Singapore's Esplanade deliver Mosaic music festival

Singapore's Esplanade deliver Mosaic music festival

Carla Bianpoen, Contributor, Jakarta

Mosaic, a 10-day annual music festival that took three years to
establish, kicks off -- for the very first time -- on March 11 at
Singapore's Esplanade Theaters on the Bay.

The festival will commence with a performance at the
Esplanades' Concert Hall to celebrate the 80th birthday of jazz
icon James Moody. A saxophonist for nearly four decades, Moody
has serenaded lovers with his signature song Moody's Mood for
Love -- an improvisation on the chord progressions of I'm in the
Mood for Love.

Moody will perform with the Singapore Jeremy Monteiro
International Trio, with Belinda Moody on bass and Shawn Kelly on
drums. There will also be guest appearances from Singapore's
finest women of song: Jacintha Abisheganaden, Claressa Monterio,
Rani Singam and Anne Weerapass.

On March 12, the Concert Hall will feature Barbara Hendricks,
one of the leading and most active recitalists of her generation,
lauded as a jazz crossover sensation, who is as at home in opera
as she is in recital and jazz. Since her jazz debut in 1994 at
the Montreux Jazz Festival she has performed regularly in
renowned jazz festivals throughout the world. Hendricks will
perform the works of George Gershwin, Cole Porter and Duke
Ellington. She will be accompanied by Swedish Grammy winners, the
Magnus Lindgren Quartet "Jazz Project".

Hendricks is also known for her commitment to improving the
welfare of displaced people. Her 15 years of support for the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR) has earned
her the UNCHR title of Honorary Ambassador for Life and in 1998
she founded the Barbara Hendricks Foundation for Peace and
Reconciliation.

Surely a main attraction at the Concert Hall is Shirley Horn
on March 19. Catapulted into the limelight by Miles Davis, who
had been seduced by Horn's debut recording Embers and Ashes, Horn
paid tribute to her mentor with her brilliant Remember Miles, for
which she won the Grammy award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance.
Horn has garnered seven consecutive Grammy nominations, and her
albums Here's to Life, Light Out of Darkness (A Tribute to Ray
Charles) and I Love You Paris -- all soared to number one on the
billboard jazz charts.

Her soaring reputation is further marked by five Wammys, the
Washington area's music industry award, and her album Close
Enough to Love won the Academie du Jazz' Prix Billie Holiday, one
of France's premiere music awards. In 1996 Horn was elected to
the Lionel Hampton Jazz Hall of Fame. She has also earned the
title of number one female vocalist in the New York Jazz Critics
Awards. Voted the number one jazz vocalist in DownBeat's Critics'
Poll, Horn is widely regarded as the premiere vocalist in jazz
since Nat King Cole. At this event she is bound to once again
connect with the audience in a sublime way.

The unique attractions at the Concert Hall also include
Youssou N'Dour & The Super Etoile band ( 18 March) in
collaboration with Putumayo World Music. The New York Times
called N'Dour one of the world's greatest singers, an arresting
tenor and a supple weapon with prophetic authority. With a unique
rhythmic style known as mbalax, N'Dour has won international
acclaim.

Using dramatic vocals in combination with different percussion
instruments, mbalax evolved from the traditional rhythms of
Africa's Mandinka people. N'Dour has been instrumental in making
mbalax famous throughout the world for more than 20 years.

There is also the Tortoise (U.S.), one of the most singularly
dynamic bands in modern music, comprising drummer and master
producer John McEntire, percussionist Dan Bitney, guitarist Jeff
Parker, John Herndon (drums, keyboards, vibes) and Doug McCombs
(various basses). The opening act will be by the local band The
Observatory.

In line with the idea of a mosaic, the Concert Hall also
features the London Community Gospel Choir (LCGC), with 18 of its
50 members on March 15. The LCGC has transcended the limits of
religious or gospel music, into pop music culture especially R&B.

Aside from what is happening in the Concert Hall, interesting
performances are also taking place elsewhere in the compound.

The festival also features Dancing on Under The Stars at the
Roof Terrace, as well as the screening of rare footage of live
concerts from the Montreux Festival and a Miles Davis concert
(1986).

An exhibition of black-and-white photos shows candid, offbeat
shots of jazz legends Gillespie, Mingus Mclaughin, Davis and many
more in the Concert Hall's main foyer. There is also an
exhibition of Nicola Heindl's album covers made for Putumayo
World Music.

Tickets at the Esplanade's Box Office (tel. +65-6828-8377),
SISTIC Hotline (+65-6348-5555, website www.esplanade.com
Contact: Pearl Lee tel +65 6828 8313 DID +65 96830097 MB, Fiona
Soh +65 6828 8308, DID +65 93628312.