World-class Celtic and jazz ensembles headline Bath Waterfront | Column
After weeks of watching World Cup matches, I’ve become fascinated by the split-second decisions elite athletes make — fast choices made with a confidence and precision that only comes from years of repetition. At some point, practice stops looking like practice and starts looking like instinct.
That idea has been on my mind as I’ve been thinking about this weekend’s Levitt AMP Bath Waterfront Concert Series at 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26, at Waterfront Park in Bath. At first glance, The Bow Tides and the Jamie Saft Trio don’t have much in common. One is rooted in the traditions of Irish music and dance; the other in the language of jazz. But both are made up of musicians who have reached that remarkable point where years of discipline become intuition — and that is the foundation of creative freedom.
The Bow Tides perform during an Irish festival in 2024. The Celtic band will perform at the Bath Waterfront on Saturday. (Courtesy of The Bow Tides)
Led by fiddlers Ellery Klein, Jessie Burns and Katie Grennan, alongside Grammy-nominated bassist Eric Thorin and guitarist Jeff Lindblade, The Bow Tides draw deeply from Irish traditional music and dance while also performing original compositions that share the same Celtic roots. They know the tradition so well that they can reinterpret old tunes and also write original music that feels like the next step in its evolution. Their music is full of so much infectious energy and joy that I challenge anyone to sit still when this group takes the stage.
Jamie Saft Trio will pay Bath a visit for Sunday Jazz on the Water on July 26. (Courtesy of Chocolate Church Arts Center)
The same is true of Jamie Saft. Best known as a pianist, composer, producer and fearless improviser, Saft has spent his life exploring the possibilities of jazz while collaborating across genres. Joined by Tim Kelly on bass guitar and pedal steel and John Mettam on drums, the trio approaches everything through the vocabulary of jazz, whether they’re playing Thelonious Monk, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, the Great American Songbook or Saft’s own compositions. That kind of musical fluency only comes from a profound understanding of jazz.
The Japanese recognize the kind of lifelong devotion, represented by these two musical groups, as Living National Treasures, honored not only for their extraordinary skill but because they embody cultural traditions that might otherwise fade away. We’re fortunate to welcome both ensembles to the Bath waterfront this weekend. Whether through an Irish reel or jazz improvisation, these artists have committed themselves to their craft so thoroughly that they can push those traditions forward. They remind us that the musical traditions we love are living languages that remain vital because artists keep them alive and growing.
Catherine Gleason is the marketing and communications director at the Chocolate Church Arts Center.
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