ERIC MYERS REVIEWS 1980-87
Eric Myers was the Sydney Morning Herald’s inaugural jazz critic, his first review appearing on February 2, 1980. This folder contains reviews and articles written by Myers up to his resignation in 1982. Text published in the newspaper is reproduced here, with the addition of photographs which may or may not have appeared in the newspaper. In 1983 Myers moved to The Australian, where he was that paper’s jazz critic, until he resigned towards the end of 1987. His reviews for that newspaper appear also in this folder. Articles which appeared in other publications are included here, if they serve to document the performances of Australian jazz musicians. Readers can click on the INDEX button for a list of reviews or articles in this folder.
Miroslav Vitous
MIROSLAV VITOUS QUARTET: FREE JAZZ BAFFLING BUT BRILLIANT
by Eric Myers
Sydney Morning Herald, January 19, 1982
It is a hapless time for a music reviewer when groups like the Miroslav Vitous Quartet perform in Sydney. Why, I hear you ask? Because, following the concerts, one is usually berated by jazz fans who have been thrown into confusion. What is this music? they ask. What does it all mean? Is it jazz?…
Herb Ellis & Ray Brown
THE JAZZ MASTERS: JET LAG NO IMPEDIMENT
by Eric Myers
Sydney Morning Herald, January 21, 1982
On Tuesday night the theory that jet lag inhibits jazz musicians was largely confounded. About three hours after stepping off their plane, Herb Ellis (guitar), Ray Brown (bass) and Monty Alexander (piano) delivered a delightful and professional performance which left an audience of 400 at the Musicians' Club well satisfied. Their music was confined to standard songs and the blues, enabling them to show their skills in the setting of familiar and accessible jazz structures…
Bob Barnard (left) & Len Barnard (right) both of whom attended the National Jazz Conference, pictured here with Benny Carter
JAZZ EDUCATION: A FEW QUESTIONS
by Eric Myers
JAMM Magazine, February, 1982
In January 1982, the jazz clinics run by Greg Quigley of the Australian Jazz Foundation, were held in Sydney and Melbourne. A team of about 25 American educators and jazz musicians attended, headed once again by the voluble Professor David Baker of the University of Indiana. The stars of this team included Freddie Hubbard, probably the leading trumpeter in jazz outside of Miles Davis, plus Miroslav Vitous (bass), Johnny Griffin (tenor saxophone) and many others. It is probably as good a time as any, therefore, to consider some questions which are alive in jazz circles: do we need jazz education in general?; do we need this type of jazz education in particular?; what can jazz education achieve, in terms of the survival and development of Australian jazz?...