>My Concert Attendance Report for my Music Appreciation Class:

I went to go see the Horizons Jazz Band (Jazz at Sunset) in Worcester on Friday. It was a group of about 5 gentleman, older in age. They had drums, a double bass, guitar (broke out the banjo a few times), and keyboard in the back. They keyboard was usually traditional piano, but every once in a while they’d change depending on the piece. It could even fill in for another instrument if needed. In the front they had a trombone, trumpet, clarinet (trumpet and clarinet were played by the same individual), and the singer also played the oboe and saxophone. They’d switch instruments often, quite adeptly, without missing a beat.

pieces:

Some of the pieces they played were String of Pears, Duke Ellington – Mooch, and Tiaunna – which is after a bar in Kansas, not Mexico. They had a bit more to say about Irving Berlin – When I Leave the World Behind. “The lyrics and melody are one.” as well as describing Irving Berlin’s style. There was a lot of horn, and my mother described it as a lot like “Tin Pan Alley” which would be similar to Gershwin. I could hear the similarities. Sidney Bechet – Blues in the Air had a more mournful, sad sound to it. There was a steady trumpet, leading the melody. It was described as “New Orleans Jazz”.

They played Sidney Bechet – Le Marchand de Poissons, then Good ‘ol New York which he accentuated the difference between the sentiment in the roaring 20s, and how we currently feel about New York. They’re both strong, but for different reasons. He described it as “always a good time” as it’s an energetic piece. The piano was lead, he sung along. It was fast and loud, with a great drum solo near the end.

They played Louis Armstrong – Wildman Blues which had trumpet and trombone playing lead, but towards the middle all instruments got involved and were all playing a different tune. Trumpet, trombone, oboe, piano, and even a banjo thrown into the mix. Although they were all different, it fit together seamlessly, accentuating and harmonizing with each other. Yamma Yamma Man was a good piece for jamming and improvisation. Louis Armstrong – Swing That For Me had a great bass solo, and an escalating snare topped off with a cymbal, triangle, and cowbell going at the keynote.

kind of listener:

I was mainly a referential listener at the concert. I was recalling people, places, and even created stories for the music. One of the Gershwin pieces they played had been used in Fantasia 2000 so I replayed that as I was listening. I was listening for each instrument, what was playing at the time. I listened for the beat, the melody, the harmony, and how they all fit together. The tone of the music was upbeat, it made me happy just listening.

style:

Most of the music was homophonic texture, polyphonic at some points. The timbre of the instruments they chose was perfect. The trumpet had much more feeling to it when it was muted then normally played. It gave me such a toe-tapping feeling, blue skies, green grass, and warm summer air all come to mind. It was mainly Jazz, improvisation, jamming. There were pieces with defined structure, and some that were everything all at once. In most cases it was a main melody supported by one other instrument, or a few instruments playing the basic melody.

Audience response:

The audience was a great support, the band mentioned how great it was to be playing a couple times. They had a great time, and it was only made better by the fact that everyone go so excited by the music. Everyone was tapping their feet, bobbing their heads, and clapping after the best parts. Sometimes they’d be clapping so much for the well executed escalation that they’d miss the keynote, or at least make it harder to hear. I did hear a critical listener in the back: “…sounds a little flat”, some people were even dancing here and there. After they played “Good ‘ol New York” there was a resounding response, the singer said “My heart goes out when I hear that kind of response… that’s what makes this all worthwhile.” When they were all done, and said so to the crowd, a resounding “awwww” throughout lead to an encore.

All in all it was a good concert, I was glad I went.

-x-

This marks the end of my classes for the summer. I finished up the final for Music Appreciation last night, didn’t do awesome, but well enough. I should get by with an A-.