"The Aberdeen Jazz Festival is only in its fourth year, but the organisers have hit a winning formula. The programming is imaginative without relying on a play-safe policy, and reports of excellent attendances were borne out by a standing-room-only turnout for Venezuelan pianist Leo Blanco on Saturday night, despite the fact that he has played only once before in Scotland, at last year's Edinburgh Fringe.

The lucky few who caught that appearance have been raving about it since, and prompted this booking. The reward for that initiative was an exhilarating two-hour set of Blanco's original and exciting music. The pianist is a formidable improviser and was joined by Brazilian expatriate Mario Caribe on bass, Alyn Cosker on drums and saxophonist Paul Towndrow, replacing the originally advertised Laura MacDonald to excellent effect on alto and soprano saxophones.

The band sounded as if they played together on a weekly basis, no mean feat when faced with Blanco's harmonically and rhythmically complex compositions. The invention and energy levels never faltered as they tore through his clever amalgam of contemporary jazz with the interlocking African and European influences from the music of his homeland, augmented by a startling solo piano piece. Expect to hear a lot more of this compelling artist.

The day began with another packed house in the same venue for Tommy Smith's Youth Jazz Orchestra, augmented by American vibraphone virtuoso Joe Locke. Smith provided ample opportunity for the young players to show what they could do in a set that combined music from their regular repertoire with a composition written for this mini-tour by trumpeter Ryan Quigley and an arrangement by Locke of Lars Jansson's Lost".