A little tardy, but before we see the week through lets share some thoughts on last weekend’s JZ Festival.
Ambience:
The seven stages and other attractions including the Jam House were dotted around the QSW grounds, providing lots of room for wandering, and generally taking in the vibes. Saturday was a bit miserable weather-wise, which killed it a bit. Acts like Red Groove Project held nothing back but their energy wasn’t really reciprocated by the audience much. The walking Ukulele band added something pretty special; students sang songs imbued with a syrupy optimism that brought smiles all around.
Curation:
There were of course some big names at the festival including the Brand New Heavies, but the great thing about festivals like JZ is that with such an eclectic mix of acts, there’s little pressure to follow an agenda. Have a saunter, check out the Brazilian beats, and move on to whatever next takes your fancy.
Chairs and Chorophobia (Fear of Dancing):
Love My Music was going off Saturday night – shame the front of the stage was obstructed by rows of chairs (from earlier in the day perhaps). Chairs are safe havens, convenient excuses for not trying to dance / shake a limb / sway on the spot. Reserved audience members gravitated to chairs. Boo.
Door tickets went for 250RMB, which is fairly steep for locals in our view. Would be interesting to know the ratio of pre-orders to door purchases. All in all JZ was a good day out for families, and continues to play a significant role in keeping Shanghai’s jazz scene on people’s radars. We hope things shape up well for next year.