Bringin It Analysis

I attended the Baylor University Concert Jazz Ensemble directed by Alex Parker on Tuesday, November 10th. This ensemble consisted of saxes, trombones, trumpets, drums, a piano, and bass. The concert showcased many individual talents by including solo’s or duet’s in every song. The program consisted of seven songs with no intermission. The pieces I selected were “Big Dipper” by Thad Jones and “Undecided” by Frank Mantooth.

When listening to “The Santé Fe Jazz Combo,” you get a mellow feeling that courses through your body. Their opener “Recorda-Me,” which was my favorite piece, featured solos from Dr. Hamilton on Piano, Spencer Hoefert on Guitar, Ben Salhanick on Bass, Doc B on Alto Sax, Wyatt Thomas on Trombone, and Noah Woolard on Drum Set. The song had a moderate swing tempo that kept your feet tapping up until the solo. First, the brass rang through their part, then the electric instruments. Next came the bass; he was strumming so fast but he was barely audible. The pianist busting through with a tricky piano rift and the drummer finished it off with an intense solo. Every rim-shot sent a jolt into the air like lightning and the buzz rolls sounded like thunder. Noah’s part reminded me why I love playing the drums.

The “Davenport Blues” introduction begins sounding somewhat homophonic. It sounded homophonic because the cornet and clarinet begin by playing the same melody but at different pitches. The melody in the intro sounds a little broken up and unorganized. But then we begin to hear the verses becoming somewhat reminiscent of the New Orleans style, which is known for its collective improvisation and polyphony. Polyphony is clearly heard in the three different melodies played simultaneously by the cornet, clarinet, and trombone in the “Davenport Blues” verses.

The University of Alabama Faculty Jazz Band along with guest player, Bill Peterson the jazz pianist, made up a chamber ensemble and performed beautiful and upbeat jazz music. The faculty members include Tom Wolfe, the guitarist, Chris Kozak, the bass player, and Mark Lanter, the drummer. The entire concert was played in a major key and had nothing but positive energy. The pieces and players were extremely creative and they managed to tell a story and create beautiful imageries through the changing sounds, rhythms, melodies, keys and texture.

On April 11th, 2017 in the Louis Armstrong Theatre, I attended the GVSU “University Band”. This up-beat ensemble lasted about 90 minutes; the talented students of GVSU’s university band joined together to perform multiple different songs ranging from a Waltz to a Dixieland Jamboree. All of the songs that the band played for the audience were all well-known, popular songs that they all enjoyed. Having the opportunity to attend this concert has opened new musical paths for myself and has allowed me to enjoy and kindly critique something that I perhaps would have never had the chance to otherwise.

Throughout a career than spans for 20 years, Roebke has recorded with drummer Mike Reid, trumpeter Nate Wooley, cellist Tomeka Reid, cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and the Chicago quartet Klang. The recordings under his own name are established with a variety of formations – solo, typical guitar and clarinet trios, and bigger ensembles.

On November 18, 2015, I attended a UAB concert involving jazz combos and a guitar ensemble. This concert was filled with amazing musicians, intricate solos, and thick harmonies. There were three jazz combos and one guitar ensemble; the first set was the guitar ensemble, which contained four guitarists and one bass player. The ensemble consisted of four songs: “Swing It,” a swing-style song; “Samba #1”; “A Child is Born,” a waltz; and “Bill’s Bay.” The main theme of “Bill’s Bay” was very catchy and memorable, and the ensemble’s most impressive player to me was Michael Galanti on the bass guitar. His solos involved precise pizzicato and quick movement that I have never witnessed in a bass player.

Long-revered altoist phenomenon David Binney is certainly proud of having created a very personal style within the modern jazz, mirrored along the nearly 30 years of his notable career. He has played with other ingenious artists such as Chris Potter, Bill Frisell, Donny McCaslin, Craig Taborn, Scott Colley, Edward Simon, Brian Blade and Kenny Wollesen. Those collaborations spawned truly exhilarating albums – Free to Dream (Mythology, 1998), Welcome to Life (Mythology, 2004), Out of Airplanes (Mythology, 2006), Cities and Desire (Criss Cross, 2006), Graylen Epicenter (Mythology, 2011) – that should be on the shelves of any jazz lover. In addition to his own projects, Binney has always a very busy schedule as a sideperson. The immensity of his

Mac Miller drops his fourth album, only a year after he dropped probably his best work yet GO:OD AM. Mac has always been known to be a creative mind and changing up his mixtapes and albums. From starting with his frat-boy college kid phase (K.I.D.S. and Blue Slide Park), to his psychedelic drugged-out phase (Macadelic, Watching Movies With The Sound Off and Faces), to his most mature album (GO:OD AM) to now his jazz music side of him on this latest album. Realizing that this album would be a love/jazz album, I can only look back to the last time he put together a jazz project with the You EP and all I can say to myself was "ugh." However, when he made that EP, he was a bit too young to really make that kind of music (singing voice wasn't there).

Victor Provost is widely considered one of the premier steel pan jazz artists of the 21st century. Through appearances at concert halls, clubs, and stages throughout the world, he has been meticulously developing a reputation as a “dazzling” soloist, crafting an impressive improvisational voice and style. Provost possesses a thorough knowledge of Bebop language, with a strong foundation in Caribbean sensibilities, and is armed with a virtuosic technical ability that allows him to weave all the elements of music seamlessly in his playing. Provost has two albums to his credit, including his new project entitled “Bright Eyes”, which debuted at number five on the iTunes Top 40 Jazz Charts and have received rave reviews from Downbeat Magazine,

After peaking though my program to better understand what to expect throughout the concert, I realized there were going to be two performances with 2 different ensembles as well as directors. Promptly at 7:30 pm, the band of Jazz Ensemble II came out, gathered their places on stage, and began to play “Things Ain’t What They Used to Be” by Mercer Ellington. I immediately recognized the stereotypical jazz setup such as the primary melodic instruments: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, as well as the piano, bass and

Head pianist of Brophy's jazz band, I've studied and played piano for 11 years. And jazz band became a double-edged sword: it not only exposed a new musical realm to me, but it also paved a new avenue for my expression––listening, reacting, jamming.

Similar to the religious and folk music discussed in the previous chapters, jazz was born from musical diversity ‒ it came from multiple sources. As diverse as its musical background was, the audience was even more distinct; this genre of music requires a high degree of musicianship, appreciation of what jazz is, and recognition of its power to communicate feelings (Willoughby). Many artists and bands have risen over the years, and they have often transcended the sub-genres of jazz music. After researching various artists and listening to their music, it was difficult to choose just one favorite artist. However, if I had to choose one, I would choose Miles Davis. His music, in addition to his contributions to jazz, makes him one of the, if

On October 4th, I watched Louis Armstrong Live in Concert in Berlin in 1965. In this concert, I noticed Armstrong played a variety of songs with a variety of different tempos. The first song he played was more adagio and right after that his song picked up in tempo and changed to a more allegro with a vivace, lively feel to it. Each one of Armstrong’s songs had a different feel to it.

Miles Davis loved the "new" Coltrane, and hired him back into his band for a third time. Davis came up with a new jazz concept, modal improvisation.