David Murray, Bushman’s Revenge, Zoe Rahman and more bring the jazz heat to a snowy Tampere Jazz Happening

Arriving in Tampere, a couple of hours’ drive north of Helsinki, on the last day of October, I’m told that winter is coming any day and that, once the cold weather arrives, that’s it until April. Sure enough, the next day, there’s a generous dump of snow. Luckily, it turns out there are worse places to be stuck indoors.

Running since 1982, Tampere Jazz Happening is a major European festival date that attracts an impressive international line-up – this year including a handful of high-profile American acts visiting the city’s large, seated concert hall. Tenor saxophonist David Murray’s quartet (featuring Irreversible Entanglements bassist Luke Stewart and pianist Marta Sánchez) played tunes from their latest album, Francesca, highlighting Murray’s knack for teaming beautifully tuneful, somewhat old-fashioned hooks with stratospherically ‘out’ blowing. Alto man Donald Harrison presented a hugely accomplished and entertaining survey of jazz styles throughout the decades, from 1930s swing and a tribute to Sidney Bechet, through Coltrane’s ‘Impressions’ and his own funk and hip-hop influenced “nouveau swing.” Percussionist and vocalist Kahil El’Zabar brought the sound of Chicago with his Ethnic Heritage Ensemble, including trumpeter Corey Wilkes, adding “little instruments” textures to deeply transporting jams and El’Zabar oozing effortless cool on drums, kalimba and cajon.

Some major European acts also graced this stage. British pianist Pat Thomas was joined by Norwegians bassist Per Zanussi and drummer Ståle Liavik Solberg for deconstructed reimaginings of compositions by Duke Ellington that were both challenging and deeply swinging, with Thomas dealing trademark Monkish stabs and jabs. Norwegian power trio Bushman’s Revenge (above) unfurled blazing jazz-rock with more than a hint of Larry Coryell’s excellent early sides. Zoe Rahman’s Octet (below) presented her meticulously composed pieces which, while not quite lifting off, provided an opportunity to enjoy the elastic genius of drummer Gene Calderazzo. Swedish sax hero Mats Gustafsson dug deep with iconoclastic Finnish punk-accordion superstar Kimmo Pohjonen. Finnish quartet Orchestre Nazionale della Luna made tantalisingly suis generis moves with some nifty Moog synth work by Kari Ikonen.

Late shows in a heaving night-club space included a showcase of Portuguese bands including the sextet Axes (almost derailed by drummer Pedro Vasconcelos shamelessly hamming it up for the audience), a sprightly set of emo-jazz by 24-year-old Israeli virtuoso drummer Roni Kaspi’s trio, and London’s Nubiyan Twist bringing hectic dancefloor energy. Meanwhile, a more relaxed jazz-club setting nearby provided a base for several Finnish bands to do their thing, with saxophonist Markus Holkko’s quartet rolling out some assured if not entirely original post-Coltrane modal moods. It was also here that the weekend’s final gig took place on Sunday night, presenting an hour of deep, improvised music by Portuguese trio Bode Wilson – saxophonist/flautist João Pedro Brandão, bassist Demian Cabaud and drummer Marcos Cavaleiro. Focussed, uncompromising and deliriously intense, it brought a pin-drop hush to a room packed with festival-goers young and old – and was the perfect finale to a festival that generated enough heat to keep the snow at bay.