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AFTER the Athens Olympics,
Greenwich is next stop for virtuoso jazz violinist Luluk
Purwanto.
The acclaimed Indonesian musician is
star guest attraction in this year's Riverfront Jazz festival, which
takes place in South-east London from September 17 to 26.
So keen is Luluk on the Greenwich
event that she and Dutch keyboardist Rene van Helsdingen will be
returning for the festival grand finale in the Trafalgar Tavern
after flying out to Boston, USA, for gigs there.
She will be appearing with her band
the Helsdingen Trio in one of two stage buses built for her. The bus
arrives in London after 12 days of performances in Messolongiou
Square, Athens, while the second bus is based in the States.
Organiser Dave Silk says: "When Luluk
came to Greenwich before and saw the Cutty Sark she got very
emotional and said she had a strong feeling the ship had been to
Indonesia.
"Apparently this was actually the case
when the Cutty Sark was involved in the tea trade and going to the
East.
"Her style has been compared to Jean
Luc Ponty - it's very dreamy and atmospheric and she scat sings.
"It's something between modern jazz
and world music with a Continental feel.
"The first time I heard her playing
was when I was in this band rehearsing for a festival in Holland and
I heard this fantastic sound coming from the next room.
"I knew I had to bring her to
Greenwich for the festival."
But Dave is quick to acknowledge that
without generous help from the Royal Netherlands Embassy in London,
the lead billing in this year's festival programme would have been
missing.
He says: "We couldn't afford them and
they made it all happen - fortunately they had a booking which was
cancelled."
*** Luluk plays in Greenwich town
centre during Car Free Day on September 19, free, Mycenae House
gardens, Mycenae Road, Blackheath on September 20 at 7pm, free,
Oliver's Bar, Nevada Street, Greenwich on Tuesday at 8.30pm, £3, and
the Trafalgar Tavern, Park Row, Greenwich, on September 26 at
7.30pm, £5/£4.
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