Jazz breaking news: Natalie Williams, Istvan Gyarfas and Gyula Babos light up 606 Anglo-Hungarian jazz fest

Though most Hungarian jazzers are still of Roma origin, the music has, of course, moved on, and shows its Roma influence far more subtly than some of the so-called ‘gypsy’ bands performing in the UK. The two Hungarian guitarists headlining each set, swing player Istvan Gyarfas (supporting singer Natalie Williams, pictured), and gypsy-funk maestro Gyula Babos (the biggest name in Hungary on that night’s programme), both wove the folk elements of their music into a fine thread of sophisticated, contemporary improvised music.

The 606 Club has put on Anglo-Hungarian gigs for nearly 10 years now, the occasional cultural exchange gig becoming a mini festival. Not only do they attract some of the best players from the Hungarian scene (as well as Babos the festival featured saxophonist Tony Lakatos, who played on Thursday), but the UK contingent is pretty fine too: among many stellar performers such as Iain Ballamy and Laurence Cottle, plus the 606’s own Steve Rubie, all joined in.

Friday’s gig was, like the World Cup qualifiers some members of the audience were following surreptitiously on their smartphones (Hungary also won), an event of two halves. The second set, with the masterful Gyula Babos supported by British bassist Laurence Cottle, was, from an improvisational point of view at least, a more ambitious performance; but the first set, with Natalie Williams and her regular band plus Hungarian acoustic-electric swing guitarist Istvan Gyarfas, was arguably closer to the spirit of Anglo-Hungarian fusion, with Williams’ Anglo-American sound illuminated and enriched by the subtle but compelling gypsy inflections of Gyarfas’ guitar.

Williams, with a British father and Hungarian mother, is a walking example of Anglo-Hungarian fusion. Her style draws frankly on soul and R&B, with plenty of those genres’ swoops and snatches in her phrasing, so it wouldn’t suit the purist, but there’s no questioning the expressive power of her delivery, though her glossy, ebullient tone conveys more humour and desire than it does hurt or vulnerability. In this sense, though, she and Gyarfas were a perfect match: his delicate, lyrical soloing and plangent acoustic sound complemented her more self-assured tone. Her Anglo-American repertoire was lightly spiced with Gyarfas’ folky gypsy harmony and rhythm, giving the mostly familiar songs an attractively fresh sound. This balance of styles was shown at its purest in ‘My Romance’, a tender duet, though Gyarfas’ grooving gypsy guitar transformed ‘Little Girl’ and ‘You Don’t Know What Love Is’ too. Both were accompanied superbly by Williams’ regular pianist Phil Peskett (also arranger of some of the most inventive pieces), who used his taut but playful bopping rhythm to dance through the melodic line shared by Williams and Gyarfas, enhancing each wittily.

Guitarist Gyula Babos has been prominent on the Hungarian scene for nearly 50 years, with, presumably, one of the longest mantelpieces in Budapest, to accommodate all of the awards he has won during that time. Billed as a gypsy-funk fusion player, his performance on Friday had more funk than gypsy about it, but as with Gyarfas in the first set, the touch of gypsy to both the technique and harmony that gave him a unique sound. Technically he was astounding, with thundering solos plucked seemingly from nowhere. His regular band, Babos Project Special, includes Friday’s pianist Robert Szakcsi Lakatos, and the pair’s superb musical rapport became quickly fired up some improvisational pyrotechnics. Lakatos, obviously a star among the Hungarians in the audience, also showed imperious technique, though his sound was perhaps more traditional than Babos’, and there was a touch of Oscar Peterson about some of his solo work. Laurence Cottle, on bass, and drummer Mike Bradley - after limited preparation with the Hungarian pair - were to some extent tagging along, though both soloed convincingly, Cottle’s bass solos finding an instant rapport with Babos’ virtuoso runs.

Friday’s concert was a triumphant celebration, then, of both the quality of jazz in Budapest, and of the potential for players from what are still slightly different jazz traditions add some colour to one another’s shade. At a time when international events spanning the Atlantic and the North Sea are the vogue, the 606 has taken a really adventurous journey down the Danube. And it’s not just blue.

– Matthew Wright