I have to confess that as a long-term expat there are few things that I miss about my past life in the UK. The first is good beer, and by that I mean real ale, and a few very particular foods such as stilton, and…errr…decent bacon. Everything else, I fear, is pure nostalgia and probably has little to do with reality. The exception is quality live music which I really do miss.
Serious music fans could be forgiven for thinking that the scene in Southeast Asia has little to offer. In the case of Thailand where I make my home, they’d be right. It is truly appalling and shows few signs of improving. Thankfully, and rather surprisingly given its somewhat conservative nature, Malaysia is just a short flight away.
Lars Tormod Jenset from the Espen Eriksen Trio
Over the last decade Malaysia has carefully cultivated a strong music scene which encompasses some exceptional artists from around the world. A prime example of how far the country’s tastes have come is the fabulous Penang Island Jazz Festival. Now in its eight year, the festival continues to grow from strength to strength and now has a well deserved reputation for showcasing great jazz talent from around the globe.
Michaela Rabitsch from Austria
I have just returned from two nights of outstanding music enjoyed in the beachfront gardens of the Bayview Beach Resort in Batu Ferringhi, just 40 minutes from Penang’s historic Georgetown. A cosmopolitan crowd at the extremely well organized event enjoyed a line-up that included the excellent Espen Eriksen Trio from Norway, the delightful Michaela Rabitsch & Robert Pawlik Trio from Austria, another extremely talented young trio, Rusconi from Switzerland, the tremendous Indonesian trumpet-led Rio Sidik Quartet, the mainstream crowd-pleaser from the UK, Shakatak, and more. There was only one person missing to make it a perfect weekend…and she knows who she is.
Norwegian vocalist, Eva Bejerga Haugen
I was surprised at musical maturity of the crowd. From late teens to those of a rare vintage, the audience sat of the grass, gave each band their full attention and thoroughly enjoyed every moment. This is unheard of in Thailand where a jazz festival is simply background music while you eat, chat with friends and photograph yourself…again.
Ito Kudhi, bass player with the Rio Sidik Quartet
Key to the success of the independent Penang Island Jazz Festival is the fact that the organizers, Capricorn Connection, and all the volunteer crew love jazz. I take my hat off to the main man, Paul Augustin, and to Brian Kwan for all their assistance and support.
In addition to the evening performances the festival almost hosts jazz workshops and performances at venues in Georgetown. There was also a jazz forum discussion, an exhibition of jazz photography by Slovenian photographer, Zigo Koritnik, old jazz posters on display, and of course, an lively after hours jazz jam in the hotel bar until the early hours. What more could a jazz fan ask for? Needless to say I am already looking forward to the 9th Penang Island Jazz Festival!
Rio Sidik in full swing on Sunday night at the Penang Island Jazz Festival
The good news is that Penang is also going to host the Penang World Music Festival from 30th March to 1st April 2012. With this new event to add to a list that already includes the Borneo Jazz Festival in May and the Rainforest World Music Festival in Sarawak in July, Malaysia is skillfully using live music to raise its profile on the world stage and is way ahead of neighbouring countries.
Shakatak’s George Anderson slapping out funky bass riffs
Over the next few days I’ll be posting more shots of the performers as well as some from the lovely George Town.
Last but not least, a big thank you to Tourism Malaysia.