At the Improv . . . Kaeshammer Style

Last night was another boogie woogie and eclectic mix of early, middle and late jazz and a few other things thrown in with the extraordinary musicality of Michael Kaeshammer.  When I was at a concert in 2012 Mr. Kaeshammer had a guitarist, drummer and some brass with him.  This time I was at a small venue with only a couple of hundred of people and he had a fine guitarist and drummer with him.  Physically we were much closer.  I heard an audience member lamenting that unless you were on the extreme left of the stage you couldn't see his hands, but the stage was so small he had to be there to conduct his compatriots.  He had to see them and be seen, because the real musicality here is what we hear so little of these days . . . improvisation. 

There is one famous classical pianist who does, Gabriela Montero, but it is reasonably rare these days.  It is more common in the rock and blues world but no so much with acoustic instruments. 

The other thing that really comes across in Kaeshammer's performance is the evident joy in the music.  What a relief in a world full of irony, ennui and insouciance! 

His playing brings new life to some classics of jazz but also to great melodies and rhythms from other genres. 

The energy is so potent, my question is what kind of fire does he have inside?  Thanks so much for sharing the gift.