Untitled Document
PETRAS VYŠNIAUSKAS AND STUDENTS
Lithuania
Petras Vyšniauskas – ss, p
Janas Maksimowiczius – ss, ts
Juozas Kuraitis – ts, ss
Dovydas Stalmokas – as, b cl, bs
Simonas Šipavičius – as
Five saxophonists on the stage? Who came up with this idea? Local jazz listeners would easily be able to guess.
Petras Vyšniauskas is the most highly regarded Lithuanian jazz musician and no one will have a problem with his subtle joke. When asked by the festival organisers what should be announced about his performance, the saxophonist sent information about his group, Dovanų Kortelė (eng. a gift voucher), with his tongue firmly in his cheek—“the group has never won a Grammy Award, it has never performed outside Lithuania, and has not yet recorded any album. You will not see the group in any film either.” We are sure that their performance will be not devoid of humour.
The legendary jazzmen John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, and many other saxophonists who changed the history of jazz, would undoubtedly like to play with this group, the only problem being that they would have been too early, as Dovanų Kortelė was only founded in 2009. And was immediately invited to play at the European Jazz project.
Hubris? Perhaps not, as to list the achievements of this man, who was awarded the Lithuanian Order of Grand Duke Gediminas and the National Culture and Art Award laureate, as well as the honorary citizenship of three towns in Lithuania, would take as much time as to listen to his performance; but it is music, after all, that is most important, isn’t it? He rose to fame back in Soviet times and since then has released over 60 records, experimented in the genres of folklore and theatre music, performed numerous times in Europe, the USA, and Asia, and has his name in many jazz encyclopaedias.
Yet Vyšniauskas says little or nothing about himself. It is his work that speaks for itself, including projects with many international stars. and invitations to teach master classes to jazz students.
As a music lecturer Vyšniauskas helped many local musicians currently making a career in the jazz scene. And now they are joining their teacher on stage, although, this is no end of course exam. What Janas Maksimowiczius, Juozas Kuraitis, Dovydas Stalmokas, and Simonas Šipavičius together with Vyšniauskas are going to play for us remains one of the great intrigues of the festival. But, after all, you shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth, or a Gift Voucher, for that matter. So let’s just sit back and see what surprises Dovanų Kortelė have in store for us.
