For Francophones, this interview has been translated by Cambodge Mag and can be read here in French.
Saturday 30 April is the UNESCO International Jazz Day, a worldwide celebration that has been held annually since 2011 “to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe”. Concerts and events will be held across seven continents, from Albania to Mexico to Zimbabwe, and this year Phnom Penh has one of the larger events in Indochina. Treellion Park on Koh Pich will host eight hours of a variety of styles under the jazz umbrella. Organiser Phil Javelle sat down with Leng Pleng to talk about Saturday and all that jazz.
“The Jazz Day patron is Herbie Hancock,” says Phil, “Who I had the pleasure to meet and perform with here in Phnom Penh in 2011. I did the first edition of IJD in Phnom Penh in 2014 at [now closed venue] Doors with drummer Louis Pragasam and Alan Breen on saxophone. We had a full house, it was great. This year it’s on a Saturday, so I thought maybe we can make it bigger. I sent a message to the jazz musicians I knew, and everybody said: let’s do it.”
Within the park there will be stages in front of restaurants The Bus and The Glasshouse, with each act performing a half hour set – two combos will play on one stage and then the action will switch to the other for two more. It’s quite the line-up, with plenty of familiar faces and newcomers, showing the versatility, variety and great diversity of music and musicians.
“Intan Andriana’s Funky Chicken will open the festival, followed by Blue Wave. Then a set from Chor Yee, a great young Cambodian singer who has been turned on to jazz, followed by The Blue Souls with special guest Simon Wong. Son Caribe is myself with Gunter Hofmans on percussion and Cecile Dahome on vocals – a mix of Brazilian, Creole, Cuban songs. Violinist Sharon Lui is leading a tribute to famous jazz violinist Didier Lockwood.”
Phil is particularly excited about introducing performers who are so far less familiar to Phnom Penh audiences. “Heather Smith is an Afro-American singer – a bit of a TikTok star influencer in Cambodia as Auntie Heat, and one of the organisers of the African nights at Sharky Bar – who does covers of Chaka Khan, Anita Baker in the original keys. Lady Yay, Afro-British, a singer, DJ and dancer, who will start with singing and then move on to a DJ set.
“All the artists are going to do things they don’t do for their usual gigs. The Blue Souls doing a BB King tribute, Chor Yee will be doing much more jazz songs than usual, Mirasoul is getting into the Aretha Franklin catalogue, and Funky Chicken will be doing Ella Fitzgerald songs.”
While jazz in Phnom Penh has waxed and waned over the years, the line-up shows the strength of the current scene. “Yesterday I did an interview for Le Petit Journal, and I was asked if Phnom Penh was a jazz city – I’d say Phnom Penh is definitely a jazz city. When I arrived 12 years ago and set up Studio 182, the jazz club at Topaz, it was pretty much the only place where jazz was – and it wasn’t contemporary jazz, it was more popular swing and Latin jazz. But these days there is a great diversity of musicians, lots of jam sessions where people come and play, much more than you find in Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur. There’s not so much competition, it’s very open.
“If you have a look at the International Jazz Day website, you see lots and lots of gigs in America, Europe, and in South East Asia not so many – here in Phnom Penh we are part of a global celebration. And not just a concert in a club – we’re doing a whole festival, with 26 artists. Next year why not make it bigger and spread across two days? There are things that you can do in an open park-like space that you can’t do in bars and restaurants. There will be lots of food and drinks available, and in fact Volcano Sausage is making a special roast pork loin sandwich for the occasion. Also Cohiba Cigar Club will set up a lounge in front of The Glasshouse for cigar lovers.”
In harmony with the jazz festival, at the venue next door, Coconut Park, CULT is doing their regular CULT FEST sustainable market at the same time, with Son Sabor Trio as a live music offering. Both organisers are joining forces to promote a great day in the sunshine and green spaces in the heart of Phnom Penh. Accesses between the two parks will be open.
Along with organising, Phil also has found himself in the ideal International Jazz Day position of being asked to play with almost all of the bands on the bill. “I’m joining eight of the nine bands on stage but I’m not at the front. I’ll be playing eight sets, so four hours of music – I’m actually having a better time than everybody else.”
Treellion Park hosts the International Jazz Day celebration from 5 pm till 1 am on Saturday 30 April. Free entrance.