7:45 PM. Matisse Stage. A few raindrops have not driven the audience away. On stage, the winners of the competition organized by the Nice Jazz Festival Off. It is Milevska Trio who won this golden opportunity: the chance to perform during the festival.
Those who will become great
A drum kit, an electric bass, and a harp. Rossitza Milevska, the blonde Bulgarian, moves her hands between the strings with perfect grace. The audience is captivated. The instrument is strikingly modern, even when playing standards. As she sings “The Perfect Melody.” New favorites, they start one of their compositions. A piece inspired by Raoul Midon, heard right here at the arena some time ago. The circle is complete. Patrice Taboni, the bassist, admits that “it was a bit complicated to play with a harp, composed measures, strange metrics. But yes, developing this music on a harp really gave us the feeling of doing something original”… and unique. A well-deserved victory.
8:20 PM. The audience of the Bulgarian trio cannot move, captivated by the artists who take turns. Moving beyond jazz, the Matisse Stage brings a “Good Morning Vietnam” atmosphere with Morley. Hippie style, acoustic guitar, and a husky voice, the beautiful New Yorker brings a seventies breeze to the festival. The hill of Cimiez then lives on American time.
She who already is
9:15 PM. A few meters away, the garden stage is empty. Among the olive trees, festival-goers push forward, squeeze together, and stand on tiptoe to see the one they are all waiting for. She steps on stage, guitar in hand. Silence falls. The “queen of folk” begins her first song.
Joan Baez has fans of all generations, from all countries, from all parties. And those who did not know “the Madonna of the poor” left richer within their inner selves. Joan Baez is the mother of all those moved by committed songs, those who (still) believe in peace. Far from Woodstock, the spirit is still there. Unchanging. Sadly timeless. An icon of the seventies, Joan Baez has not changed and sings in the contemporary spirit, in French, if you please: “We are waiting for you, Ingrid, and we will be free when you know it.” She is a messenger who, with each song, explains to her audience the meaning of the words to come. A unique exchange. Infinite applause around the ever-unswayed olive trees.
