Music review: Wangaratta Jazz Festival Artistic director: Adrian Jackson. Even after 25 years, the Wangaratta Jazz Festival still has the capacity to surprise. This year, one of the late-night jam sessions included what could be a festival first: an onstage striptease by one of the finalists in the prestigious National Jazz Awards, accompanied by some more-than-passable scat singing as the young guitarist threw caution - and his clothes - to the wind. Despite his chutzpah and multitasking abilities, he did not win the guitar competition. That honour went to 26-year-old Carl Morgan, who gave a compelling (fully clothed) performance in the finals playoff, and also appeared as a member of Mike Nock's marvellous Trio Plus. Two of the competition judges - Stephen Magnusson and James Muller - co-led a specially assembled quartet on Saturday evening, their distinctive approaches to the guitar producing music that alternately shone and swaggered with distortion-flecked grit. The festival's international roster featured several New York-based Aussie expats, including saxophonists Lisa Parrott (with her impressively focused quartet) and Troy Roberts, who played a pivotal role in the group led by legendary US drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts. Roberts' phenomenal stamina and athleticism enabled him to vault in muscular arcs across Watts' complex, constantly shifting rhythm patterns. Indeed, all three of Watts' sidemen (Roberts, pianist Osmany Paredes and bassist Chris Smith) were so attuned to Watts' quicksilver creativity that the music swung, grooved and danced even through the stormiest interludes and knottiest time signatures. Watts also demonstrated his responsiveness in a quartet led by his wife (trumpeter Laura Watts), and gave a fascinating solo masterclass on Sunday morning. One of the hallmarks of artistic director Adrian Jackson's programming is his passion for unique collaborations between international and Australian artists. This year, Italian trumpeter Enrico Rava was teamed with local musicians in three markedly different settings: playing his own compositions with Monash music students and staff; exploring standards with a potent quintet; and conjuring atmospheric soundscapes with Niko Schauble's band Papa Carlo. At 75, Rava's curiosity and creative vision remain undimmed, and his utterly distinctive trumpet sound - hauntingly burnished or piercingly bright - added depth and mystery to each phrase he played. While this 25th anniversary edition of the festival featured fewer overseas groups than in some previous years, the calibre of the overall program was still exceptionally high. From Friday night's opening set by Rava to the entertaining closing concert on Cup Eve (a double bill pairing of Mark Isaacs and Emma Pask), there were more than enough standout performances across the long weekend to create a thoroughly satisfying and well-balanced festival. I relished the groove-fuelled fire of Roger Manins' Hip Flask, the deep soulfulness of Greening From Ear To Ear and the dramatic sweep of the Australian Art Orchestra's tribute to Louis Armstrong. But if I had to pick my personal highlights from this year's festival, I'd nominate two shows that made a particularly vivid impression: Spoke's Sunday afternoon set and Tony Gould's duo concert with multi-instrumentalist Adam Simmons. Spoke (comprising three US musicians and Australian drummer Danny Fischer) eschewed endless parades of individual virtuosity for compact, beautifully arranged pieces that bubbled with warmth and vitality, while Gould and Simmons - a seemingly incongruous pairing on paper - wove lyrical stories with such exquisite empathy that there was many a glistening eye in the audience by the time they concluded.