Stax of Sax was Honkin'

The Music Place - Stax of Sax - What a night of saxophone! A full house at Manchester Lane were treated to a feast of Sax playing incorporating some of Melbourne’s hottest up and coming players and seasoned professionals. Check out our Stax of Photos from this great night!

Matt Amy’s Really Big Band opened the evening with a bang and featured Savannah Blount, Tori Pearce, Lachlan Davidson, Cara Taber, David George and Jeremy Diffey.  I spoke to a number of people who commented on how tight the section was, and the energy of the young group.  If this is the next wave of Melbourne’s talent, the scene is certainly in good hands.

Rob Glaesemann combined with three of his Melbourne Grammar Students in a quartet which had to be seen to be believed.  Jahan Meeran, Tom Benson and Charles Hopkins played with a sound and maturity way beyond their years.  We are looking into it further with the school, these guys can’t be in year 11!

Robert Vincs, Monty McKenzie, Anna Gordon and Jon Crompton explored the saxophone through free improvisation.  Showcasing all aspects of a saxophones tonality, range and versatility the free improvisational piece was not bound by the usual constraints experienced of a standard saxophone quartet.

A first class rhythm section of Marc Hannaford, Nick Haywood and Niko Schauble supported a massive line up of saxophonists for the second and third sets.  Led by musical director Phil Bywater 18 saxophonists entertained the sell out crowd with many different styles of music.  Varying in size from quintet to a full-on 18 strong saxophone ensemble they played everything from “Blue Note” classics through to latin (including a 10 second lesson in singing spanish from Sally Ford) ska, free improvisation and just about everything in between.

Having essentially no rehearsal beforehand kept every player on their toes throughout the evening and revived the concept of an old fashioned “jam session” with the experience and talent of top flight musicians giving the crowd an unforgettable night of jazz improvisation.

Thanks to all the musicians, technicians and of course audience members who made the night so special.

The success of the evening almost certainly guaranteeing a repeat performance some-time in the future.