Hello All
Well I’m back from the Blackpool Keyboard Festival UK, (Actually half way back as I am stopping over a few days with friends) and here is my personal report of the week, others may or may not agree.
FRIDAY
After a 7 hr trip which should have taken no more then 5, (Never seen so many road works at the same time) I booked in and got settled, before having a quick look round the stands before Dinner.
During Dinner the first surprise appeared, as on the table on one of the flyers (Most dealers stick them on the tables during the week) a World Preview was going to occur on the Saturday, and that was that Roland were flying over direct from the factory, the E80 Arranger Keyboard, (For the one day only) it was then going back to Roland on the Sunday.
The evening concert started with Chris Jones playing the Yamaha US 1 and Technics KN 7000, (Which he has built into one cabinet) and even taking into account that the sound system did not seem set up correctly, his overall performance was rather bland, however in spite of this, one thing did stand out, and that was the KN 7000, which in spite of all the improvements other manufactures have made, can still hold its head up high.
The second artist was Peter Hayward playing the Yamaha Clavinova, and what a performance he gave, absolutely brilliant, in spite of the fact that he had very little practice on this model.
Chris Powell was up next, and another cracking performance on the Roland Atelier, in fact so good are the organs on this instrument, that if you were blindfolded I would doubt if you could tell the difference between this and a Wurlitzer Pipe Organ, also the total package was just beautifully balanced. (Something its main rival Yamaha never seemed able to achieve with its Electones)
Final concert featured Dirk Jan Ranzijn from Holland playing the High End Bohm Organ, and I have to say that I have heard him play better; also the instrument sound engine was showing its age. (Although modified over the years, it is still based on the Opera 2000 technology, which they introduced in the early 90s)
And so we come to the end of day 1.
SATURDAY
Had a good look round and finished at the Wersi stand were they were showing the use of Midi files, and Audio recording. A surprise was in store however as Jean Martin did an impromptu concert on the Wersi, and it was revealed that from about June/July, she will be using a Wersi Verona for all her concerts, bringing an end to many years of playing various models of Yamaha Electone.
After a short break for lunch, I attended the first Demo of the Roland E80 keyboard through an SR speaker system, which to me sounded too bright and clinical for the E80.
The E80 itself is basically a G70 with all the rough edges removed, and considerably more Styles, Sounds (Including advancement of the sound quality) and general capabilities. Real Guitar mode didn’t sound as good as the G70 but as the demonstrator had only a day to get to know the instrument that will probably improve. (It was also announced that it would be on site all week, rather then for one day)
BTW. I don’t know were the original demos come from on the Synth Zone site, but they sounded as close to the E80 as chalk is to cheese.
The sound overall was to me, more up front then real instruments, which I have to say is the complete opposite to Tyros 2, which has a more laid back sound, and so like the Roland does not fully convince that you are listening to real instruments.
To be fair in the morning I had been listening to the new Wersi OAS 7 software, which for sound accuracy (And real feeling) beats both the Roland and Tyros 2 hands down. (I could be a bit biased here though)
The afternoon was fairly quiet so I decided to see the full Franz Lambert DVD that I had purchased in the morning, and it just has to be seen to fully appreciate his brilliance.
The evening’s concert started with the winners of the Yamaha Electone competition, and to say that the playing by the young Chinese that attended was quite amazing is an understatement, the classical music played (Without Music) was brilliant, however for me the best performance was one of the English contestants, who played a totally unique version of The Blue Danube.
Janet Dowsett followed playing the Electone, and gave a polished if Lacklustre performance.
Third was Jean Martin also playing her Electone, (Shortly to move over to Wersi) and the performance as usual was brilliant, with the playing of all types of music, and also with some fantastic footwork on the pedals. (And not just solo, but in full swing with her performance on the manuals)
Final Artist Hady Wolfe did not make it to the show due to illness, and was replaced by Jur Tikie, this was his first visit to the UK and he was obviously nervous, however he gave a safe and inoffensive performance, (Much better then some Artists which try to impress by blowing you out the room) towards the end he did start to open up, and I look forward to his concerts in the future, which I think will be something special. (The instrument played was the Wersi Scala with OAS 7)
After the concerts most sensible people went straight over to the Queen Vic Pub to see Alan Haven for one of his late night jazz shows, and a great time as had by all, it also proved the point that you don’t need the latest Hi Tech keyboards for a great performance.
SUNDAY
Informal concert in the morning with Jur Tickie, and the sound flowed out beautifully, he being much more relaxed and letting his true talents come out.
The rest of the morning was spent just moving around the stands, and taking in the atmosphere.
The afternoon commenced with a demonstration of the new Wersi Xenios Organ, (Now finally ready for production) and one of the first things that was pointed out was that the weight was only 23Kg, which for a 2 keyboard high performance rugged instrument is very light indeed.
The instrument was running OAS 7 just like the other instrumentation the stand, and was providing brilliant sounds, the afternoon continued with a demonstration on the Verona and Scala, using just the inbuilt sound system and speakers, and to say it filled the large demonstration area is an understatement, once again virtually all the sounds were top notch.
The afternoon came to a close with the question and answer session, before the audience then chose what particular sounds they wanted to hear, and no matter what sound was asked for, everyone was impressed with them.
The evening started with Reg Rawlings playing his Midi Accordion complete with backing unit, most of the sounds was of his own samples, and featured mainly Theatre Organ with the sound accuracy being awesome. (The samples are currently also available for Korg, Roland and Yamaha, with others to follow)
2nd on the list was Daniel Watt playing the Wersi Spectra complete with the EX 1 OAS Expander, and while the performance was ok, the actual sound was very poor, and more work needed to be done to get the right mix with the Bose PAS speakers used on stage. (If you like up front sound, then you would have loved the sound)
Next up was the American Dennis Awe, (The Liberace of the Organ World as he likes to be called) and his performance was as brilliant as last year, and an excellent entertainer.
Final Artist was Howard Beaumont playing the Allen Digital Theatre Organ, (No drum machine, sequencer or backing system on this instrument) and once again an excellent performance using the Theatre Sounds. (However I did notice that some of the voices sounded more Classical then Theatre)
It was then over to the Queen Vic once more to see Alan Haven’s final late night show. (If you like jazz you will love Alan Haven)
MONDAY
First stop was to Daniel Watts Q & A on Midi and computers.
I then moved on to the Keysounds stand were a demonstration of Ketron instruments was being done, (Including the SD5) by Peter Shaw.
First off was the SD1 and XD9 which gave a credible performance (Particularly the Pianos) however compared to other manufactures the Ketron sound engine is beginning to show its age.
The SD5 was next, (Which is a replacement for the X1) and I have to say I was disappointed, the sound engine was just not up to modern standards, the Riff feature was interesting, but I and others thought it had very little use in improving Music Making. (Official launch due the end of July with a price of £1799)
The SD2 was also on display, and is essentially the sound system of the SD5; the price of £279 however makes it a very competitive module.
The afternoon saw a concert with Daniel Watt, and although the sound was better then the night before, but it still didn’t quite cut the mustard.
David Thomas was the first act of the evening, with a nice bright up tempo performance on the Roland Atelier.
Tim Flint was next, again playing a Roland Atelier instrument, and along with his general banter gave an excellent performance.
Nicholas Martin was next, (Mainly known for playing Theatre Organ) using the Technics FA1 and just like other artists played all types of music, but with a theatre organ technique, and you cannot really describe the performance, you just have to see it. (No automatics, sequences etc)
Final performance was from the American Stan Koyama, which I must admit has a style of playing that I find reminiscent of a computer, and so I left after the first couple of numbers.
Once more over to the Queen Vic for Daniel Watt and friends late night show, which featured his Wersi Spectra, OAS 6 Expander, Harmonizer and the Tyros, which was played by various guest artists, both singularly and in duet, speaker system was again the 2 Bose PAS speakers (With Subwoofers) and while the sound was not quite in your face, like it was in the concert hall, to me it still seemed like further work is required. (Some people have mentioned that using the Tyros with 2 Bose units in stereo causes problems, but I had a walk round the pub while the Tyros was being played, and found no problems at all)
TUESDAY
The day started with an informal concert with David Thomas, I then moved on to the Lowrey room were Dennis Awe was demonstrating the instruments, after listening they were more on the Organ sound side, rather then Orchestral or Synth, also I must admit that in the looks department they always remind me of modern slot machines.
A visit to the Allan Organ room was next, were Howard Beaumont was demonstrating the instruments, and I found out that the instrument he was using on stage comes as standard with an inbuilt Classical Expander, and this why some of the sounds in the concert sounded Classical, all the sounds used in the demo were Theatre and were of superb quality, and of course Howard’s playing was as usual exemplary.
The Afternoon started with Jellies on Parade, (Amateurs, Beginners etc, get a chance to perform on stage) and while I didn’t see all of them, performances were ok, the main thing I noticed was most had a reliance on Song finder type features, which took time to find and get going, whereas others just jumped on the instruments, selected what Rhythm and Sounds they wanted, and began playing almost straight away.
It was then a quick walk round the stands before ending with Wersi Stand, which gave me another chance to look at OAS 7 software amongst other things. (I will probably set up an independent post later)
The Evening started with Paul Carmen who gave a smooth laid back performance on the Orla instrument, and was a real pleasure to listen too.
Brian Sharp was on next, (An artist who got a lot of performers started in the UK, after they heard his recordings and concerts) and the performance was good, but I have heard him play better, but still nice to listen too.
Steve Lowdell followed, and what a disappointment, (Normally brilliant at Jazz) not featuring any of his usual style or flair. (Main instruments used were Orla Organ and Korg PA1X Pro. (Still showing other mainstream manufactures how it should be done, (Sound and Style wise) but I must admit the user interface is diabolical, and they really need to take a leaf out of other manufactures instruments)
Tony Stace finished off on his trusty HX1 giving an excellent performance on all types of music.
Over to the Queen Vic, where Bill Horn was doing his late night show, and well, you just cant put him into words,(Those that have seem him will know what I mean, and those that haven’t, should do so if they ever get the chance) brilliance being an understatement.
WENDESDAY
Another demonstration was being done on the new E80 with September/October as the expected launch date.
It was being demonstrated through a different speaker system and although better, I and others there came to the same conclusion, in that it was not an impressive sound, and would most likely not cause any Tyros 2 owners to change, (Korg PA1X Users would definitely not give it a second look) I then moved over to the Yamaha stand were the PSR 3000 was being demonstrated, and after a short time I thought to myself that it sounded exactly like the E80, and in this day and age, neither cuts the mustard.
The afternoon concert began with Steve Lowdell, however after his performance last night I gave it a miss, the next Artist was Brett Wales, who played a various selection of tunes on his Wersi Scala. (OAS 6)
The final afternoon spot was once again Brian Sharp, who gave a great performance covering most traditional genes of music. (Way better then the previous night)
David Ingley was the first artist for the night and gave a first class performance on the Technics GA3 with a much increased concert repertoire. (His main program is normally reserved for dancing)
Bill Horn was next with his One Man Show, and the same comments apply as on the Tuesday late night show.
Andrew Nix was next, with good friendly banter and an excellent performance on all types of music. (He was playing a Roland Atelier)
I then moved over to the Queen Vic, (The final concert was Dr Kevin Morgan, but as I dislike his style of playing I left) with Korgs late night Jazz session featuring 2 PA1X Pro and 1 PA1X, artists performing during the session were Martin Pacy, Steve Lowdell, Rod Pooly, (Who also provided the vocal talents) Chris Whitehead and Brett Wales, the performance was great and it is easy to see why the Korg PA1X Pro is one of the best boards in its price range, for the Gigging Musician. (Yamaha, Roland and others have some way to go, before they catch up with it)
THURSDAY
Started off with a demo on the Roland Atelier Organ by Andrew Nix, before moving over to Yamaha for a demo of Tyros 2 , and as per usual the styles make the instrument, however some of the individual sounds, and particularly when sounds are combined (Layered) are still behind other manufactures. Next on the list was a demo on the Korg PA1X, and while some of the individual sounds did not have the sheer accuracy of other mainstream instruments, when combined as a complete package, the Korg must make other mainstream manufactures (Including Roland and Yamaha) weep.
The afternoon started off with the forum, with minimum complaints.
Amateur players then took the stage and gave very good performances on various instruments.
The afternoon finished off with an informal concert by Andrew Nix.
The evening started off with Rod Pooley playing the Korg PA1X, and as he has limited eyesight, it was interesting to see how he felt around the keyboard for the buttons. (Close up he can make out the screen)
Next up was Michael Wooldridge on a small Roland Atelier and Phil Solomon on drums, a nice variation after listening to sampled drum sounds all week. (Exceptions were the Wersi Real Drums and the Ketron Drum Loops)
Brett Wales followed and his performance bought his Wersi Scala (OAS 6) to life.
Final act were Keyklix playing various keyboards, and was a fine rounding off to the festival.
My observations of the highs and lows of the week were

Best Performance; Brett Wales, Bill Horn in the Queen Vic
Instruments with best sound quality and accuracy; Wersi OAS 7
Best Styles; Yamaha Tyros 2
Best Mainstream Arranger Keyboard; Korg PA1X Pro
Most disappointing products; Ketron SD 5, Roland E 80 and Bose PAS

So this ends the report on the Blackpool keyboard Festival UK, as usual, totally enjoyable, and worth every penny. (But not quite the best festival that I have so far attended at Blackpool)
As I mentioned at the beginning these are my own personal opinions, and so others may or may not agree.

Bill

Thanks Bill for a very informative review of the Blackpool festival.
Having already heard the great OAS7 in action (Ikarus), I must agree that for sound quality Wersi takes some beating. If only they were cheaper, but it's always the same you pay for what you get in this day and age.
The Xenios takes my fancy even more so now you mention it's weight is very light.
I'm an organist who moved onto keyboards 20 years ago. I sold my EL90 a few years back due to it's weight and would love to go back to a double manual, so I think I'll start getting some more info on this Xenios, cheers for that.

Bill,

You didn't mention one of my favorites, Bill Irwin. Was he there?

Tom

Hello Tom
Unfortunatly he was not

Bill

Bill Irwin & Bill Horn normally take it in turns to bring a coach load from USA to the UK. It's aways nice to have them visit here and very interesting to speak with.
The next Keyboard Festival in UK is September at Pakefield near Lowestoft.