The very best of jazz music will come together on a London stage tomorrow to perform what promises to be a prestigious concert.
Frank Griffith – a leading American saxophonist and composer – amongst others, will be playing with the famous jazz octogenarian couple Johnny Dankworth and Cleo Laine at the Royal Festival Hall at 7.30 tomorrow evening.
Before this big gig, he offered us a little foretaste by performing today with his Trio for the lunchtime concert organized by Brunel University (where he also teaches as Head of Performance).
A small room full of people gathered together for a private performance. Popular and original music pieces accompanied by head-nodding and foot-tapping. Every pause punctuated by unanimous clapping, paying tribute to each musician for their talent. Yes, we may consider this one-hour concert offered by Frank Griffith, pianist Pete Billington and bassist Oli Hayhurst, as conclusive.
When we questioned Mr Griffith about the world of jazz, he praised London as a “really good music town” with “a lot of opportunities that probably were not available in USA”. Much more venues and a cosmopolitan culture were partly what brought him from America in 1996. Also very involved in music education, he unfortunately has to “struggle to give credit to jazz studies”. Resuming what Chris Botti (an American jazz trumpetist) once said to his audience, Griffith advises aspiring musicians to “keep live music alive”, adding that “anyone can learn any instrument at any time. It’s never too late”.
Finally, the “tyranny of the clock” -as Griffith pointed out- put an end to our interview and left him to prepare for his important upcoming concert.
By Rebecca Chaouch
Becky's Blog 