Ferme Madelonne

Claude Lentz is a sturdy Ardennes man with an opulent beard. A man of character. It takes character to take over the reins of a jazz club lost in the middle of the Haute Ardenne countryside.

The jazz concerts at the Madelonne Farm were created more than thirty years ago, following the famous Gouvy Jazz Festival, created in 1978. After a few hard knocks, but above all some very fine events, the club is still standing, solid and robust.

La Madelonne is an old barn that has been completely refurbished in keeping with its original architecture. Large dark beams support a high frame. A forge fire rolls gently. The thick earthen and stone walls are adorned with farm tools, enamelled plaques, posters and numerous photos of the prestigious jazzmen who have passed through.

Everything is rustic and smells 'real'. Everything has been put together to make you feel at home: the bar on one side, intimate and friendly, the stage on the other, large and square. A warm atmosphere and ideal acoustics. In the small surrounding garden, a few steles pay tribute to the musicians who have left their mark on La Madelonne. Those of Hein Van De Geyn and Jacques Pelzer, who were among the main initiators of the project, are well placed. Further on, there's Tom Harrel's and Henry Vestine's, the guitarist of Canned Heat.

To attract people to Gouvy, Claude Lentz relies on an original and different programme. Jimmy Cobb, Palle Danielson, Chico Freeman, Cameron Brown... And the cream of Belgian jazzmen, of course. Regularly, a Brassens tribute evening is organised, because Claude is also a great admirer and supporter of the poet with the pipe. And let's not forget the blues evenings, which are well known and attract a large audience of connoisseurs. Recently, the club has also been organising music courses.

Every summer, it is the festival that attracts all the attention with, once again, a programme that has nothing to envy the competition. Mal Waldron, Art Blakey, Don Cherry, Woody Shaw and Bill Evans are just some of the performers. For this 31st edition in August, the gardens of La Madelonne will welcome Christian Escoudé, Phil Woods, David Sanchez, Roy Hargrove and many others. As they say over there, it's grooving in Gouvy... and it's certainly not about to stop!

(Jacques Prouvost, Jazz In Belgium #71, July 2010)