Standing ovation for Mike Stern Trio<\/p>\n
By Johannes Simbolon<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): In two hours of an electrifying performance on
\nMonday at Blue Note, the Mike Stern Trio successfully ushered
\nJakarta's jazz lovers into rare excitement and set an important
\nlandmark in their journey of acquiring lots of fans in this
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
The premier show wound up with a well earned standing ovation,
\na most suitable conclusion to their performance. What they
\npresented that evening was what we may aptly call one of the most
\nexcellent jazz gigs of the year in this country.<\/p>\n
\"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to New York City,\" thus Mike
\nStern, after whom the group is named, opened the show.<\/p>\n
Of course, Stern was aware that they had left the big apple,
\nNew York, and were now playing in the capital of Indonesia, where
\njazz remains mostly strange to the public. The clever
\nannouncement only meant that the trio would perform with \"New-
\nYork-City\" quality.<\/p>\n
Stern was on guitar, Jeff Richards on bass, and Dave Weckl on
\ndrums.<\/p>\n
Without hesitation, they got down to business, playing the
\nJerome Kern standard, Yesterday. The audience's attention
\nincreased in leaps and bounds and they clapped their hands every
\ntime the melody took them by surprise. In the middle of the
\nmelody, Stern suddenly played his guitar with great spontaneity
\nand touched the hearts of the audience. And awakened the memory
\nthat he used to be a rock guitarist.<\/p>\n
The next song was You Never Know by Stern, which is yet to be
\nreleased. The song offered a lot of surprises, vitality and
\nfascination. Following were Wing And A Prayer, a slow solo, and
\nNew Blues, both by Stern and both also yet to be released.
\nClosing the first show was Team Pierre by Miles Davis.<\/p>\n
Stern's music is a delicate fusion of jazz, rock, blues and
\nbebop. Due to influences from a broad range of artists, including
\nJimmy Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Bill Evans and Miles Davis, his
\nmusic is rich in flavor which can be enjoyed by true jazz lovers
\nas well as newcomers to jazz. He seems like a bridge that
\nconnects the mysterious world of jazz master Miles Davis and the
\ncrystal clear world of the legendary rock band Blood, Sweat and
\nTears, musicians with which he once played.<\/p>\n
The three musicians managed to perform their best that night
\ndespite the fatigue they felt performing on the day they arrived.
\nAlthough Stern played the lead in the trio, he did not become
\nvery dominant as both Weckl and Richards were given ample time to
\nreveal their virtuosities.<\/p>\n
\"The three of them are respectively one of the best in their
\ncountry in their own fields,\" said Embong Rahardjo, Indonesia's
\ngreatest saxophonist, who was in the audience.<\/p>\n
Rock<\/p>\n
Born in Boston in 1953, Stern began playing the guitar at the
\nage of 12, but he reportedly did not polish his talent seriously
\nuntil he enrolled into the Berklee College of Music. Upon the
\nrecommendation of his teacher, Stern joined Blood, Sweet and
\nTears in 1976, but he quit two years after.<\/p>\n
\"It's no good to play in a group for long,\" Stern explained
\nhis leaving the rock band to The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Stern, who can only play guitar, continually changed music
\npartners thereafter. One of the landmarks of his career was when
\nMiles Davis offered him a position in his band in 1981. He
\nremained in the group for three years.<\/p>\n
Stern continued to play with several contemporary jazzers
\nincluding Jaco Pastorius, David Sunborn and the Brecker Brothers.
\nHe came to Indonesia with the latter two years ago. As for the
\ntrio of Stern, Richards and Weckle, they started teaming up a
\nyear ago.<\/p>\n
The year of 1993 saw one peak of his career when Guitar Player
\nmagazine named him \"Best Guitarist of 1993.\"<\/p>\n
\"I feel complimented. But to me, music is not a sport or
\ncompetition. It does not matter who wins or loses, as long as I
\nplay the best I can,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Stern's virtuosity in playing guitar seems less known in
\nIndonesia than other jazz guitarists, like Lee Ritenour's, who
\nhas frequently visited here and has a lot of fans here. His
\nexcellent performance that night might be a good start for him to
\nfollow the same path.<\/p>\n
\"To me -- and this is my personal taste -- Stern is still more
\ninteresting than Ritenour,\" said Gilang Ramadhan, a young local
\njazzer.<\/p>\n
The Blue Note looked more packed than ever that evening, with
\nvisitors mostly being noted Indonesian jazz musicians. They were
\nall enthralled, stuck to their chairs, and were perfectly silent
\nwhen Stern was improvising a solo and playing a sweet, slow tune
\nCommon Grounds from his album Odds or Evens.<\/p>\n
Standing and clapping their hands, the audience in the end
\npleaded for an encore when the trio were about to leave the
\nstage. The trio then played Believe it.<\/p>\n
Mike Stern Trio plays through April 15 at Blue Note, showtimes
\n8 p.m. & 10 p.m.<\/p>",
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