[Dixielandjazz] DRESDEN DIXIELAND REPORT

[Tom Wood]

Dear Listmates,

I apologise for starting the James Morrison Trivia discussion and can sympathise with those on this platform who do not know him.  I agree with James2, he is strictly not OKOM.  However, I also admire his business acumen in launching his own Morrison Digital Horn and being one of the first jazz musicians to present his music on the net under his own label selling it "track by track."

I report that Dixieland music is also alive and well in Germany.  For us, the 34th Internationales Dixieland Festival Dresden last month was simply one word, "fantastic".  

We kicked off on the Friday night with the five other international bands playing at a Galaconcert in the Kulturpalast. This was sold out to 2400 patrons not withstanding the apparently expensive tickets.  We were given the opening session after the interval and played "Lady be Good" for the 20 seconds it took for the curtain to go up.   During the sound check and band photographs we asked if we had to stop dead on the 20th second but they allowed us a few seconds more to finish one chorus!  The other five programmed bands were Dixieland Society from Sweden, Hot Antic JB from France, The HAGAW Association from Poland, Lake City Stompers from Switzerland and Rod Mason's Hot Five from Great Britain.  The last note from the event was played about midnight and overnight by 10 am next morning as we squeezed through the busy 'pedestrians only' Prager Strasse we saw a guy with a billboard above his head selling "concert CDs".  Much to our amazement, there they were, cellophane wrapped jewel cased CDs recorded official from the concert the night before. Two Zenith tracks were included on this CD.   [For anyone interested:  Media & Communication Systems (MCS) GMBH SACHEN 12 Mai -16 Mai 2004 phone (0351) 6562-888]

After playing a great gig at Dresden Airport on Saturday evening around midnight (they had closed the Airport for this) on Sunday afternoon we played our final engagement at the Open Air Jazz Concert Stadium in the Park.  Our 12 minute set (about 13 bands were playing) was extended to 15 minutes after we reminded them we had come a long way!  When we played our jazz version of Brahms Lullaby the crowd started swaying and as if choreographed we had about five rows swaying one way and the next five or so all swaying the other way, all the way up the stadium.  What a sight, 5000 house full and very attentive jazz fans, a sea of faces moving in time to the music.  The press went berserk and about six of them leapt on stage photographing the incident with band and audience.  This even included the photographers photographing the photographers taking this.  We received an applause roar which reminded me of soccer fans give when a goal is scored.  What an audience response, something I shall never forget and we also have it on video.  We then had to dash off to Frankfurt airport, unfortunately missing the final parade.  We had to make our way through many people outside who could not gain entrance to the event.  It certainly gave us all a buzz.

Tom (feeling good about OKOM) Wood