In addition to the usual overflow of live talent, yesterday brought a chance to watch two late jazz greats, piano master Bill Evans and trumpet icon Maynard Ferguson, perform in concerts videotaped here in Rochester during the 1970's, and screened yesterday afternoon by WXXI at the Eastman Theatre. Despite murky sound in both cases, it was abundantly clear why both men continue to be so renowned. And even across distances of 30-plus years, Evans and Ferguson -- aided by their extraordinary sidemen -- definitely raised the overall intensity level of the festival. Not bad for a couple of guys who are no longer with us.

Evans, working in a trio format with drummer Eliot Zigmond and bassist Chuck Israels, demonstrated his amazing touch, hitting notes that sounded like a thousand butterflies landing on the music before fluttering off in intricate choreography. It was often difficult to make out what Zigmond and Israels were playing, so the video sometimes sounded more like a solo performance, but it was possible to fill in the blanks. In any case, you just KNEW you were watching something special.

Close-up shots of Evans' hands at work made it possible to see just how technically demanding his playing was -- his music's beauty often obscures the rigorous skill it took to pull it off. Evans, looking rather forlorn three years before his death, was clearly capable of touching the soul with music. Many times during the concert, the melancholy tunes could just break your heart. I got the feeling that I was witnessing jazz at its absolute highest level -- not in terms of ability, but in terms of a the artform realizing itself anew in the hands of these players. When that happens, the music is never the same again. Evans participated in such a moment before, when he played on Miles Davis' landmark album "Kind of Blue." But it was great to see that he could reach comparable heights almost 20 years later.

In sharp contrast to Evans' wispy demeanor, Maynard Ferguson conducted his 13-piece band with the enthusiasm of a manic game show host who'd just chugged two quadruple espressos and a martini. He looked -- and sounded -- damn good doing it. Dancing, flailing his arms, making ecstatic faces, and exclaiming out loud, Ferguson whipped his horn orchestra into a frenzy. Looking much like a baseball manager, Ferguson slapped his boys (all way younger than him) on the backside after their solos. He also otherwise encouraged them, by pointing and even bowing to and introducing each one of them several times. By the end, the band was clearly having the time of its life.

"Who's gonna be able to top THAT?," I wondered as I walked out of the Eastman Theatre. Fortunately, my answer arrived within 10 minutes, when I walked into the Jonas Kullhammar Quartet at the Xerox Auditorium and was genuinely blown away for the first time this year. Kullhammar -- who has played with the same three sidemen for 11 years -- personifies all the qualities I look for in jazz. His music is rhythmically complex but still driving, harmonically rich, with an audible rapport between the players. It is music that is both challenging, yet meant to connect with the audience on a gut level. Music with one foot in the past and the other in the future.

Kullhammar's band -- Jonas Holgersson's staggering drumming in particular -- just KILLED it, proving without a doubt that Scandinavia is where the post-bop sub-genre has been perfected into an evolving, distinctly modern form. 
Kullhammar plays again tonight at the Lutheran Church. Don't miss him if you're into scorching post-bop with beautifully melodic compositions.