Day 10 – July 10, 2003
The Jazz Sommer
Graz is the host of an event called Jazz Sommer which I’m told is nothing much more than a way for the very wealthy to see free music. Many prominent jazz artists have headlined in the past. This year was Dionne Warwick. No offense, but I don’t really consider Dionne Warwick to be "jazz".
The Jazz Sommer stage was set up on the riverbank directly across from the Acconci on der Mur and the organizers had an agreement with the 2003 Committee. Since Acconci was slated to run until July 13, Jazz Sommer would not begin until July 15, 2003. The Mur is not a very wide river at all, so the distance between the two venues was minuscule. Obviously there would be an issue with volume and crowds.
Due to a schedule change in Ms. Warwick’s tour, the event began on July 10. This was a blatant breech of a gentleman’s agreement.
The Jazz Shadow
In an act of protest against Jazz Sommer, the folks at 2003 and created the Jazz Shadow to take place on the island on the very first night of Ms. Warwick’s engagement. A troupe of musicians would play louder and better than the Warwick band.
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| Getting settled in for a night of great music | |
Their initial intent was to get a hold of Dionne Warwick’s set list and play along with her, but that fell through. Tension was high with the possibility of the police shutting the Acconci down due to interference. Let’s face it; all of the politically and financially "influential" types were at Jazz Sommer.
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| Mmmmm … fooooood | |
Thankfully the night went on without incident. Although I thought it would have been great publicity if we had gotten shut down. Some of the higher-ups in the 2003 Committee were on hand to grill yummy food and serve the people. This was a wonderful gesture of solidarity with we the people of Acconci.
 Karl & Heidi |
 Consul Hoff showing support |
 Milan |
 Karl in a blue muumuu |
Dissolution of the Republic
This was also the night that saw the dissolution of the Republic in the form of a drunken disco party. As people danced and drank, as the sound equipment began to fail, you could feel the end was near.
To be honest, I had forgotten all about the fact that Acconci on der Mur was to be a short lived nation. There are questions about what will happen to the Island after the end of the 2003 Cultural Capital. It is sad to think about the possibility that this could all be dismantles if they do not get someone to take it over
My thought is an ideal solution would be for it to stand as the central performance theater in Graz. It is perfectly suited for such things as has been proven during the existence of Acconci an der Mur.
I hope that some generous soul swill find a way to save this place from an unthinkable demise.
Anyway, Irina and I chose not to stay for the debauchery of the disco and left instead to visit some of the players from the band that had performed at the Jazz Shadow.
The Wrath of Ratzer
We walked over to a basement blues bar called Skarabäus. We met singer Heidi first. You could see she was troubled about something. Then came bassist Milan and his girlfriend Alex. She, by the way is another very gifted vocalist. We began to chat and laugh a little awaiting our misfortune; the arrival of Karl Ratzer.
Loud, large, drunk and abusive, Ratzer was the leader of the Jazz Shadow band. He’s considered to be somewhat of a local legend. In my opinion, a very good guitar player, but a horrible bandleader. I could tell this just from watching his performace and his demanding, tense way in which he conducted the band. He has also been known to be both verbally and physically abusive to his players. And this night was no different. He was pissed about some thing or another.
You could hear his bear like screams emanating from somewhere in the bar. The tension was thick. He bellowed his way down to the main area of the bar. Still grumbling about whatever. At one point, he used me to brace his fat self as his over inebriated legs could no longer do the trick. I felt like saying, "Dude! You’re good, but you’re not THAT good!!"
These younger players work with him because of his status. They want to learn from his experiences. Who knows, maybe when he’s sober he’s a good teacher. But witnessing what I did, it’s just not worth all of that shit.
 July 2003 |
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