Bratislava Jazz Days 2007 - Day 2 and 3

Ulf Wakenius and the AMC trio - I think this is called also mainstream jazz. It was a nice experience listening to them. There were a lot of improvisations, and Ulf as a ghost briliantly added to the whole impression. It was worth listening to.

Saxofour - as some ppl agreed upon. This was most propably the best band on saturday (except for the fans of hip-hop). Those for people were showing a brilliant adaptation of movie music. I have heard just once such a band, and it was not really fitting into my mood. These guys were incredible. I say it again INKREDIBLE!!! Not even with their profecienty and their improvisations, but also with their stage performance... Seeing 3 grown up people with their instrument hiding behind a reproductor, while the forth one is playing... or in another scene fighting with their instruments (always according to the movie theme). Lovely, funny, won the audience :) Let the Austrians blow!!!

Mark Egan Trio feat. John Abercrombie (USA) - Well I do not have to much written around this performance: calm solos, and the bassguitar was to deep for my taste. Anyway I believe that this concert was also worth the money. But didn't left any big impressions.

Hanka Gregusova Band - A young Slovakian singer. My opinion got corrupted, as I got an autograph from here dedicated to me :) But I have enjoyed the show a lot. It was amazing to hear her voice, I had the feeling that it fills the whole room, which is exactly what I love to hear :) She had also some very good musicians around here. I didn't like the sax player, though he was making a real though job up there. The pianist is also worth to mention for his great solos! It was really touching :P And the bass player had no real chance except of one, time, but that gave me back the confidence in the classical bass.

Us3 - too much hiphop in the first 15 mins, didn't stay till the end. Though we heard some sax and trumpet solos through the window outside, when we were leaving, so it could have been better... but had no mood for that.

Day 3

Bibi Tanga - french guy, was interesting sound. He plays the bass and so I felt like the whole music was based on this. Big surprise was in some cases the violin. The best song of that all was "At war" which had a text something like: "A country at war - fight love and freedom". While there was a beautiful violin solo. Also on thir site is the song Don't Stop.

Bill Evans Soulgrass - well this was amazing! I never thought a benjo, a sax and a violin. I was shoched more then once how these tree instruments fit into each other. Also the bass player was good, but had just one real solo and stayed mostly in the back. It was a bit country like of course because of the instruments, but if this is what country can be, that I may like it very much. I give an A+ for this concert also.

Friend 'n Fellow - It is still hard for me to believe, that this is their actual name: Constanze Friend and Thomas Fellow. Anyway they are a great duo. Just a guitar and one voice (in this case, though I seen some youtube clips, where they both singing). They made a huge atmosphere, the strongest one during the whole weekend. Small suprises like they played Deep Purple - Black Night, ACDC - Highway To Hell (not my favourite), Johny Cash - Rain Of Fire and the last song which I can't remember - but it was a love song and they played it 2 as fast as it is played normally. I laughed at this, cause again, an experince totally new for me.The song Elf with the German intro was one of the most touching songs of the evening. I loved it :)

Henry Tóth - I have almost forgotten him!!! Bad me, bad me. He was playing at the B stage in one of the breaks. Poor me, he didn't have as much time as the usual B stage performers(just one break). But that was more than enough to enjoy the beauty of his play. In felling a bit latino and sometimes very technical. He build up most of his songs on a slow, calm emotional intro going into a wild improvisation and coming out again. Nothing new, to say the truth, but he makes this extremely well. I enjoyed every second of it :)

Gyra Spyro - Hawaii, sunshine, holiday. Fun, but not my style. But I loved Bonny Bonaparte at the drums! Gush what a great drummer + a good voice also. Bad luck that after around just 6-7 minutes of his final solo half of his drums felldown... of course he finished it like a professional and so played a bit with his voice! Groovy :)


Other things - to many ppl, to few places. Quite disturbing, when you don't even have a place to sit. :(
+ they managed the sound almost perfectly. So it was more then fine quality, except of minor problems.
- beer to expensive 45Skk, Kofola is fine 25Skk (of course 0.5l)
networking possibilities :)

So this is my opinion of the first Bratislava Jazz Days I was on.

Bratislava Jazz Days 2007 - Day 1

It all started, when Mitsuora came on the stage. Well I didn't really know what to expect, I knew just, that she was from Hungary. The songs on the internet, which I have found are not worth mentioning, because of the low quality. So:

Mitsuora: I have never heard something like this before (I haven't heard a lot of music in my life though), it was a fusion of modern jazz and gipsy traditional singing. I am amazed, stunned and in awe. I always though about gipsy music in a high note as there was for sure a reason they were the entertainers of the Hungrian high society just a century ago. I have also heard some gipsy music on radio, till it when, though it never catched me that much. Most propably cause they were playing songs in hungarian. And in this case she was singing (most propably) the original gypsy way. And this music has a very strong rythm in it + all those unusual instruments. I love that :)
Will go for another concert as soon as possible!!!
see video (though just around 15-20 seconds of her music): http://kultura.sme.sk/c/3546008/Jazzove-dni-otvaral-i-Marian-Varga.html

Marian Varga - as a friend said, he has his glorious days behind him. He is still a big name in Slovakia, but the music was not really my style. It fitted as a movie soundtrack. Sometimes very gloomy depressive piano solos. In other cases I felt like on a typical movie interpretation of a middle age market scene. Not my taste mostly.

Tomasz Stanko Quartet - This concert was neighter close to my heart. They were playing good, the solo's where enjoyable, but I need a different kind of music. Anyway it was much much better then Varga.

Alvik - 2. stage: during the breakes on the second stage Alvik was playing. As it is stated on they website they are playing something between nu-jazz nu-soul etc. I missed the first break I didn't know what it will be about, but was afterwards there on time for the second break (left the concert of Tomasz Stanko quartet earlier, saw even Mitsuoka but I was to stupid to ask for an autograph :( Well I had my priority in seeing Alvik). It was more then enjoyable, music for dancing and freaking out. I love it. :)

Mike Stern - no comment, people have to hear him life! It was an awesome concert! I had the feeling at the slow parts as if John Shannon was playing (I heard him earlier then Mike Stern), the solos where amazing! I can't not write here the musicians:
Mike Stern - gitara
Bob Franceschini - saxofón
Dennis Chambers - bicie
Anthony Jackson - elektrická basová gitara
As a friend of my loves the bass, I decided to hear it out a bit. I was amazed how good Anthony Jackson was underlining the guitarplay of Mike Stern, it made the whole thing even more groovy :) But I could really not stop to praise these guys. I was stunned. And this was the only concert where I saw that the audience enjoys the music. Though the ppl weren't reacting that passionate when Mike Stern told, that they should buy his new CD, which he sells after the concert :)

There were no real emotions just a small applauce at one or two stages of the whole festival. Finally at the second half of Sterns concert the people started ti live and were finally clapping and screeming once in a while :)

Going insane

Today I had an unusual experience. I though I was hallucinating. I thought I'm going slowly crazy. But I wouldn't mind, if it would happen this way.
I was sitting in the crowded bus no. 39. people were talking around me and the bus was slowly clattering. Noise smog - I thing this is how modern people call this. And then I felt like an angel was next to me and that nobody is experiencing the same feeling. People were chatting before me, on my right side a girl was sitting calmly and on my right a Walkman was all that is worth to mention. And in this familiar though disturbing surrounding I was hearing snatches of an angel singing. Every few seconds I heard it again. Before me people talking, around me no change. I could not figure out where the voices come from, but was astonished.
After a few minutes of listening to the voice and the people before me I figured out, that the lady next to the window was singing. The experience for me was more than pleasant. It trow me out of everyday troubles and let me fly for a few moments.
I was playing an imagined piano in my head to her voice, till she stopped. I was enjoying the moment till it faded away from my memories. I am sad, that I can't remember.
I have experienced my love to a beautiful woman voice again.

Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!

On the 1.September in Bratislava there were the crowning ceremonies again (5th in row). What I pictures I have seen on some ceremonies before, they were a bit better prepared, but anyway it was a nice experience for me.

I was of course a bit disappointed, when the queen of Hungary is crowned and not even one Hungarian world was heard (Slovak, Latin and German were), but anyway I had to accept it as a big theater, with a touch of a medieval fashion show...

Well it all started with a quite tricky weather, which couldn't really decide, if it wants to rain or not...

Well the crowning was fine, no raindrops falling from the sky, it all went on without problems. One of the biggest attractions was, that Otto von Habsburg came for this event also. He would be the rightful Caesar of the Austrian-Hungarian Monarchy.

The most fan part for me was what came after this. The people started to move and we were heading on the other side of the Duna. To say the truth from all those medieval clothing I loved the most to group of people, which were thank god quite near to each other. From one I made a lot of pics, see the link below, from the second, sorry no sound :P

What I'm talking about is the group with fur cloths, which amazed me again and again. The (most propably) fox fur on them has a such beautiful color, that I was loving it from the first time I saw it. The queen and the king weren't important anymore :)

And the second group was the drum players, who gave the ritm in my legs, which made me understand how well would I feel to go with drums giving the ritm to my movement.

I enjoyed this pretty much, although when we were crossing the bridge the clouds got overfilled and let on us a whole lot of water at once... At least it wasn't lightning and in around 30 mins the weather was fine again.

We tried afterwards the "local" stores. If anybody knows what burciak is in English please tell me, we had some glasses of that (one of the best I have ever tasted). Bad luck, that I had to leave earlier and couldn't see the cavaliers.

Another nice experience. And a few pics taken with my now broken phone :( http://picasaweb.google.com/hajdupeti/ASmallCrowningCeremony

Blue Blood

Also from my fathers and mothers side I had nobles in the family. I don't think it is in any way surprising for the territories of the Hungarian Empire (till 1918), as if I'm not mistaken from the 18. century you could buy here also a rank from the emperor. Though I don't know the origins of my families.

I just wanted to share this, because my grandfather was searching for his origins. He knew from the tales he heard, that originally they were from Croatia. There was one tail, that for a blood transfusion they had to bring here ppl from Croatia to have a similar blood, as the people in their region had no "compatible" blood. He found the family crest in a book, then made a copy of it. I just wanted to share the crest of the Rarovichi (I'm not sure if the name is written right.) family.

...well to and the story, in both families we lost the rank of a noble, as it was given to players, who lost them on cards...

Tiszta szívvel

Tiszta szívvel

Nincsen apám, se anyám,
se istenem, se hazám,
se bölcsôm, se szemfedôm,
se csókom, se szeretôm.

Harmadnapja nem eszek,
se sokat, se keveset.
Húsz esztendôm hatalom,
húsz esztendôm eladom.

Hogyha nem kell senkinek,
hát az ördög veszi meg.
Tiszta szívvel betörök,
ha kell, embert is ölök.

Elfognak és felkötnek,
áldott földdel elfödnek
s halált hozó fû terem
gyönyörûszép szívemen.

1925

----------------------------------------------------

Song of Innocence (With A Pure Heart)

I have no God, I have no land,
no father, nor a mother's hand.
I have no crib or coffin-cover;
I share no kisses, I have no lover.

Three days I have been starving numb
for lack of either feast or crumb.
My strength: I'm twenty, whole and hale,
my twenty years are up for sale.

If no one wants to have a try,
then let the Devil come and buy.
and I will jimmy safe and fence,
kill, too, if need, in innocence.

Upon a noose they swing me high
then in the good soil I will lie --
and tips of poison grasses start
to prick above my splendid heart.

Translated by Anton N. Nyerges, Thomas Kabdebo [& Adam Makkai]

found at: http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/hellyer/attila.html

One of my favourite poems (translation below)

József Attila: Íme, hát megleltem hazámat

Íme, hát megleltem hazámat,
a földet, ahol nevemet
hibátlanul írják fölébem,
ha eltemet, ki eltemet.

E föld befogad, mint a persely.
Mert nem kell (mily sajnálatos!)
a háborúból visszamaradt
húszfilléres, a vashatos.

Sem a vasgyűrű, melybe vésve
a szép szó áll, hogy új világ,
jog, föld. – Törvényünk háborús még
s szebbek az arany karikák.

Egyedül voltam én sokáig.
Majd eljöttek hozzám sokan.
Magad vagy, mondták; bár velük
voltam volna én boldogan.

Így éltem s voltam én hiába,
megállapíthatom magam.
Bolondot játszottak velem
s már halálom is hasztalan.

Mióta éltem, forgószélben
próbáltam állni helyemen.
Nagy nevetség, hogy nem vétettem
többet, mint vétettek nekem.

Szép a tavasz és szép a nyár,
de szebb az ősz s legszebb a tél,
annak, ki tűzhelyet, családot
már végképp másoknak remél.

1937. november 24.

-------------------------------------------

And So I've Found
My Native Country...

And so I've found my native country,
that soil the gravedigger will frame,
where they who write the words above me
do not for once misspell my name.

This black collection-box receives me
(for no one needs me any more),
this Iron Six that was worth twenty,
this coin left over from the war.

None needs that iron ring inscripted
with sweet words, that the world is new:
rights, land.--Our laws are the leftovers;
now pretty gold rings all pursue.

For many years I had been lonely.
Then many people visited.
I'd have been happy if they'd stayed.
You are alone, was what they said.

And so I lived, useless and empty,
and now I see it all quite plain.
They let me play the fool until
by now even my death's in vain.

All through my life I've tried to weather
the whirlwind that would always blow.
I was more sinned against than sinning,
and it's a laugh that it was so.

Spring, summer, autumn, all are lovely;
but winter's loveliest for one
who hopes for hearth and home and family
only for others, when all's done.

-------------------------------------------
found at : http://www.hungarianquarterly.com/no149/38.html
-------------------------------------------

although I would like to stick with the my translation of the last verse, loosing the structure of the verse:
Nice is the spring and nice is the summer
but autumn is nicer and the nicest is the winter,
for who's hopes for a fireplace and a family
Is granted only for others.

Of course the English version is not able to reflect the whole atmosphere of the poem, but it is enough to show what its about.

This is the poem of my favorite write. I don't know why, even in my "early days" when I was less then 10 years old I have remembered some of his poems. His tragedy in life and poetry influenced my life. Now that I think of it, I would rather say that I can interpret my life in his poetry and in a way I believe I understand the tragedy of his life, although I have a completely different one.

The first verse is also very near to me, but most probably from a completly different reason. I am a minority in Slovakia. It is quite normal that Slovaks don't know how to write my name down, as our surnames are traditional Hungarian ones (like Szűcs or Török) when they don't even know the letters... and I have a lot of friends who have it even harder then me. If ppl know how to write donw your name, it means that you are somehow related to them. I think this is for ppl in a minority even more important, then for other ppl.

LGT

After a nice trip to Budapest with some British guys we met in the train, I slowly got to the Sziget. Well, I'm sure it will be a hell of a week there, and would like to be there to, but no money no fun + I'm working during the week. But anyway the concert was awesome, tough with a lot of difficulties...
Basically when we bordered the train to Budapest, it was full. Well not as full as the trains on a Sunday during the school year, but it was full. A lot of people with backpacks were going to the Sziget, most of them speaking English in the train, I just happened to talk to a girl from the Netherlands and then we (I went there with my brother) got a sitting place with 3 guys from Great Britain.
After some side stories we went to the Sziget... got there, check-in went superb, no real waiting time :)
Inside a lot of foreign people. In the evening a lot of parties, good mood, smiling faces, small groups playing guitar (Oasis - Wonderwall) . We went up 14 meters on a tower, and looked around, before me 2 discos, behind a life concert (though amateurs) and drunk happy people cruising around - it was around 2:15 :)

Getting back to the concert. I learned some lessons: don't go with people, who don't have the same mindset, it can spoil a lot, even if you like those ppl... I like to be in the first rows - they don't; I wanted to buy a shirt before the concert to have something remembering me this concert... well I had the feeling at 0:30 that we will miss it... we didn't, but I was quite nervous about that...

About the concert - first the problems, then the things I want to remember:

• 3-5 times happened, that a "bass-wave" was coming from the speakers (I hope you understand what I mean, if not, give a note, I will find it out what it's called)
• A helicopter pissed up one whole song, by cruising above the stage... Though after the song Presser told us to wink at them to go away, but the one guy showing his middle finger in the audience made the difference (to see just one middle finger from around 200 hands is quite acceptable I think)...
• I missed though a stage performance they were promising, it was well, but I saw in my mind a more colorful performance
• Nothing else really bothered me... and this was max 3% of the concert.

So lets get to the thinks worth to mention!!!

• according to the organizers 50.000 people were at that concert
• age of the fans was in average I think 35-40, I believe there was somebody from every generation!
• one of the most interesting instruments I have seen in my life (something between a trumpet and a violin, which you play like a violin...)
• the audience... singing the songs of the classics was great. LGT has been listening to the audience singing one of their whole song, without playing anything - well thats quite luxurious :)
• the improvisation parts were nice, and some new feats, they tried to play Boksz with an electric guitar using a distorter. The monotone parts were quite dull, as it was overlaping all other instrument, but when they started to play the instrumental part as a duo with a normal guitar, it gave a much better sounding, then the original song
  
• the timing - exactly when I said, that there should have been a change into a more powerful song they had played it
• that I knew all the songs and most of the texts also, well I have been listening to them the last month... (and that I couldn't here myself singing, cause it had to be horrible (with my voice...), I have spoiled the night for a few ppl :))
  
• The amazing drum solos at the break, when the band was going down between the ppl (also one of the worst parts of the concert, as I couldn't see them, just on the screen).
• And of course a nice ending, seeing all four musicians behind the piano, singing Szól a rádió (The radio talks), the audience singing with them as the whole last hour and you see and here Presser fighting with his tears...

I had a great time, miss the people I used to go to such concerts with, but thank you for showing me the beauty of them. And looking forward for the next great concert.


...Nagyon jó ez a repülés, ez a távoli ragyogás!
Nagyot bámul a vasutas!
Felszállás, éjszakai vonatozás!
LGT - Éjszakai vonatozás

Music - Portal

Once in a while I browse the net for amateur bands, to listen to their music, and find something new. Till now my favourite site in this way was http://fm4.orf.at/soundpark Here the bands could upload their tracks, and in the first month you are able to download them, and then just to hear them out. Anyway there are some good songs, though not many in a good quality. But I have found some bands I like.

But recently I have found another site. www.garageband.com I listened to the progressive best 40. Well I wasn't much caught by the most of the songs, but it didnn't matter much, as already the second song was incredible. Portal - Insurgent few (life) You can hear the song at http://www.portalband.com

I was amazed. Then looked around at their site, and found out, that they are needing some translators. So I translated their bio (took me ages) into Hungarian. and send it to them. In less then 30 mins I got a reply, that its fine, and the only problem si that they are making now a new site, as the new CDs is comming out. .. well problem is the bat word... opportunity - make a translation of that one, too, and get a goodie package with a CD, stickers and a T-shirt!!! Well thats motivation :)

They also told me that they might come to Slovakia during they Europe tour!!! Would be so happy to see them. :)

And thats the fun in finding amateur bands, which no one knows, and then you are the one, who is a contact person, and get top know them ;) Hell I love it!

Nice surprise

I though at the beginning of July that I will have a quite boring summer. Most of my friends in Bratislava went home or abroad. But I was wrong.

The first nice change came on a bday party (not mine :P) in June, where I met a lot of friends from high school. I think now I'm in the period of my life, where you see the need of true friends. A lot of people said to me that most of your true friends you will met in your grammar and high school, now I agree with them. We had a quite good collective, which is still there. It is no problem to go out for a beer and talk with them about anything. So I meet a lot of people from them in the last days.

The second group of people are the trainees and their friends (trainee - I use this word for foreigners working in Bratislava through an organization). I met Dom through them. Very funny, very communicative. And the best thing he did to me, was that he gave me a few chances to get to know the other trainees, and come to parties. I have to thank him a lot for few nice parties! I hope I will be able to get into their contact list and go out with them more often. I love to talk to people with different life experiences... My only problem is, that I quite often lack the questions...

I like to not sit at a computer all the time. Thank you.