Standing ovation for Mike Stern Trio

Standing ovation for Mike Stern Trio

By Johannes Simbolon

JAKARTA (JP): In two hours of an electrifying performance on
Monday at Blue Note, the Mike Stern Trio successfully ushered
Jakarta's jazz lovers into rare excitement and set an important
landmark in their journey of acquiring lots of fans in this
country.

The premier show wound up with a well earned standing ovation,
a most suitable conclusion to their performance. What they
presented that evening was what we may aptly call one of the most
excellent jazz gigs of the year in this country.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to New York City," thus Mike
Stern, after whom the group is named, opened the show.

Of course, Stern was aware that they had left the big apple,
New York, and were now playing in the capital of Indonesia, where
jazz remains mostly strange to the public. The clever
announcement only meant that the trio would perform with "New-
York-City" quality.

Stern was on guitar, Jeff Richards on bass, and Dave Weckl on
drums.

Without hesitation, they got down to business, playing the
Jerome Kern standard, Yesterday. The audience's attention
increased in leaps and bounds and they clapped their hands every
time the melody took them by surprise. In the middle of the
melody, Stern suddenly played his guitar with great spontaneity
and touched the hearts of the audience. And awakened the memory
that he used to be a rock guitarist.

The next song was You Never Know by Stern, which is yet to be
released. The song offered a lot of surprises, vitality and
fascination. Following were Wing And A Prayer, a slow solo, and
New Blues, both by Stern and both also yet to be released.
Closing the first show was Team Pierre by Miles Davis.

Stern's music is a delicate fusion of jazz, rock, blues and
bebop. Due to influences from a broad range of artists, including
Jimmy Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Bill Evans and Miles Davis, his
music is rich in flavor which can be enjoyed by true jazz lovers
as well as newcomers to jazz. He seems like a bridge that
connects the mysterious world of jazz master Miles Davis and the
crystal clear world of the legendary rock band Blood, Sweat and
Tears, musicians with which he once played.

The three musicians managed to perform their best that night
despite the fatigue they felt performing on the day they arrived.
Although Stern played the lead in the trio, he did not become
very dominant as both Weckl and Richards were given ample time to
reveal their virtuosities.

"The three of them are respectively one of the best in their
country in their own fields," said Embong Rahardjo, Indonesia's
greatest saxophonist, who was in the audience.

Rock

Born in Boston in 1953, Stern began playing the guitar at the
age of 12, but he reportedly did not polish his talent seriously
until he enrolled into the Berklee College of Music. Upon the
recommendation of his teacher, Stern joined Blood, Sweet and
Tears in 1976, but he quit two years after.

"It's no good to play in a group for long," Stern explained
his leaving the rock band to The Jakarta Post.

Stern, who can only play guitar, continually changed music
partners thereafter. One of the landmarks of his career was when
Miles Davis offered him a position in his band in 1981. He
remained in the group for three years.

Stern continued to play with several contemporary jazzers
including Jaco Pastorius, David Sunborn and the Brecker Brothers.
He came to Indonesia with the latter two years ago. As for the
trio of Stern, Richards and Weckle, they started teaming up a
year ago.

The year of 1993 saw one peak of his career when Guitar Player
magazine named him "Best Guitarist of 1993."

"I feel complimented. But to me, music is not a sport or
competition. It does not matter who wins or loses, as long as I
play the best I can," he said.

Stern's virtuosity in playing guitar seems less known in
Indonesia than other jazz guitarists, like Lee Ritenour's, who
has frequently visited here and has a lot of fans here. His
excellent performance that night might be a good start for him to
follow the same path.

"To me -- and this is my personal taste -- Stern is still more
interesting than Ritenour," said Gilang Ramadhan, a young local
jazzer.

The Blue Note looked more packed than ever that evening, with
visitors mostly being noted Indonesian jazz musicians. They were
all enthralled, stuck to their chairs, and were perfectly silent
when Stern was improvising a solo and playing a sweet, slow tune
Common Grounds from his album Odds or Evens.

Standing and clapping their hands, the audience in the end
pleaded for an encore when the trio were about to leave the
stage. The trio then played Believe it.

Mike Stern Trio plays through April 15 at Blue Note, showtimes
8 p.m. & 10 p.m.