The Zela Margossian Quintet, led by composer and musican Zela Margossian, has just launched its debut album Transition, a record of world jazz music with strong Armenian influences.
The official Sydney launch occurred on Friday night at Sydney jazz bar Foundry 616 to a crowd of friends, fans and jazz lovers. And it was fantastic.
With a range of middle-eastern music as inspiration, Margossian's music showcases emotive melodies, complex rhythms and experimental interpretation with skill and a gently commanding stage presence.
The quintet played a range of tracks from the new album as well as some other unrecorded items. Margossian explained how she wanted the evening to be intimate, and the wonderful space that is Foundry 616 along with its respectful, attentive audience surely helped make it just that.
Margossian lists some of her most powerful influences to include Armenian jazz and traditional music from groups such as Vahagn Hayrapetyan and the Cats, The Armenian Navy Band, and the music of Tunisian composer and oud player Dhafer Yousseff.
From the opening title track "Transition", it is clear that listeners are in for a stellar evening of lush, Armenian-influenced world jazz.
"Ceasefire", the second track, is a spritely toe-tapping number in 7/4 time that Margossian explains all began with a catchy riff that sounded a bit "like a jingle" from an advertisement and later became the full track. It is a real standout of the album for us, and has already been featured on a Spotify jazz playlist and is gaining the wider recognition it deserves.
All the songs on the album bar one are originals. "Mystic Flute: A Version", the only cover, is Margossian's re-imagining of a tune by American-Armenian composer Alan Hovhaness. Margossian explains she "performed this piece of music many years ago as part of my classical repertoire when I was 10 or 12" and how she has "always loved the composer's minimalist approach" in this particular work, giving an "enchanting and mystical" quality. In her version Margossian has arranged the existing tune, added a completely new section as well as an improvisational section. The interaction between the performers on stage, particularly Margossian on piano and Stuart Vandegraaff on clarinet, is especially wonderful in this piece.
"Aleeq (Waves)" is about the journey from Lebanon to Armenia, where the composer studied, before ending up in Australia where she has studied, taught and performed including at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
Throughout the evening, true to her aim to make the event intimate, Margossian shared stories about the events and ideas of her life that have shaped the music she composes. It added a heartwarming personal touch, and enhavnced the interpersonal meaning and significance of several tracks.
Percussionist Adem Yilmaz showcased his remarkable rhythmic talents in a feature piece during the performance, and all members of the quintet demonstrated impressive skill in various solos and improvisational sections.
The Zela Margossian quintet is:
Zela Margossian (piano)
Stuart Vandegraaff (clarinet, nay, saxophone)
Elsen Price (double bass)
Adem Yilmaz (percussion)
Alexander Inman-Hislop (drums)
Foundry 616 is divided into the dinner-and-show seating area and a general admission bar area, all with that dark intimate jazz club vibe that you know you are looking for. They serve a concise menu of southern-style dishes and bar snacks and a full range of drinks.
The venue has a reasonably strict noise (and phones) policy in view of showing respect to artists and fellow audience members. It is refreshing to see a bar crowd focused so wholeheartedly on the music.
Follow the Zela Margossian quintet on Facebook. Debut album Transition is available online
