This week, over 30 Irish jazz musicians will perform in Valence, an attractive medieval town in the Rhone-Alpes, as the major part of a festival entitled Jazz et Musiques d'Irlande. That the slow, steady growth of jazz in Ireland has reached the stage where it can be the focal point of an international festival is, in itself, remarkable. That it should happen in the opening weeks of the premillennial year is apt, because 1999 promises to be one of the best ever for the local jazz scene.
Valence will host some high-flying musical talent - the Louis Stewart Quartet with Anthony Kerr, TIME (The Improvised Music Ensemble), the Guilfoyle/Nielsen Trio, Michael Buckley with the Mooney Organisation, Paul Dunmall with the Brian Irvine Ensemble from Belfast - while the innovative Irish traditional group, La Lugh, will also be part of the programme. But developments at home are, if anything, even more interesting.
There is further proof that jazz here is increasing its international profile in the visit of the entire faculty of Boston's blue riband jazz institution, the Berklee College of Music, to take up residence at Dublin's Newpark Music Centre from April 5th to 9th. Such has been the response - the planned 60 student places are fully subscribed - that these have been expanded to 80. But Irish musicians should enquire direct to Newpark forthwith; the contact there is Hilda Milner at (01) 2883740.
Underlining the relevance of this is the fact that the Irish Recorded Music Association is offering 10 scholarships to the course for Irish musicians. IRMA is also providing the Berklee venture with some financial support.
On the festival front, Guinness's annual outing in Cork, which will run from October 22nd to 25th, already has four impressive headliners. The great bassist, Dave Holland, will bring a heavyweight quintet which includes Robin Eubanks, Billy Kilson and two of the finest young saxophonists around, Chris Potter and Steve Wilson; the much admired trumpeter, Roy Hargrove, will lead a quintet with Larry Willis on piano; guitarist Russell Malone, who made such an impression in Dublin with Diana Krall last year, will have his own quartet; and Brad Mehldau will be back to introduce his marvellous working trio (with Larry Grenadier and Jorge Rossy) to Irish audiences for the first time.
According to the organiser, Jack McGouran, this year's event has been dubbed "The Millennium Festival", since it is part of the Government's millennium campaign. He says it "will have a greater arts dimension", possibly including an exhibition of Miles Davis paintings and sketches, jazz on film, jazz and poetry, and something called "jazz in the wider community". Whatever that - and the Government's somewhat photo-opportunity connection with the event - means, the festival core will be bigger.
Perhaps significantly, Cork also promises more seated venues, including greater use of the Everyman Theatre. The use of cinemas and suitable hotels is under scrutiny - not before time, given the way cramped spaces and noisy crowds diluted the "arts dimension" last year and made listening and playing conditions an endurance test.
In Dublin, the Jazz Week will run from September 20th to 26th. Organised by the Improvised Music Company (IMC), it has found a major sponsor for its second year and looks set to eclipse its successful 1998 debut. Thus far, according to the organiser, Gerry Godley, the plans include the UMO Jazz orchestra from Finland (hailed by the late Dizzy Gillespie as one of the best in the world), the remarkable Brazilian pianist, Eliane Elias, drummer Al Foster leading a quartet with Renee Rosnes on piano, and an exceptional trumpeter, Michael Mossman, who will play with the Night In Havana Orchestra, as well as leading a quintet with Irish sidemen.
The Jazz Week's plans include TIME, Rock Fox, the British pianist, Django Bates, with another major attraction to be confirmed soon. Another retrospective of jazz on film is down for the week, too. The scale and nature of the programme made possible by the new sponsor mean additional, front-rank venues, which are also due to be announced, and there will be free lunchtime performances and a festival club.
Details are not yet available for the Belfast Festival at Queen's. Traditionally, it has always had a particularly strong jazz element and there's no reason to believe that this year will be any different in terms of quality.
Meanwhile, the IMC's programme for the first half of the year includes an Irish tour, Birdsongs, celebrating the music of Charlie Parker. Jointly organised with Music Network and Moving On Music, the tour features Julian Arguelles, Ronan Guilfoyle, Rick Peckham and Tom Rainey in 10 performances, North and South, between February 18th and 28th. The IMC will record the quartet at the end of the tour; the organisation's recording plans also include a debut as leader for the gifted young pianist Justin Carroll.
Other IMC attractions are equally exciting. March will see the notable pianist, Bill Charlap, in Dublin (3rd) and a working trio led by an outstanding organist, Larry Goldings, with Bill Stewart and guitarist Peter Bernstein (14th).
April is even more interesting, with one of the great, unclassifiable, maverick talents, trumpeter Dave Douglas, coming with his own idiosyncratically named Tiny Bell Trio, with guitarist Brad Schopik and bassist Jim Black (9th), while later in the month a Dutch saxophonist, Yuri Honing, brings in a trio (27th). May will see the superlative pianist, Joanne Brackeen, leading a quartet which will include saxophonist Greg Osby (30th). Also possible is a tour for two Irish musicians based in New York, Dave O'Rourke and Darren Beckett.
The Dublin Jazz Society's early year programme, which opens in Mother Redcaps tonight with the brilliant altoist, Charles McPherson, includes the veteran entertainer, guitarist Marty Grosz (February 24th), a return for Kenny Davern (March 23rd) and, more interestingly, visits by trombonist Dan Barrett (April 14th) and guitarist Howard Alden (May).
And that, as Charlie Parker was wont to say, is all she wrote - at least for the moment. It's more than enough to be going on with.
