Stax Music Academy Concert Report

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 concert that I attended was a charity concert, which was organized in Boston at a local university there. The South Asian Student Union of Harvard University organized the concert. I happened to be in Boston and this particular concert was organized for benefit causes such as using the proceeds of the concert to fund a number of poverty alleviation projects in South Asia. The concert was organized in a rather big room, which had a very big podium, as well as at least 500 seats that had been placed in it. Therefore, the overall hall where this concert took place was a typical auditorium setting with seating and a stage at the front. The concert promoters talked about different cause benefits related to alleviation of poverty in South Asia and that’s why the concert was organized. The organizers also informed the audience that the musicians wore traditional clothing so that the audience members could also have a good insight and understanding of the South Asian culture. All of ticket revenues for this concert were then given to a number of charities which then would use those funds to assist the different poverty alleviation programs in the larger South Asian region.

A song called Mi bendicion by the famous Luis Guerra was preformed next. I believe the composer described the performance as a bachata. It was a romantic song that Guerra wrote in dedication to his wife. The song was played in forte since it was still a very loud performance. But this time the trombones played long legato notes. The drums just maintained a steady beat while the trombones played the legato notes at a more moderato tempo. This song had a way more romantic and sentimental feel than the first two performances.

Smithville High School presented two winter concerts. I got the opportunity to view both performances. The first show was by the Vocal Music Department directed by Mr. Marcus Duncan and aided by accompanist Emily Rowland, and the second show was by the Jazz Ensemble and Symphonic Band conducted by Mr. Tom Brockman and Ms. Brittany Terwey. There were very similar aspects of the two concerts and very different aspects of the two concerts.

This year I am participating in the Area West Elementary Enrichment Band where I play the clarinet. I am proud of this because it is a large achievement in my passion, music. In grade 6 I was first introduced to the clarinet and instantly fell in love with it. Today I continue to play the same instrument. In Enrichment Band, I get to meet and play alongside other musicians who have the same passion and drive for music that I do. I also get to seek further learning opportunities within the band, such as the mc script I have received for the upcoming concert. Overall, the band is an excellent learning opportunity and I am truly privileged to have that opportunity available to me.

The Jazz Combo is quite small with five members who played trumpet, baritone saxophone, double bass, guitar, and drum. The performance opened with “Doxy” by Sonny Rollins. This is a hard bop song. The second

On Friday, February 12th, I visited the Wimberley Theatre located in Wimberley, TX to watch Lend me your tenor. This play is known to fill the theatre with laughter and that’s exactly what the actors did. You would have never known this small little playhouse in such a small town would give an amazing showing of such a magnificent play. The actors were perfect and had the audience on a rollercoaster of laughter. In this play the famous tenor Tito Merelli, has agreed to play Otello for one night only at the opera company. a hilarious series of mishaps, he passes out after an accidental overdose of tranquilizers. Believing the famous tenor star is dead, the opera manager has his assistant, Max, an aspiring singer, to replace Merelli. Things go

I went to a chamber music concert called Attravereso il Mare, on October 17 at 8 pm at Boston Court located in Pasadena. This project performs Italian-American songs which represent the Italian-American culture. My friend and I arrived 1 hour early, and people kept coming. Most of them are family and friends, and only few of them were coming alone, but they all had more concert experience than me because this was my first time attending any kind of concert. This concert was in a very small room with only 100 seats, but all seats were fulfilled. This concert experience impressed me a lot and changed my feeling about concert.

In finale, the group performed three selections – I, II, III- were a part of an album, Mountain Roads, composed by Chelsea Williamson. The first and second piece, both started off with slow tempo. The first piece started with pianist solo. As flute, and bassoon synced with the pianist, the orchestral timbre demonstrated crescendo. However, the second piece was predominantly performed by bassoon and flute, along with piano in the background. The first two selection changed my mood as if I was surrounded with trees and birds chirping. It felt peaceful. Finally, the group performed the last selection, which maintained a fast tempo throughout the musical piece. The piece started off with the piano and bassoon playing upbeat tempo, with high pitch.

Songs like “Star Wars”, had a big entrance, a lot of use of percussive instruments mainly drum set. The beginning (I apologize for the lack of tittle as the program didn’t list the pieces) song use

Most of them were structured by the band while the sax player seemed to either be improvising or playing a very flourished melody. I could hear a set of repeated notes like a base scale that most of the songs were built off of (something like C, Eb, F, G, Bb, C). And most of all, the drummer seemed to be the invisible conductor, always keeping the beat even when it seemed like the sax player or the trumpet player went off in their own mind. Really bring a new meaning to “Grooving High” now that I think of

The set itself was simple and to the point. It was held at the Musco Technology Center also known as the MTC. The room was for a more intimate audience you could see by looking around that people were having a good time. For the most part it looked like it mostly brought out an older crowd as do most production in this town. I don’t understand why more people from my generation don’t go out and experience these type of things. However, I liked that it had high ceilings and the room seemed pretty filled. I personally think that the lights should have been dimed, it would have added to the mood of the whole

Our class had a tour of the Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago Public Library’s main library, located in the South Loop. You can visit the library any day: Monday-Thursday from 9 A.M. to 9 P.M., Friday-Saturday from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. and Sunday 1 P.M. - 5 P.M. Ms. Barbara was our tour guide as she noted that Harold Washington was Chicago’s mayor. She tried to give us an overall information about the library: what you can do and what you can find in the library. The library was created in 1991. The Harold Washington library is very big and rich and has 9 floors where on each you can find books on different topics( from children’s books to business, science, technology, government, history, literature, art and music). There in the library,

The first concert I attended was my high schools forty- sixth annual Rock N’ Roll Revival. The show is based off a show back in the late sixties and early seventies by the same name that a few students saw. Little did those students know that the show would turn into phenomenon when they decided to bring it back to Sherwood High School. When the show started it was more like a talent show with MC’s and the talents consisting of rock n’ roll songs. This style of the show lasted until Rock N’ Roll Revival #11 when it was decided to cut the comedy acts of the MC’s and focus all of the attention on the music. This new direction into the realm of pure rock n’ roll has stood the test of time and for a good reason.

The melody starts low, as a quiet whirring sound of the flute and oboe slowly envelops the hall. The audience is quiet, hushed. Slowly yet steadily, the timpani and bass drum lays out a blanket solemn theme. Another theme of clarinets and trumpets appears, complementing the previous, yet affirming its own identity with an energetic, new twist of the melody.