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Post by curious on Oct 30, 2005 19:18:15 GMT 10
Does anyone know who won and who was in the final?
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Post by isaacs on Oct 30, 2005 22:45:13 GMT 10
2005 TAC WANGARATTA FESTIVAL OF JAZZ media release 30 Oct 2005 2005 NATIONAL JAZZ AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCED 30 Oct 05 The hotly contested National Jazz Award Finals were held today at the TAC Wangaratta Festival of Jazz with Sydney's ELANA STONE collecting the first prize. Second prize went to 26 year old JO LAWRY from Adelaide and third prize to KRITSIN BERARDI also from Sydney. The winner receives $6000 plus a studio recording session for 'Jazztrack with Mal Stanley' on ABC Classic FM. The runner-up receives a cash prize of $3000 and the third finalist a prize of $1500. Australia's most prestigious jazz competition, the National Jazz Awards feature a different instrument every year. This year the featured instrument was voice, for the first time since 1998. The ten finalists, chosen from recorded entries submitted by musicians from across Australia, performed in a series of live heats over the TAC Wangaratta Festival weekend. The finalists' performances were assessed by a judging panel chaired by internationally-respected pianist Mike Nock and two leading jazz singers, London-based Anita Wardell and Melbourne-based Michelle Nicolle (who won the National Jazz Award in 1998). The National Jazz Awards have been staged since 1990 as part of Australia's premier jazz festival, the TAC Wangaratta Festival Of Jazz. The National Jazz Awards are now well and truly established as the most important and prestigious jazz competition in Australia. The competition has helped boost the careers of such outstanding talents as Barney McAll, Julien Wilson, Stephen Magnusson, James Muller, Scott Tinkler, Phil Slater, Felix Bloxsom and Michelle Nicolle. The National Jazz Awards are again proudly sponsored by Bruck Textiles, one of the major employers in Wangaratta's local economy. www.wangaratta-jazz.org.auFor further information please contact: Buxton Walker Publicity Ph 03 9537 7155 amber@buxtonwalker.com |
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Post by boris on Oct 31, 2005 15:42:34 GMT 10
ELANA STONE WON AT WANG
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Post by mario on Nov 1, 2005 17:10:01 GMT 10
there were some great performances and alot of controversy about leaving Alison Wedding out of teh final three.
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Post by curious on Nov 1, 2005 17:25:11 GMT 10
Why, was it based on Alison's performance on the day?
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Post by tech head on Nov 1, 2005 17:32:52 GMT 10
Why is there still no information about the winners on the festival website? Am I missing it? The information was posted here on Sunday night. The Wang website is resource that is not really being utilised to it's full potential, it could be a great communication tool and PR tool. It's great to support local trade, but I think it needs an overhaul - graphics too.
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Post by shb on Nov 1, 2005 20:55:28 GMT 10
yes the decision was controversial...but i respect it. the performances of the top three were really quite astounding.
elana stone is a beast of a vocalist, well-deserving of the accolade. though, in an ideal world kristen berardi should have taken it, her perofmance was incredibly moving and truthful. and yes, jo lawry has got some facility going on there...
what a weekend!
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Post by CW on Nov 1, 2005 21:34:30 GMT 10
Agree, Kristin Berardi is an amazing musician. She is really unique. She sounds like herself, truly improvises, great time, incredible ears and the most beautiful, beautiful voice. Kristin can communicate with the audience in such a sincere and touching way - she rocks!
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Post by puzzled on Nov 1, 2005 23:19:20 GMT 10
Ideal world? Whose?
I agree she's a great girl with a lovely sound, but I heard atleast three other vocalists that were left out of the top three that were as truthful and beautiful and just stronger singers than she, not to mention the two that placed above her, both strides ahead in technical facility, expression, sound and style.
Alison's performance in the semi-finals was fantastic. I had no doubt she would be placed in the top three, nor did anyone I spoke to before the announcement. There were question marks above others, and Kristin didn't seem to even factor in peoples "possible top three" discussions.
I know the judges know what they're talking about, and they obviously saw something in Kristin to place her there, but personally, I felt she didn't seem at all comfortable in the style, had some technique issues possibly due to nerves, all in all just slightly out of her league. Certainly is funny though, she made me laugh repeatedly. She came on stage and told everyone about her wet Jesus-sandals.
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Post by shb on Nov 2, 2005 9:21:58 GMT 10
this comes down to aesthetic taste and what defines a 'jazz singer'... if one believes that jazz singing/improvising is communicating interesting improvisational ideas from a place of sincerity and truth, then kristen was right up there. jo lawry is quite an extraordinary vocal technician. giant steps was carried out with ease, despite atleast 6 choruses of complicated coltrane solo to get you mouth around, with words no less, but where the hell was the vibe, the feeling?  i was left impressed but essentially cold. kristen was the perfect antidote to that feeling. |
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Post by not so puzzled on Nov 2, 2005 10:45:49 GMT 10
I suppose that's just where we differ, in that while I thought Kristin communicated beautifully with her personality, her improvisation (what small amount there was) was trepidatious and safe, not interesting at all. Not quite dull, because as you said, she's sincere, which makes a difference.
And as for Jo's Giant Steps, she was absolutely the first to admit it's a wankfest. But what a wankfest! She totally kicked, and it was fun, which is fine. I don't get any more feeling from Giant Steps when I hear Coltrane do it, that's not really its point. Her other tunes were great, her ballad was beautiful, and truthful, and happened to be also backed by good technique. I do understand though that to connect with a singer sometimes a bit of human fallibility is needed. And fair enough.
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Post by shb on Nov 2, 2005 12:52:14 GMT 10
wait, to clarify I really enjoyed jo's perfoamcne, she is a truly talented singer who deserves every applaudation that will come her way...my previous comment didin't mean to articulate otherwise..
shb
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Post by Comp witness on Nov 2, 2005 18:09:10 GMT 10
I didn't witness all the semi finals of the vocal competition(I saw six singers in total) so I won't comment on all the singers involved. However, I did see Alison Wedding and Gian Slater and I found their performances to be stunning. Alison Wedding in particular nailed it and I cannot believe she wasn't included in the final. She had poise, groove, she sang from the heart and there was no bullshit. I feel there was a lot of "showbiz" displayed by many of the other singers. I applaud Alison and Gian for just getting up there and letting their music speak for itself. Their choice of repertoire(mostly original) showed a lot of courage too. Go and check out their gigs. You'll see jazz music evolving before your eyes not dying a slow death. ( ps. A big slap on the back for Eduardo who ploughed on through, despite his nervous mental block. That took a lot of guts.)
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Post by Another witness on Nov 2, 2005 18:48:49 GMT 10
It would be great to hear some detail from the judges, some detail about their choices, I think it would be quite interesting.
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Post by shb on Nov 2, 2005 20:03:49 GMT 10
agreed, competitions like this need feedback, especially for those competitors who everyone expected to get in. actually every one of the top ten in general has a right to get some clarification.
there are also, unfortunately, always politics involved...think about it
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i was left impressed but essentially cold.