Live
The Jean-Luc Ponty Band, Live at Bangalore
Photographs by Mayur Channagere
Date: February 10, 2007 | Venue: Ambedkar Bhavan Auditorium (Bangalore)
Jean-Luc Ponty has an enviable musical pedigree. The son of a classical violinist, he studied at the Paris Conservatory before gravitating towards jazz in the ’60s, inspired by the revolutionary stylings of Miles Davis and John Coltrane. His use of the electric violin has had an almost Hendrix-like impact on the way the instrument is perceived and played. His musicianship and originality have landed him some prime gigs over the years — he played in the latter line-up of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. John McLaughlin always wanted Ponty in his band, and has described this line-up as the “real Mahavishnu”. Ponty also played side-man to rock’s resident crown prince and mad genius, Frank Zappa on some of Zappa’s most successful post-Mothers albums, including ‘Over-Nite Sensation’ and ‘Apostrophe (’)’. Since those days, he’s continued to engage in stellar collaborations, such as 1995’s ‘The Rite Of Strings’ with Stanley Clarke and Al Di Meola, which allowed these electric wizards to stretch out and explore their acoustic side, and TRIO! – a super-trio with Stanley Clarke and Bela Fleck.
His Bangalore concert was definitely a group show, however, not just a Ponty showcase. William Lecomte (keyboards), Guy Nsangue Akwa (bass), Thierry Arpino (drums), and Taffa Cisse (percussion) have functioned with Ponty as a musical unit for quite some time now, with Lecomte, who only joined in 1999 being a relative newcomer. Cameroonian bassist Guy Akwa and Senegalese percussionist Taffa Cisse bring the influence of their native styles to the rhythm section — in fact they joined him on 1991’s ‘Tchokola’, an album that fused jazz with Western and Central African music.
The concert drew from various phases of Ponty’s solo career, including his most popular works, ‘Enigmatic Ocean’ and ‘Cosmic Messenger’, as well as ‘No Absolute Time’, and the aforementioned ‘Tchokola’. The show was a treat even for the non jazz buff, with the sheer musicianship of the entire band, all of whom got extended lead improvisation slots, in addition to Ponty’s rather breathtaking solo spot. The music had a warm, earthy, almost spiritual feel at times, and a willingness to groove when appropriate that often had the audience spontaneously clapping along. The more jazz-aware sections were positively rowdy in their appreciation at times!
Nice, and good work with the pictures :)
como puedo obtener este concierto de jean luc ponty en:
Jean-Luc Ponty Band, Live at Bangalore
necesito saber como comprarlo o obtenerlo de otra forma este concierto, esperare su respuesta gracias.
Jose, I’m afraid I don’t think there was a recording of this concert, except perhaps a soundboard recording that I would have no access to. Sorry.