Pointedly, he said that he was from Trieste, not Italy, reflecting the city’s multicultural influences (Italian, Austrian, Jewish, Slovenian and Croatian). That is perhaps why he has been a great bridge builder across borders, going back to the Iron Curtain era, and can forge an ensemble which shows the individuality of all its members as well as people who listen well and collaborate.
That is perhaps what makes this band so appropriate in a European context. Its joyousness and positivity show how jazz can be lifted by these multinational elements, rather than be too inward looking. This was clearly shown by some of the tunes’ titles, such as “A Message for a World to Come”, which had a strong poetic introduction, in both English and German. It encouraged us to look forwards positively, with the bass soloing behind the words, on “Something to Say from EU (You)”. And a packed enthusiastic audience responded accordingly. If only some of the European nay-sayers had been there?
The Europlane band had started solidly but was immediately lifted by a solo from Lakatos, who was unrushed against the energy of the rhythm section. It seemed to encourage the best of the others. Throughout, space was given for soloing of the band members, be it Bramböck skittering up and down for his alto, or the energy of Oravec’s trumpet and flugel solos, allowing the band to play off each other. And not least Magris’s own arranging and soloing.
Roberto Magris “Europlane for Jazz” will be broadcast by Austrian radio (ORF) Oe1 on 27 May at 1930 CET, and available for 30 days oe1.orf.at
