Tobias Tammearu Trio among highlights at Tallinn Music Week

Rock, heavier rock, electronica, rap, folk and pop are spread around Tallinn’s koolly-attuned venues, with the jazz sequence hosted by the Fotografiska gallery. The acts were co-selected by the Jazz Estonia organisation and the Jazzkaar festival, presenting several contrasting facets of the music, over a five-hour session.

The Tobias Tammearu Trio made an impressive mark, led by the young-and-bold tenor saxophonist, already positively noted guesting with drummer Ramuel Tafenau’s quintet, and as a key member of the New Wind Orchestra, playing with pianist Kristjan Randalu. Tammearu was joined by Robert Rebane (electric bass) and Martin Petermann (drums), keeping a tightly chordless focus. Their full power was delivered right at the beginning, with ‘Beautiful Unknown’, a free-funk rush, sprung by dub-steppin’ drums. The second number allowed atmospheric tones to seep forth, and the third was a slowie as well. Within a mere 30-minute set, it might not have been wise to derail that initial attack, but this did allow cosmic space for a very high-note bass solo, shifting sharply into ultra-lowness. Walking funkster ‘Take Off’ resumed the strut, with single note tenor blurts growing into slipstream runs, followed by a chordal bass solo, spoken alongside further saxophone shadings.

The Free Musketeers took another path, operating in an improvising realm, but not just via music. The trio of Mingo Rajandi (upright bass), Ekke Västrik (modular synthesiser) and Ahto Abner (drums) were fronted (and this was unavoidable) by the somewhat extroverted writer, orator and performance artist Jan Kaus. The bass and drums tended to observe certain free jazz conditions, but Västrik unsettled by catching samples of his colleagues, immediately repeating, or reconfiguring their raw matter. Kaus regaled the audience, more directly focused than at his 2020 Jazzkaar appearance, highlighting a stand-up comedian, court jester role, at least judging by the amount of laughs he gathered. It must be observed that, given the TMW crowd of festival delegates and other musicians probably boosting the non-Estonian-speaking audience to perhaps fifty percent, maybe Kaus would have been better served by spouting in the English lingo instead. 

In another complete contrast, Trio Maag were joined by the barefoot Spanish singer Isabel Bermejo, presenting a repertoire of jazzed Argentinian tango. Rajandi was also the bassist in this band, making another complete shift. The other two Maag players were Kaspar Uljas (bandoneon) and Marek Talts (acoustic guitar). Bermejo delivered in a formal fashion, though expressive and sincere, coupled with some hair-shakin’ dance moves. Talts made several spiralling guitar solos, but the stakes were upped for the closing Astor Piazzolla song, ‘Balada Para Un Loco’, as he switched to electric for a violent finish, populated by the composer’s distinctive sharp strikes, to emphasise turning points in the verses.

This was just a wafer-thin slice of the vast sonic possibilities investigated during Tallinn Music Week...