You're reading: Musicians flock to Lviv to jam at Leopolis Jazz Festival

When the sun goes down, visitors to the Leopolis Jazz Festival migrate from the big stages to jam sessions – informal events held in small clubs, where musicians improvise until the early morning.

The festival, which was held in Lviv from June 27 to July 1, hosted 20 jam sessions at six venues. There, amateurs got to share the stage with some of the most acclaimed jazz musicians from all over the world.

Overcrowded yet fun, these jam sessions were the highlight of the festival for some jazz fans.

Diana Dzhabar, a saxophonist and a student of Reinhold Glière Kyiv Institute of Music, visited the festival for the third time this year.

At one of the jam sessions, Dzhabar got to perform with famous U.S. musician Robert Glasper and his band R+R=NOW, who performed on the main festival stage on June 28. She sang a jazz standard and improvised.

“I was so delighted that I could jam with such musicians – you turn your head and there’s Glasper playing the drums,” Dzhabar told the Kyiv Post. “It’s a great experience,” she added.

Exchange

At every jam session, there was a band to start off the night – mostly Kyiv- and Lviv-based groups including musicians from all over Ukraine.

As a jam continues, musicians from the audience can join the band or take over from some of their members – they choose a musical theme (usually a certain standard melody) and improvise instrumental solos one by one, or blend them together.

The audience at these informal meetups is mostly made up of jazz musicians and students, and they are good networking opportunities for musicians.

Misha Ostapenko, 26, a saxophonist of the fusion jazz band Elei, which performed at the Leopolis jam sessions and also on one of the main festival stages, says that many musicians team up to play together after meeting at jams.

“Jams involve the beauty of people’s communication. Musicians come here, share ideas, play songs and change them, play interesting phrases and others pick them up,” he told the Kyiv Post.

Ostapenko has been playing the saxophone since childhood. Today he lives in Kyiv and performs professionally with a couple of bands.

The musician occasionally visits jams in Kyiv, but because of the lack of time skips them often. That is why he was looking forward to coming to Leopolis and “get on fire.”

He says that playing on a big stage is very exciting – although it’s not the location that matters in music.

“I love playing good music no matter where,” Ostapenko said.

As he finished jamming for a fourth night in a row on July 1, he left the crowded Libraria Speak Easy Bar to have a night-time walk – tired yet happy.

The New Brain Trio & Balog jazz band perform at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at The First Lviv Grill restaurant of Meat and Justice in Lviv on June 29. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
Musicians play jazz at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at The First Lviv Grill Restaurant of Meat and Justice in Lviv on June 29. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
People dance to the live Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at The First Lviv Grill Restaurant of Meat and Justice in Lviv on June 29. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
People listen to the live Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at The First Lviv Grill Restaurant of Meat and Justice in Lviv on June 29. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
People listen to the live Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Lviv Coffee Mining Manufacture in Lviv on June 30. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
People enjoy the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Lviv Coffee Mining Manufacture in Lviv on June 30. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
Kyiv-based jazz band Elei performs at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Libraria Speak Easy Bar in Lviv on July 1. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
Saxophonist of the Ukrainian jazz band Elei Misha Ostapenko performs with his band at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Libraria Speak Easy Bar in Lviv on July 1. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
People hang out by the bar at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Libraria Speak Easy Bar in Lviv on July 1. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
Jazz musicians perform at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Pravda Beer Theater in Lviv on July 2. (Oleg Petrasiuk)
Musicians play jazz at the Leopolis Jazz Fest jam session at Pravda Beer Theater in Lviv on July 2. (Oleg Petrasiuk)

Competition

U.S. bass player Benjamin Tiberio, who performed at the festival with the John Stetch Trio, used to attend jams in New York often, and so he checked out one of the Leopolis jams as well.

“It’s very crucial to meeting new musicians and networking,” he told the Kyiv Post. “It’s a very interesting culture. But there are a lot of egos going around too,” Tiberio added.

Another musician from the John Stetch Trio, drummer Philippe Lemm agrees with Tiberio. Based in New York, he hosted jam sessions for two years there.

“Jam sessions can be very nice, but they can be terrible,”  Lemm said. “I think the band (Elei) that played was great, but then from the moment people were sitting in musically it was getting less good.”

The competition, indeed, spreads around the hall. The line to participate forms very quickly and triggers a natural selection – the most persistent musicians can play a couple of songs in a row, while others might even lose the desire to step in.

Jazz singer Anastasia Boyko, 27, says that she is the beginner in the world of professional music. She believes that at jams it’s important to overcome anxiety, relax and listen.

“Everyone has a different level but we all learn,” she told the Kyiv Post. “You just have to strive and do it sincerely,” she added.

Along with her boyfriend and fellow musician, pianist Gleb Sviridov, Boyko performed at three jam sessions at their second Leopolis.

Both musicians have been working in China performing in a hotel for the last couple of years. They say that it’s difficult to stay in a closed group of musicians.

“We wanted to hear something new – it impels new thoughts and triggers a groove,” Sviridov said.

Although they both enjoyed playing jams, Sviridov, 25, says it was difficult at times because everyone was trying to get onto the stage.

“My understanding is that jams are where people communicate, not compete. It’s not an audition,” he said.

After Boyko and Sviridov performed Bobby Troup’s popular rhythm and blues standard “Route 66” along with other musicians on June 30, the crowd of Lviv Coffee Mining Manufacture gave them a loud round of applause.

Sviridov says that while everyone liked the performance, the musicians did not, as they are their own harshest critics.

“If you play well, keep practicing so that you don’t slack off, and if you play badly, keep practicing to continue learning,” he said.