07.10.08 kulturnatib

Starting young

Two years ago was my first time at the Montreal International Jazz Festival. Started in 1979, this festival has now become a powerhouse in the international jazz fest circuit and has helped establish Montreal as the city of festivals.

While at that time our visit to the MIJF had a singular purpose; that of seeing the legendary bluesman BB King in a pre-festival concert that also launched his 80th birth year world concert tour, this time around our aim was more scatter-shot.

This meant, and this is the feature I like about this festival, to just wander around the festival site where around the main -- meaning paying -- concert hall at the Place des Arts there are anywhere between 4 - 6 mini-concerts, often simultaneous, starting as early as 2pm until 11pm, with most concerts lasting an hour to an hour and a half.

By no means does this distinction between the paying and free concerts translate necessarily into quality of music. Often this is just a comparison between apples and oranges. They are just both fruits yet different with respect to the most qualities that distinguishes them separately. In the same way, paying and free jazz are both jazz. The most immediate difference is that the former will simply make your wallet or pocket or even credit card lighter.

Also, scatter-shot doesn't necessarily mean blind shot. There is a very comprehensive schedule that is as reliable and punctual as Mussolini's trains. It is published in a comprehensive festival guide and are displayed on billboards prominently positioned throughout the festival site. So, we did have our finger on one or two acts, but the rest depended on what was playing next door or how interesting it was.

Needless to say, the central business district of Montreal where the festival is located is swarming with people during the festival. Also, it goes without saying that this festival is timed for the sunniest, longest and balmiest days of summer.

What's more, these are all kinds of people, including, I just noticed this year, small people. There is no reason to think that it is only this year that children are prominent participants in the festival. The only reason, perhaps, is that one normally does not see what one is not looking for. Or, in this case, looking out for.

This time, we had a newborn to look out for. Suddenly, unlike two years ago, children were all over the place. Some in their places -- in prams, slings and even bicycle seats -- and some not. We brought along our pram on this trip, but decided it was too big -- it has been described as the Humvee of prams -- and unwieldy to maneuver around the crowds. Plus, there was the matter of hauling it on escalators on the subway train stations. Again, picture a Humvee.

We decided on a sling. Which is about the best way an infant can enjoy music in a position that is also enjoyable for the caretaker in a concert where seats or chairs have to be self-provided.

There you are standing with the baby pressed to your chest who feels your heartbeat as it thumps along with the beat of the music. While the ears are not in the best reception position, the sound system amplifies the music very well and often there are enough people around knowledgeable with the music to hum or sing along.

There is no way then that the baby misses the music. It could be argued that they would, at that age, be too young to make out anything of the music much less retain it. But this argues against the universal practice of the lullaby and the singing to the baby to sleep, calm them or even introduce them into the particular world of sounds and words and the general horizon of the imagination.

Realizing this, the organizers have taken very welcome steps to make the festival child friendly. Most immediately, prams are available gratis, as long as supply last, for use within the festival site for however long on a single day.

Then there are special booths where children can play or otherwise be engaged, like having their faces or other body parts painted.

There is event a diaper changing and breast feeding tent. But here is where the organizers failed to anticipate the number of mothers who would avail of this facility. There was only one such tent with a single changing table. The breast feeding facility was just as incompetently organized. A single chair affair really plus a hastily commandeered folding stool from the adjoining tent where the free parking for prams that the owners, for some reason didn't want to push around.

So, the inevitable line-up and grumbling and babies wailing -- ours mostly.

Still, that was about the only bump in the otherwise smooth festival where it is almost a shoe-in that many years later the children who were the clueless cuties in this festival would be the parents who would be bringing their own cuties to the same yet different festival.