VIDEO Kenny G a cantat la Sala Palatului: Sax de Cartea Recordurilor

Kenny G, muzicianul care a intrat in Cartea Recordurilor pentru cea mai lunga nota muzicala cantata la saxofon (45 minute si 12 secunde), a concertat in Bucuresti, pe 30 aprilie. Vreme de doua ore, unul dintre cei mai bine cotati instrumentisti ai tuturor timpurilor a prezentat poate cel mai frumos spectacol gazduit de Sala Palatului, a vorbit in limba romana, a facut show cum numai americanii stiu sa faca, a daruit un saxofon unui cuplu norocos si a glumit pe seama colegului de la percutie. „He tries to scare me. ‘Cause of his muscles. But he forgets that as a saxophone player, I developed a whole different set of muscles. All you have to do is look at the small little whistle around his neck and the big saxophone I have in my hands.”

Cine crede ca muzica instrumentala este plictisitoare sau ca doua ore de saxofon te vor face sa casti, ei bine, inseamna ca nu a fost partas la nici un concert Kenny G. Pe numele lui adevarat Kenneth Gorelick, celebrul saxofonist american a demonstrat inca de la inceput ca, atunci cand vine vorba de „show”, americanii nu au rivali.

A inceput sa cante „cocotat” pe o cutie aflata in partea stanga a salii, printre oameni, cu luminile si privirile toate atintite spre el, dar ajutat de trupa aflata pe scena, inca in umbra. Cele doua ecrane gigant au grija sa ne informeze despre numele piesei cu numarul doi:

Silhouette („an outline of smth”). Piesa a ajuns la final, nota emisa de saxofon inca nu. Se aude fara interupere, ca un zumzet de tantar meloman, pret de 10 secunde, 20, 30,…, un minut: oare cum respira Omul Saxofon? Asta daca respira! Face cu mana catre spectatori, in semn de salut, publicul aplauda gestul, el se roteste din respect pentru cei care il inconjoara, nota tot nu inceteaza. Omul Saxofon isi paraseste locul de pe piedestal, inainteaza printre spectatori, public rade, aplauda. Kenny urca pana la urma pe scena, doua minute, trei minute… Gata, s-a oprit. Doar trei minute (recordul era de peste 45) a „reusit” sa tina acea nota. Rasufla zgomotos, cu emfaza, pentru a primi aplauzele binemeritate, dar ne lasa impresia ca ar putea canta asa la infinit.

Ne-a castigat respectul, asa ca acum vrea sa ne castige si simpatia, caci ne vorbeste in limba romana. „Regret che romana mea nu este foarte buna. Dar am sa ma straduiesc. In sera asta este prima data che suntem in Romania si ne bucuram ca sintem aici. Va multumesc che sinteti aici. Si acum vom canta un quartet „casera” numeste Havana”.

Se opreste dupa cateva secunde, caci a uitat sa ne anunte ca unul dintre noi va pleca acasa cu un saxofon. „I also wanted to say one more thing that I’m excited about tonight. This is the saxophone I play since I was a baby. And I’ve actually wanted to make my own saxophone. And that one right there is the one that I created myself, that’s very much like my old saxophone. And I wanted to bring that to your attention, because tonight I’m gonna give that saxophone away for one of you.”

Aflam si cum va decurge programul serii. „Whoever wins the saxophone will come up onto the stage, we’re gonna put two chairs, and you’ll sit down, I’ll play the saxophone for you, and when I’ve finished with the song, I will hand you the saxophone and you get to take it home with you. If you want to be part of this contest, the people in the lobby have the information and you can go out there, sometime during the concert and ask them. We’ll give that saxophone away in about one hour and 20 minutes. So that’s what I wanted to say and then again: „multumesc”.”

Porneste din nou piesa Havana („a city of rhythm and romance”). Pe parcursul piesei, este „inganat” de „greierii” percutionistului de culoare din spate. Este vorba de unele dintre multele instrumente de percutie detinute de Ron Powell. Kenny G ii face de cateva ori semn cu degetul: „no more”. Publicul este din ce in ce mai amuzat. Urmeaza un solo de percutie al musculosului instrumentist, un solo de tobe, apoi din nou Ron Powell apare in prim plan si face show: dialogheaza cu publicul prin batai de tamburina si gesturi elocvente, face giumbuslucarii si ne face sa ne gandim ca ar putea fi oricand angajat la un circ.

Reintra in scena Kenny G, pentru G-loop („without the B but without the G”), dar mai ales pentru Forever In Love („a lifetime story rhythm and romance”), piesa care i-a adus premiul Grammy, in 1994, la categoria “Cea mai buna compozitie instrumentala”.

„It’s ok if I speak english now? How was my Romanian? Not bad, right? One day… just think if I lived here, how good I’d be in about… 10 years!”, glumeste Kenny G, pentru ca apoi sa-si prezinte colegii de pe scena, in timp pe ecrane vedem poze cu fiecare dintre ei, in perioada copilariei/adolescentei.

Aflam ca Robert Damper, pianistul, este un fost coleg de liceu, alaturi de care a avut multe satisfactii: „We actually played at the White House together for President Clinton, many years ago”.

„Someone that’s gonna come out later on in our concert, he’s goin’ to play a bass solo that I guarantee you will be the very best bass solo you’ve ever seen in your entire life. It’s the best bass solo. However, it’s a very confusing bass solo. Because when you watch him play, you will see him do things on the bass that you’ve never seen before. Amazing! But then it gets confusing, because you will say to yourself: „How can he play that way? He’s white!”, glumeste Kenny pe seama lui Vail Johnson.

Ne vorbeste si de omul de la tobe, Daniel Bejarano, aflat de doar doi ani alaturi de Kenny, in timp ce toti ceilalti canta impreuna de 20 de ani.

„And I wanna tell you right now that my Romanian was not on my screen. It was here, in my pocket, and I memorised it, so I just wanted to say that!”, precizeaza saxofonistul, inainte de a trece la cel mai valoros si mai apreciat coleg al sau, Ron Powell, care tocmai s-a hotarat sa se uite urat (in mod intentionat, desigur). „So now, as you see, he tries to scare me. ‘Cause of his muscles. But he forgets that as a saxophone player, I developed a whole different set of muscles. All you have to do is look at the small little whistle around his neck and the big saxophone I have in my hands. And you can see the difference right there. He wants me to cut me my hair like his. I don’t think so”. „Why not?”, intreaba o voce din public. „Because I’m gonna look like him”, se amuza pletosul Kenny pe seama cheliei colegului sau.

Ne vorbeste si despre chitaristul John Raymond, pe care il cunoaste de peste 25 de ani, asta nu inainte de a ne arata celalalt job al percutionistului. Pe ecrane il vedem pe Ron, pe jumatate dezbracat si cu tobe in brate, pozand pentru lunile Aprilie si Mai ale unui calendar-sexy (trucat, desigur).

Apoi, Kenny ne arata cum reuseste sa cante o nota fara intrerupere. „Let me explain how I hold a note so long at the begining of the concert. Because I’m breathing. While I’m playing the saxophone, I’m breathing in my nose. Out of my mouth, in my nose at the same time. Try it. Ok, so that sounds impossible, of course. I’m gonna prove it that I can do it. What I’m gonna do is I’m goin’ to hold a note on my saxophone and – this is for you – I’ll put my nose against the microphone. I’m gonna inhale so you can hear me inhale. See how easy it is?”, glumeste el dupa demonstratia de un minut.

„After the concert tonight I’m gonna come out in the lobby and sigh CD’s for you and I will tell you that I will stay as long as anybody wants to get my signature on the CD, I will stay hours long if you want me to stay, I want go. Everybody gets the signature they want”, spune artistul, castigand definitiv inimile celor prezenti.

Urmeaza cateva cantece de pe noul CD: Rhythm And Romance („the little track from the latin album”), Tango („the dance of Rhythm And Romance”), Sax-o-loco („the #1 smooth jazz song of 2008”), care deschid calea catre Besame Mucho („as if this night were the last night”). „The other songs we played were our my own compositions, but this one that we’re gonna play is a very famous latin song”.

A venit si momentul cel mai asteptat al serii: in urma unei extrageri, un cuplu apare pe scena, Kenny acordeaza saxofonul, le canta celor doi o piesa, apoi le inmaneaza cadoul.

Seara se apropie de final cu What A Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong apare si el, sub forma unei inregistrari, desigur), vine si acel solo de bas promis si, din nou, apare Kenny G, de data asta din dreapta salii, luandu-ne prin surprindere. Se plimba printre spectatori, inainteaza cativa metri, din nou isi ocupa locul pe cutia-piedestal si termina in aplauzele publicului.

Cele doua ore de saxofon nu puteau fi insa complete fara un bis. Artistul reapare, isi primeste portia de aplauze si de trandafiri, ne interpreteaza singur o piesa clasica si incheie cu Songbird („the song that changed Kenny’s life”). Toate astea in seara in care Kenny G, la randul lui, ne-a schimbat viata.