Miri Orchestra performing on-stage at the festival.
MIRI: The first night performance of the Borneo Jazz Festival (BJF) 2017 on Saturday began with a fusion of contemporary jazz numbers by Fluorescent Collective – a brilliant group of musicians dabbling in multiple genres.
The band consists of students from the Berklee College of Music and eclectic musicians proficient in everything from rock to R&B and pop to blues, taking unique melodies and melding them with catchy, odd-time grooves.
Visitors didn’t let the heavy downpour put a damper on their enthusiasm as they waited for the show to begin, lifting their umbrellas above their heads and called for the show at Parkcity Everly Hotel’s stage-by-the-sea to commence.
It was a testament to the kindred spirit shared among jazz fans and enthusiasts at the Saturday night event, further emboldening the performing musicians.
Cabocuba Jazz, a band hailing from the Netherlands continued to keep the audience entertained by playing a mix of melancholic Cape Verde melodies and vigorous Cuban dance rhythms.
The audience sang and danced to their melodic, foot-tapping music before being moved by a more Afro-Carribean groove as trio Delgres took the stage, bringing an impressive ensemble of Delta Blues heavily influenced by Guadeloupe, Louisiana Blues and beyond.
The night ended with a rocking performance from The Cape Jazz Band from South Africa who delivered an energetic performance with feverish drum beats, accompanied by an audience who sang and danced along to the music.
Also performing during the first night of the festival were Riam School Brass Band and Miri Orchestra that enchanted the crowd with its catchy and inspiring rhythms.
Earlier in the afternoon, visitors were treated to several workshops including the ‘Make Me Hip’ workshop on contemporary keyboard styles taught by James Boyle of Aswara College and ‘I Got Rhythm!’, a drum and percussion ‘concert clinic’ conducted by CaboCuba Jazz’s Nils Fischer and Armando Vidal.