VISION FESTIVAL 2025, Number 29 or 30!?!? Shining a Light through the Darkness!

The 29th or 30th (depending on who you ask) annual Vision Festival ended last night and it was indeed one of the real highlights of this year! 28 sets over six nights and all sets (that I caught) were well worth exploring and being inspired by. I’ve attended each and every Vision Fest since it began in 1995 and have rarely missed a set since I find the fest to be an endless source of Positive Art, Protest & Resistance (to the status quo), an International Family Reunion and a reflection of what is currently going within the Shadow World of Avant Jazz and its many tributaries. There are several layers of connected Art and Ideas which are are revolving around and with one another here: Creative Music, Dance, Poetry, Visual Art (on the big screen and on the stage), as well as some merch (CD’s, LP’s, books & t-shirts) found in the lobby. As Vision Fest founder Patricia Nicholson said at the end and throughout the fest, she hopes that the attendees take whatever inspiration they find here and bring this to the rest of the world. I am still feeling a buzz inside due to all of the wonderful music and arts that we were exposed to there and will hold onto this for as long as I can savor it.

Day One (June 2nd) was a tribute to the legendary composer/multi-bandleader/multi-instrumentalist Roscoe Mitchell. As has been the tradition for quite a while now, the night began with an opening invocation featuring Patricia Nicholson (dance & voice), William Parker (sintir, bass, double reed & other ethnic instruments) and Hamid Drake on drums, frame drum & voice. William and Hamid have been playing together as a rhythm team for many years and they always sound like connected Spirits. As Ms. Nicholson danced and occasionally chanted words, William and Hamid created a rhythmic web around her. The mood was often solemn, rather prayer like, a hymn  for our troubled planet. The set unfolded slowly, organically, with the rising and falling of a throb/pulse at the center. The sintir or gimbri is a Moroccan 3-string bass like instrument with a rectangular body. It is often found in (Ghost) Trance Music as can be heard in Gnawa music (from Morocco) and is also played by Josh Abrams for his band Natural Information Society. William has been playing this instrument more and more in recent times and played it in several sets at this years’ fest. The opening invocation has a way of calming down the restless and oft neurotic vibes that many of feel due to the negativity we often endure from Fake News propaganda worldwide. It was a perfect introduction for things to come throughout the fest, a sharing of Communal Spirit Vibes.

Roscoe Mitchell, co-founder of the AACM and the Art Ensemble of Chicago, has long been one of the most influential reed players, percussionists, composers and multi-banderleaders since the mid-1960’s. Mr. Mitchell was presented with a Lifetime of Achievement Award by the Vision Fest organizers, an award he most certainly deserves considering how much he has done to help bring avant-jazz and other New Musics into the present and future. The first set featured a Roscoe Mitchell Quartet with Dave Burrell on piano, William Parker on contrabass, Tani Tabbal on drums & Roscoe on sopranino & bass sax and percussion. The set began with the quartet playing sparsely with Mitchell on sopranino (careful squeaks), Mr. Burrell (a maximalist turn minimalist here) on piano, William Parker playing quietly and Tani Tabbal (who has played for Mitchell for many years) playing his drums with much restraint. The music was carefully created, with one or two notes at a time. Mitchell has a homemade percussion stand with many small cymbals and wood blocks which he uses, often playing these slower repeating patterns which the rest of his group(s) must adjust to.  This set was relatively short since Mitchell wanted to have his regular quartet play next.

Roscoe Mitchell started the Space Ensemble sometime in the 1970’s with Thomas Buckner on voice and Gerald Oshita on reeds.  After the Art Ensemble, the Space unit has been around the longest of Mitchell’s several working groups. Since Mr. Oshita passed away in 1992, as Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Buckner have continued as the Space Ensemble adding Robert Dick on flutes and Scott Robinson on assorted, often obscure reeds & brass instruments. Both are virtuosos on their respective instruments. I’ve caught this quartet live as well as live-streamed from Roulette a few months ago and they definitely have their own sound. Each member plays one instrument or vocal at a time, concentrating on each note. Mitchell switches between sopranino, bass sax (in a stand) and his percussion stand. Mitchell is often setting the slow yet measured pace or tempo, keeping the pulse steady. Mitchell rarely seems to solo (nowadays), mostly holding things together with his own inner clock. I’ve heard other folks/listeners complain about the vocals of Thomas Buckner, who has a baritone voice and has worked in contemporary opera (for Robert Ashley). Buckner is one of Mitchell’s oldest friends and collaborators. Buckner is often a minimalist and like Mitchell, takes his time to create odd vocal sounds, whispers, sighs, etc. which work well with Mitchell’s own minimal, focused aesthetic. Robert Dick has long been one of the adventurous and distinctive flutists in the Downtown scene since his emergence in the early 1980’s. Although he has invented a variety of extended technique sounds for several different flutes, he also takes his time at creating unique sounds for bass flute, slide flute and a large sculpture-like flute he plays. Scott Robinson, who wears a space suit on occasion, collects and plays more odd instruments than perhaps anyone else on this planet. Here, he switched off between a half dozen odd instruments like a contrabass sousaphone, double belled trumpet and oddities that I can’t name. Robinson was the wild card here as he switched between each of his instruments, bringing in unexpected sounds from instruments that practically no one else plays. When I caught this quartet last month on a stream from Roulette, there were listeners online complaining that the music was unevenful and that Mitchell should play more alto or soprano sax and do more circular breathing. I believe that these newer listeners missed the point and had too many expectations due to Mitchell’s previous concerts and recordings. Once we turn off these expectations, what is unique about this quartet shines through since they do have their own sound and are filled with subtle nuanced surprises.

The final set that night was a premier of a unique work by Mr. Mitchell which was played by a renaissance quartet and a jazz quartet. The piece is called “Metropolis Trilogy” and was broken into three parts. The first part was for the renaissance quartet which featured Clay Zeller-Townson on baroque bassoon, Doug Balliet viola da gamba & contrabass, Mikael Darmanie on harpsichord & synth and Paul Holmes Morton on theorbo (unique looking baroque stringed instrument with  a long neck & re-entrant tuning, check it out, I’ve never seen an instrument like this!) & banjo. Considering that I’ve listened to very little Renaissance music, I can’t say that I’ve heard much music which sounded like this. The quartet did sound like they were playing Renaissance music but brought further into the present. Careful, sparse, subtle, reflective, refreshing, restrained, unique. The resulting music was both ancient and modern sounding at the same time, something that Art Ensemble of Chicago have also embraced (“ancient to the future”, as they say). The second part featured a jazz quartet with Immanuel Wilkins on sax, Micah Thomas on piano, Thomas Morgan on contrabass and Kweku Sumbry on drums. I know all of the members of this quartet, having heard them in different previous associations/ensembles. The quartet had a unique sound which blended avant-jazz with modern chamber music. It sounded mostly composed. Saxist Wilkins has been getting quite a bit of good press in recent years and he was in fine form here, playing brittle squeaks, speeding up, bending and twisting certain notes while playing the distinctive Mitchell-like music composed for this group. Pianist Micah Thomas, who I’ve heard with & without Zoh Amba, was also in fine form, keep your eye & ear on him, he is one of the best up & coming pianists. The third part of “Metropolis” had both quartets combined and this was a truly unique sounding ensemble. Considering that Mitchell (and the AACM) have always erased the boundaries between jazz and modern classical music, this double ensemble combined both streams into their own sound. The music was often shifting through odd harmonies, with subtle dissonant twists and turns. I was immensely impressed with this music since it didn’t sound like anything else I’ve heard before. I hope that Mr. Mitchell gets a chance to record this work so we can listen to it again as it is ripe for further discovery.

On Day Two, I missed some of the opening performance of Miriam Parker’s ‘No Mud, No Lotus’ due to public transportation problems so I can’t comment on it. I did catch all of the next set: gabby fluke-mogul’s Thread: The Children are Always Ours’ which featured Ms. mogul and Charles Burnham on violins, Ava Mendoza on guitar, Luke Stewart on bass and Tcheser Holmes on drums. The above quote comes from noted author James Baldwin, who adds, “whoever is incapable of recognizing (that all children are ours), is incapable of morality”, something I wholeheartedly agree with. Both gabby fluke-mogul and Charles Burnham are very different violinists yet they work together well in this group. The music had a bluesy, sorta down home quality with both Mr. Burnham, Ms. mogul and Ms. Mendoza all trading bluesy licks and swirling together in pulsating waves. At times, some of Ms. Mendoza’s lines/licks reminded me of Blood Ulmer when he plays similar bluesy lines. This makes sense since Mr. Burnham used to be in a trio with Blood called Odyssey. Burnham also uses some wah wah effects at times and adds his own haunting voice to good effect as well. There seems to be a bluesy sound which ran throughout many of the sets at this festival perhaps because many of us listeners, musicians and other common folk also have the ever prsesnt Fake News blues every day during this period in our collective lives.

The next set was Amirtha Kidambi’s Elder Ones and “All Empires Fall” was the theme. Ms. Kidambi is a powerful vocalist, is an activist and is particularly forthright and articulate in her views about anti-fascist organizing against the current oligarchies and protest for Palestinian liberation. I’ve heard Ms. Kidambi improvising live with Darius Jones as well as singing lead for Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl and like the way she uses her words as a weapon for resistance. I’ve heard her band on record and they’ve changed personnel and sound over time. The current version features Matt Nelson (from Battle Trance) on soprano and Alfredo Colon on tenor saxes, Lester St. Louis on contrabass (not his usual cello), Jason Nazary on drums & electronics and Ms. Kidambi on vocals, harmonium and small keyboard. Not only was the music powerful, spirited and inventive throughout, but the spoken word intros were also incisive and provocative. Each song was about a different view of our current situation, speaking truth to power with some selective use of electronics which peppered the sound of the band with some eerie results. Each song had a different, hypnotic repeating riff which had both saxes a series of inspired solos. I loved the way Amirtha Kidambi’s strong voice soared above her ensemble, holding the group together and giving us all some solid and inspiring to hold on to. This is one of the best sets of the fest and it gave us quite a bit to think about. I can’t wait until this music is recorded and released since it be well worth listening to over and over.

I’ve known avant/jazz singer Ellen Christi for more than forty years after hearing her sing at jam session (with Tom Bruno & Steve Buchanan) in Hillside NJ, that I helped organize in the late 1970’s. She is one of the best at what she does. For this set she utilized Cooper-Moore on horizontal harp & other handmade instruments, William Parker on bass, Michael TA Thompson on drums, Patricia Nicholson on text & dance and Ms. Christi on vocals & effects. Starting in the late 1960’s, jazz vocalists started to experiment by singing in an their voices through invented language & sounds and/or using electronic effects to alter their voices. Ms. Christie has long used electronic effects on her voice and has a marvelous/weird duo record out with William Parker reading his poetry & Christi adding some odd effects. During the first piece, Ms. Christi chanted “I will not be silenced”, a sentiment that many of us can relate to as more & more protests keep occurring in the US and around the world. Ms. Christi used two mics, one with and one without effects. This piece began with just voice, bowed bass and horizontal harp. It was solemn, lovely, haunting, fragile, exquisite. Ms. Nicholson took her time to add some spoken word text and dance. The music was most enchanting and cast an ethereal spell over the audience. I liked the way Ellen Christi took her time, interweaving her voice and occasional electronics, simmering at times and building in intensity as the set unfolded. Although the set was entitled “Flux in Chaos”, I felt that it was more focused than chaotic most of the time, no matter how free it got, there was a thread of humanity which ran throughout.

Flutist supreme/composer/multi-bandleader/professor, Nicole Mitchell, has been leading her own Black Earth Ensemble since the turn of the millenium, with eight discs under their name. Although the personnel has changed on each of their releases, Ms. Mitchell always has a concept in mind whenever her ensemble records or plays live. The set at the Vision Fest this year was called, “Portraits of Sonic Freedom” and the personnel featured some all-star with James Brandon Lewis on tenor sax, Caroline Davis on alto sax, Chris Williams on trumpet, Angelica Sanchez on piano, Maia on harp & vocals, Luke Stewart on acoustic & electric bass, Jovia Armstrong on cajon & cymbals and Val Jeanty on percussion & electronics. I must admit that I am a big fan of Ms. Mitchell, having caught her live more than a half dozen times, as well as reviewing most of large catalogue of discs. What I like most about Ms. Mitchell is that her music and her vibe is consistently positive and uplifting and this ensemble & concert may have been her best one yet! The music was often good groove-based and had an ebullient spirit. She gave everyone in the band a chance to stretch out and solo and every solo was infectious, inventive and awe-inspiring. There are a number of heavy hitters in this band like James Brandon Lewis on tenor, Caroline Davis on alto, Chris Williams on trumpet and Angelica Sanchez on piano and each one shined on their respective solos. There were also three women in the band that I don’t know very well: percussionist Jovia Armstrong who plays just a cajon and cymbals and was the rhythmic center of the band. She was incredible so I will be searching her out on other projects. Val Jeanty moved to NYC a few years back and plays in her own style of percussion and samples. She played in several sets at the Vision Fest and once at The Stone. Her use of percussion and samples is completely unique and brings something special to every project she is involved in. Aside from Ms. Mitchell’s stunning flute solos and exuberant spirit, the focal point of the band was Maia who sang, did some spoken word and played acoustic harp. Maia was just incredible with her wonderful voice, feisty spirit and lovely harp playing. She sang Ms. Mitchell’s lyrics as if she really meant whatever she sang. There were a couple of highlights that I must point out: ever in-demand bassist Luke Stewart kicked off the last piece with an incredible electric bass solo intro which was completely mind-blowing.  Nicole Mitchell is one of the best flute players anywhere and her each of her solos were astonishing!!! She has a unique way of singing a note with her voice while soloing on the flute so that the flute and voice create a chord. Unbelievable! This set was my favorite of the entire Vision Fest and will be well-remembered by anyone who was there that night.

I missed the opening set on Day 3 of the Vision Fest due to more delays on NJ Transit, something I have to put up with every time I come to NYC. The first set I caught that night was the Ava Mendoza Trio with special guest Joe McPhee. It turned out that Mr. McPhee was on tour in Europe and didn’t make it back for this set, a pity for us Joe McPhee fans. Ava’s trio here featured Henry Fraser on bass and Chad Taylor on drums. Since moving to NYC from the Bay Area, Ms. Mendoza’s profile has kept growing, leading several bands and collaborating with William Parker (in Mayan Space Station), Bill Orcutt (in his Electric Guitar Quartet), with James Brandon Lewis and others. I’ve listened to, reviewed and checked out each of these bands live and I am always impressed by Ms. Mendoza’s diverse beyond category guitar playing. This trio took their time to build things up slowly and organically. Choosing drummer Chad Taylor for this set/trio was a great idea as he remains one of the best and most in-demand drummers in the Downtown Scene. Ms. Mendoza’s guitar playing seems to blend rock, jazz and bluesy themes. Mr. Taylor has a way of pushing his bandmates with a series of sweeping rhythmic waves. Mendoza often started with by hitting a riff and then repeating it while Mr. Taylor locked in with that riff, pushing the trio higher as they evolved. I found this set to be immensely exciting with the trio whipping up a storm, moving in waves, a unified force which showed that the ancient power trio is still active and alive a half century after Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience kicked off their careers in 1966 and 1967.

The next set featured Devin Brahja Waldman’s Radical Reversal with Melanie Dyer on viola, Brendan Regan on guitar, Warren T Crudup on drums and Devin Waldman on piano & synth. Originally a poet named Randall Horton was supposed to be the frontman for this band but couldn’t make it due to a death in his family. Realizing how important poetry was/is to this group, Mr. Waldman asked his aunt, legendary beat poet & professor Anne Waldman to augment this band instead. A very smart move. I’ve caught Mr. Waldman live and on record numerous times but he was always playing alto sax on which he is a free/jazz master. For this set, Mr. Waldman played piano and some synth, directing the band from the piano. I didn’t recognize the name of the guitarist here but I certainly know of Melanie Dyer, the great violist from We Free Strings, Heroes are Gang Leaders and the Sun Ra Arkestra. Drummer Warren Trae Cruduo III also played in an early trio with James Brandon Lewis. I’ve long admired the poetry of Anne Waldman, a contemporary and friend of Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs and John Giorno. I’ve caught her live on a couple of occasions and have a few of her poetry books. Ms. Waldman is a powerful, emotive spoken word artist and hence, I listened closely to her words and delivery. Beat poetry and jazz musicians have been longtime collaborators from the 1950’s onwards. Often guitarist Brendan Regan would set things up with a repeating riff with Ms. Dyers soloing  and adding to the riff on her trusty viola. Devin Waldman’s piano usually provided an undertow to words and waves provided by the rest of the band. When I could hear some/much of the poetry that Ms. Waldman recited, she gave something for the audience to think about.

Former Chicago-based drummer/percussionist Hamid Drake is currently living in Italy but comes back to the US to perform at the Vision Fest almost every year. Hamid’s group was called Indigenous Mind and featured Daniel Carter on reeds & trumpet, Alfredo Colon on tenor & soprano saxes, Melanie Dyer on viola, Cooper-Moore on piano & home-made instruments, William Parker on bass & ngoni and Mr. Drake on drumset, frame drum & voice. Over the past few years, I noticed that former free/jazz firebrand, Daniel Carter, has mellowed a bit in his playing. Although he continues to play with more musicians than ever, he often takes his time, listens more and plays closely with everyone in his different projects. The center of the music here is Hamid Drake on drumset and later frame drum with William Parker on contrabass, ngoni and several reeds or double reeds. This was free/jazz Spirit Music and it became more heated over time. Aside from his assorted handmade instruments, Cooper-Moore is also a master pianist and was in fine form here. Whether playing tenor or soprano sax, Alfredo Colon, a newer Downtown musician, sounded consistently engaged and played a handful of inspired solos. Both Mr. Colon and Daniel Carter worked well together, listening, interacting and playing tightly together or around one another. Over the past few years Melanie Dyer has come into her own in several different bands. She also sounded great throughout. When Mr. Drake switched to frame drum later in the set, he brought the vibe back down to the earth, chanting with his warm, austere, charming voice.  His voice and chanting have a warm inviting sound which I find to be most enchanting, washing over the audience in a way that makes us all feel better. Hamid Drake has a way making the audience feel better through his ongoing positive vibes/spirit.

The last set of Day 3 was Pheeroan AkLaff’s Robeson Rise. The group consisted of Jay Rodriguez on tenor sax, Sumi Tonooka on piano, Jonathan Toscano on bass, DJ Jahi Sundance Lake on turntables & sampler, Lisette Santiago on percussion and Pheeraon Aklaff on drums & direction. I knew of a few members of this unit from previous work like Mr. Rodriguez (has played with Marc Ribot & Cibo Matto), Ms. Santiago (from Bill Cole Band), Ms. Tonooka (for Bobby Zankel). Mr. AkLaff’s set was inspired by singer & activist Paul Robeson. The music again had an organic, Spirit Jazz vibe with waves which kept growing and then calming down. DJ Jahi (son of Oliver Lake), did a fine job of sampling a gospel choir, civil rights voices and other more earthly sounds. Mr. AkLaff has long been one of the best avant/jazz drummers and was the center of the storm here, whipping up wave upon wave. Not sure if I’ve seen/heard Philly-based pianist, Sumi Tonooka, before this set but her playing was superb, taking a couple of wonderful solos. AkLaff directed the band through more jazzy and more funky sections, keeping the flow connected. I’m not sure that I would’ve known that this set was inspired by Paul Robeson unless I read  about it in the program notes but I could hear a theme of civil rights unrest with gospel and funky undertow flowing throughout the set.

On Day 4, I again missed the opening set but got there in time to check out most of Ivo Perelman & Matt Shipp’s String Trio with Mat Maneri on viola and William Parker on contrabass. The Matt Shipp String Trio have been around for nearly three decades and have three fine discs out on the Hat & Rogue Art labels. Matt Shipp and Ivo Perelman have also had a longtime collaboration in duos, trios and quartets with dozens of releases on numerous labels. There is an obvious connection between Shipp and Perelman which has grown closer over a long period of time. Like many of the sets this year, the music here evolved in a most organic way. Mr. Shipp draws from a series of themes that he has developed over his long career, playing one at times. Mr. Perelman takes his time, carefully playing his lines skeletally at first and adding more a series of both lyrical and bent notes, concentrating on each one. Both violist Mat Maneri and bassist William Parker have also been working with Mr. Shipp even longer than his collaboration with Mr. Perelman. Since there is no drummer here, Mr. Parker is often at the center of the rhythm scheme, pumping faster at times and bowing his interactive lines in different sections. Improvising string pioneer, Mat Maneri, is the secret weapon here, weaving his unique (microtonal) lines within and around the rest of the quartet. Sometimes both string players buzz together with Mr. Maneri taking an occasional intense solo which seems to rise from the cracks in between established “normal” harmonies. Once one adjusts to what is going on here, we hear how Mat Maneri sneaks in these impressive lines which are completely his own invention.

The next set featured Oliver Lake reading his poetry and his son DJ Jahi Sundance Lake playing turntables & sampler. Due to health issues, former avant/jazz sax legend, Oliver Lake, no longer plays his sax in performance. Mr. Lake has been writing poetry and creating his own artwork for a number of years as well. He published a book of his poetry & artwork called ‘If I Knew This and More’ last year, which features some of the best poetry I’ve read in years. We still have copies at the store if you are interested. Hence, I listened closely to all of the words that Mr. Lake read, since I found his words to be engaging, humorous, with honest, astute observations on current events. Mr. Lake will often take a phrase/line like “for better or worse” and keep repeating it with a list of things to consider which make our lives better or worse or somewhere in between.  DJ Jahi also did a good job of providing an appropriate background of samples (jazz sax, voices and music), which was never too intrusive and fit the words just right.

The next set was called Spiritworld and featured Oluyemi Thnomas on bass & alto clarinets & double reeds, JD Parran on clarinet, flutes & percussion, William Parker on sintir, bass & other odd instruments, Lisa Sokolov on vocals and Michael Wimberley on drums, percussion & piano. Joe McPhee was supposed to have been part of this but was still in Europe at the time. SpiritWorld seems like an appropriate name for this definite Spirit Jazz group. West Coast mystery man, Oluyemi Thomas, doesn’t tour or come to NY very often so it was wonderful to have him here this night. From his African attire, constant smile, dancing jubilantly and ever-engaging bass clarinet playing, Mr. Thomas exudes a positive, uplifting, infectious vibe. JP Parran is also a longtime legendary figure here who doesn’t play live often enough. Whether playing sax, wood flutes or hand percussion, Mr. Parran also casts a a subtle cosmic spell. Bass great and multi-instrumentalist, William Parker, played mostly sintir (a north African bass-like instrument) and a double reed (musette like). Free/jazz vocalist Lisa Sokolov also moved/danced around the stage using her voice like an instrument, was also dazzling in this role. Drummer Michael Wimberley was also in fine form whether he was playing drums, hand percussion and even piano towards the end. Oluyemi Thomas is an old friend of mine so I had a chance to speak with him after the set. His presence on stage is most uplifting and infectious, so this also helped to raise our spirits. On the big screen above the stage was a film of a previous Vision Fest concert with Mr. Sokolov, Joe McPhee, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Parker and Music Witness artist Jeff Schlanger. I like the way the past and present interacted during this set.

The final set that night by the Mary Halvorson Canis Major Quartet and this was another of this year’s best sets! The quartet featured Ms. Halvorson on guitar & compositions, Dave Adewumi on trumpet, Henry Fraser on contrabass and Tomas Fujiwara on drums. Award winning guitarist, Mary Halvorson, is at the top of her game as a guitarist, composer, collaborator and multi-bandleader. Since winning the MacArthur Genius award, Ms. Halvorson keeps consistently busy with different bands and assorted collaborations. She also dresses more modestly, radiating a more serious look since she works so hard at creating her own music which is constantly evolving. Canis Major is Ms. Halvorson’s current quartet with the great, up & coming trumpeter Dave Adewumi, Downtown bass great Henry Fraser and Mary’s longtime musical partner and collaborator drummer Tomas Fujiwara. I don’t know much about trumpeter Dave Adewumi except that he is on a CD with Dave Douglas (called ‘Dizzy Atmosphere’) from 2020. One could tell that Mr. Halvorson put a good deal of thought into composing and playing each of these songs. Both Ms. Halvorson and Mr. Adewumi took a number of extended solos, each of which was superb, spirited and inventive. Each piece had a different and challenging theme which was played together and apart by the guitar and trumpet with inventive support by the dynamic rhythm team. Ms. Halvorson and Mr Fujiwara seem to have a strong music bond with Tomas’ drumming matching Mary’s playing no matter which direction she goes in. Bassist Henry Fraser took an unaccompanied bass solo at the beginning of one of the pieces and sounded great by kicking things off just right. The music here is often complex but seems to have that breezy-like Metheny or Frisell vibe as well at the center. Mary Halvorson is without a doubt one of the best and most distinctive jazz guitarists to emerge over the past two decades. I found a number of her solos to be quite astonishing, making this set all the more memorable.

Day five began with a legendary trio from Boston called The Fringe, who’ve been around since late 1970’s. The original member is tenor saxist & professor George Garzone, with bassist John Lockwood joining the trio in 1986. Their original drummer, Bob Gulloti passed away in 2020 and for this set they were joined by the great Cuban drummer, Francisco Mela, who also teaches up in Boston like Mr. Garzone. The Fringe has long been a wonderful free/jazz/Spirit band whose concerts usually flow organically. They still have that earthy organic flow which is free of established barriers. Mr. Garzone is a most influential saxist as a teacher and performer and has that impressive, dark, Spirit/Jazz, Coltrane-like tone. Ever since moving here from Cuba, Francisco Mela has become one of the best and most in-demand drummers around. The trio actually quoted or just played the theme to a half dozen standards without playing the entire song, leaving up to the audience to complete the songs in their own minds. This gave a the set a sense of jazz history and mystery. I could tell that Mr. Garzone and Mr. Gulotti have worked together for many years since the entire set have that infectious organic flow. Francisco Mela appeared to be the perfect drummer for this set since he is a team player and was actually the spokesman for this fine band.

The next set was Patricia Nicholson’s Shamanic Principle which featured Ms. Nicholson dancing & text, Val Jeanty on sampled & acoustic percussion, Melanie Dyer on viola and Miriam Parker - video art. I always enjoy whatever Ms. Nicholson does since it comes from the heart and embraces and illustrates the way we all treat one another. Although the music was often stripped down to viola, voice and percussion, sampled & acoustic, it kept that Spirit Jazz vibe at its core. Over the past few years, I’ve gotten to know the playing of Val Jeanty better, after checking her out live on several occasions. Ms. Jeantry is a marvelous percussionist whether playing acoustic percussion & cymbals or coaxing all sorts of percussive samples from her devices. She often samples sounds & music which have something to do with whatever the music or theme(s) of the set she is involved with. Violist Melanie Dyer has also emerged as one of the best improvising string players in the Downtown Scene. Check out her work in We Free Strings, one of Downtown’s best under-recognized ensembles. Dancer Miriam Parker, daughter of Patricia and William, has also been evolving and improving as a video artist over time. Her video art involves a variety of drawn and altered images which often make one think about their meaning and why certain images are juxtaposed with other images. Ms. Nicholson seemed to be chanting some Native American sounds/spirits. I found this set to be most enchanting.

The following set was the DoYeon Kim Quartet with Ms. Kim on gayageum (a/k/a kagayeum) and vocals, Mat Maneri on viola, John Hebert on contrabass and Tom Rainey on drums. The theme was “When Democracy Took a Day Off” which seems to be appropriate now as our current democracy is being threatened by fascists here and around our troubled world. DoYeon Kim is a South Korean musician, playing the gayageum (a large koyo-like instrument), singing and acting as well. Although she wore a white dress and looked like a child at times, her voice and playing were quite intense and at times startling with inner power or rage burning from within. The set was inspired by the Gwangju uprising, a pro-democracy movement in South Korea in which the military killed, beat and tortured students from Chonnam National University. There were words in Korean and English projected on the big, black screen above the stage. Ms. Kim’s gayageum was often played with an intense abandon both plucked and banged upon with sticks. Ms. Kim and Mat Maneri fronted the band and played music that was composed by Ms. Kim. Mr. Maneri was a good choice for this quartet as he is a master of microtonal playing/harmonies and match Ms. Kim no matter if she was playing her instrument or singing. There was a section where Ms. Kim was singing and screaming most forcefully, really letting the demons out. It was pretty scary to hear and witness but I did get it since she was directing her anger at an injustice that many of us can relate to as we watch members of ICE (American Nazi’s) tear apart families all over the USA. The music was brutal at times with some strong rhythm team work by John Hebert and Tom Rainey. Although I felt uncomfortable with the intensity of the music and vocals at times, I felt that the set was one of the best of the Vision Fest since it was a call for human rights and justice for humanity. Bravo to DoYeon Kim and her powerful quartet.

The final set that night was the David Murray Quartet with Marta Sanchez on piano, Luke Stewart on bass, Russel Carter on drums and David Murray on tenor sax, bass clarinet & compositions. Legendary saxist, David Murray, was one of the first free/jazz saxists to emerge from the Loft Jazz Scene in the late 1970’s and gain quite a bit of recognition and record dozens (hundreds?) of records from that time onwards. I’ve caught Mr. Murray many times throughout his long career in quartets, octets and big bands and have collected much of his large catalogue of recordings. From around the turn of the milennium, I seemed to have lost track of his career and heard he was living in Paris for a while. Murray has played at the Vision Fest many times and seems to bring a different group with him for each occasion. This is his current quartet and it features Marta Sanchez on piano, a dynamic up & coming pianist. I’ve caught her at The Stone on a couple of occasions and really dig her playing. She was born in Madrid, Spain and is currently living in NYC.  In-demand bassist Luke Stewart is all over the place nowadays and playing with a variety of projects (For James Brandon Lewis, HAGL & Irreversible Entanglements). This is a strong, focused and spirited quartet, one that picks up from where the John Coltrane Quartet left off and shows different views of modern jazz. At first, I thought that their sound was an Old School sound from the late sixties or seventies but they do this very well. Both Mr. Murray and Ms Sanchez are strong, inventive soloists who have been influenced by different eras of modern jazz. The quartet also has a vocalist named Francesca who had a strong voice and sounded fine with the band on the two songs she sang on. Although the band swung at times both Mr. Murray and Ms. Sanchez pushed things further out at times, always taking strong solos. Luke Stewart began one song on unaccompanied bowed bass and sounded particularly strong on that piece. Marta Sanchez sounded great throughout so it seems like time to check out her half dozen releases as a leader. Although the music often sounded like it was from an earlier era of modern jazz, the quartet did sound spirited throughout their set.

The first set on Day Six, the last night of the 2025 Vision Fest featured Marilyn Crispell on solo piano. Mr. Crispell is a veteran avant/jazz pianist and has long been one of the best at what she does. Her work with the Anthony Braxton Quartet, Reggie Workman and Wadada Leo Smith is well-regarded by many serious listeners. For the opening set this night, Ms. Crispell played solo piano, something she doesn’t do that often. Ms. Crispell is a master pianist and took her time to let things build and evolve over her long, astonishing set. The lighting for this set was more subdued with nothing on the blue screen. Things began softly and kept building higher and more intensely. Midway through the set, Ms. Crispell turned down the flame and played a lovely, tranquil, sparse section which was most sublime. She again builds things up with some intense, cascading waves of notes crashing in a storm-like way. The entire set was extraordinary, one of the finest solo piano sets I’ve ever witnessed. She got a standing ovation at the end of the set and some folks are still talking about how incredible the set was. I was completely blown away!

The next set was led by percussion master Gerry Hemingway who was also a member of the Anthony Braxton Quartet along with Ms. Crispell. Mr. Hemingway’s group featured Izumi Kimura on piano, Earl Howard on synth & alto sax, Mr. Hemingway on drums, percussion & voice with Beth Warhafsky on interactive video projection. American-born percussionist, Gerry Hemingway, is currently living and teaching in Zurich, Switzerland. Japanese pianist Izumi Kimura now lives in Ireland and has been recording with Mr. Hemingway in a duo and a trio with Barry Guy. Earl Howard, on synth & alto sax, is a longtime collaborator with Mr. Hemingway, working with Mark Dresser and Denman Maroney. I didn’t know of video artist Barbara Warhafsky before this set but I did enjoy the various images that were projected across the screen. Ms. Kimura often plays prepared piano, muting the strings with her hands and other objects, Ms. Kimura often creates suspense with her prepared piano sounds and was joined by Mr. Howard who played some spacey Kurzweil synth. Mr. Hemingway also a longtime master of percussive sounds, bowing, rubbing or scraping his cymbals and drums to coax different mysterious sounds. Both Mr. Hemingway and Ms. Kimura often created sounds which were unique and fascinating to hear. It was hard to tell them apart at times. I often had to slow down my pulse and adjust to the subtly of the sounds/music created. There is a recent duo recording with Ms. Kimura and Mr. Hemingway, which is amongst the best discs of the year.  

Vocalist Fay Victor’s Tree Trini Collective was next and featured Lyndon Achee on steel drums and Jessie Cox on drums. Steel drummer Lyndon Achee has a band called Pan Assembly, which is a calypso band with some ten discs out. Whenever I’ve heard Downtown vocalist Fay Victor live or on record, she is playing with a different group of musicians. The music here was inspired by the music of Trinidad and Tobago, which is where Mr. Victor’s family has come from. She has never explored the music of her ancestors before this project began. The blend of vocals, steel drums and regular drums is quite unique and I thought that Ms. Victor did a fine job. The sound of steel drums is a blend of melodic and rhythmic elements so both are integral to the way this trio sounded. I am not sure if Ms. Victor was playing any traditional songs or melodies but I did get the feeling that some of the melodies sounded somewhat familiar to me. It was a nice change of pace from the freer, more explosive sets at the Vision Fest.

The following set featured the Rob Brown Trio with Rob on alto sax, Joe Morris on contrabass and Juan Paul Carletti on drums. By now, saxist Rob Brown is an elder of the Downtown Scene, his first record was released in 1988 (a duo with Matt Shipp). Mr. Brown has been working with Joe Morris (on guitar) since the early nineties and can be heard on a series of records with William Parker, Matt Shipp, Steve Swell and Karen Borca. Although mainly known as an incredible free/jazz guitarist, Joe Morris, has also been playing acoustic bass for quite a while, often in other musician’s bands or projects. South American drummer JP Carletti has been living in NYC for more than a decade and working with Tony Malaby, Daniel Levin & Joe Morris. Mr. Brown & Mr. Carletti have a duo disc out from 2022. Although this trio plays freely, they are completely focused and sound like they have a direction or undercurrent which flowed throughout the set. On each piece, one member would kick things off in a certain direction and the rest of the trio would soon join in. Over time, Joe Morris has become one of the best bassists around and his forceful, inventive playing was often at the center of storm going on around him. Rob Brown has a strong, spirited and recognizable tone on his alto sax. I noticed that on every piece, he would take his time and develop certain themes, bending and twisting certain notes in his own unique way, the trio often playing as one solid force of nature. Powerful and leaving us at the edges of our seats throughout the entire set. I’ve caught quite a number of sax/bass/drums trios over time and this set ranks as one of the finest of this type.

The last set of Day 6 was William Parker’s Healing Message featuring Mixashawn on tenor sax, Aakash Mittal on alto sax, Frank London & Amir ElSaffar on trumpets & hammered dulcimer, Selendis on vibes, Sula Spirit Janet Evans on voice & percussion, William Parker on bass, ethnic instruments & compositions and Hamid Drake on drums & voice. The set began with the chanting voices of Mr. ElSaffar, Sula Spirit & Mr. Mittal. The music has a lovely, warm, something soothing sound, with a central drone that is flowing, calmly yet inspiring. One by one, certain musicians enter and take lovely, oft sublime solos: Mixashawn (a/k/a Lee Rozie) on tenor sax, Frank London on muted trumpet and Selendis on vibes. Mr. ElSafar’s chanting and santor (hammered dulcimer) playing are the central sound for the first piece. The vibes, bass & drums (by Hamid) become the main sound in the next section, churning out a subtle yet cosmic inner force. Frank London, who was in the hospital earlier this year dealing with cancer, is back to performing and played here at DMG last month. Both he and Amir ElSaffar are great trumpeters and both had chances to solo (muted & unmuted) during this set. Ever since the mid-sixties when John Coltrane’s music was radiated by cosmic, spiritual forces and Albert Ayler titled an album, ‘Music is the Healing Force of the Universe’, there has been an ongoing Spirit/Jazz side to music which is meant to and often does inspire you/us in several ways. William Parker was directing this ensemble, providing a central spiritual bassline which was at the center of each piece. There were also four dancers in white costumes who were integral to the (visual) vibe of this set. Although Frank London played a shofar at one point (adding a religious vibe), both trumpeters got several chances to stretch out. A couple of highlights included the odd vocals by Sula Spirit and Hamid Drake’s soothing voice and frame drumming. This set felt like a perfect conclusion for this year’s Vision Fest.

What makes the Vision Fest so special is that it works on several levels simultaneously. Each of the 26 sets (that I attended) from this long fest were inspiring and provocative in different ways. A number of the musicians and/or bands only play in NYC once or twice a year, so they work hard on making their yearly sets something special. The big screen above the musicians and dancers, was also well-utilized with different images provided by selective visual artists. The lobby was filled with merch, t-shirts, posters, food & drink, tables from labels like ESP-Disk, Aum Fidelity and Rogue Art. The listeners come from around the world and often just come once a year just for this fest. This makes it feel like a positive family reunion of sorts, so I always look forward to seeing these yearly attendees who bring their good vibes from wherever they reside. This year, more so than at any other Vision Fest that I’ve attended, the need for protest, talking about our current political situation and finding something to inspire and uplift us through these dark times, is more important than ever. I felt and still feel richer and more inspired by the music, artwork and discussions that took place during this Vision Fest. Special thanks to Patricia Parker Nicholson, her staff and the staff at Roulette, to all of the musicians and artists who were there and to all of my yearly family/friends who embrace the Vision Spirit and spread it around to others who need it. You know who Loves you still… me, Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery