Performances April 2010

LINCOLN, Neb.—Who says that jazz can’t be fun? Who says it has to be dry, academic, loftily cerebral and utterly humorless? Well, whoever says it, the Matt Wilson Quartet is out to prove them wrong.

With eight recordings under his own name—all on Palmetto Records—and dozens of guest appearances with other jazz artists (with Lee Konitz, Dewey Redman, Jane Ira Bloom, Larry Goldings, Charlie Haden and many others) Wilson, 45, has earned the respect of adventurous listeners and fellow musicians alike for his technical skills, his fearless forays into the wonderful world of free-bop, his improvisational instincts and his incessant sense of whimsy.

Wilson and his sidemen—reedman Jeff Lederer, cornetist Kirk Knuffke, and young bassist Paul Sikivie—brought all of those performance Matt Wilson Quartet at Westbrook Music Building [Photo by Tom Ineck] elements into their work and play the evening of March 26 at Westbrook Music Building on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus, where the quartet also conducted workshops with area high school students during the Honor Jazz Weekend, funded in part by the Berman Music Foundation. Predictably, the small concert audience consisted largely of those students, their teachers and UNL music school faculty. A publicity snafu that misidentified the concert time—by two days!—sadly prevented a wider segment of the general public from attending or even knowing about this brilliant performance.

“Gathering Call” was also a wakeup call for the uninitiated, with Lederer leading the charge on wailing tenor sax. The opening medley also included “Some Assembly Required” and “Arts and Crafts,” the title track of Wilson’s 2001 release and the name of one of the drummer’s other bands. A different version also appears on the quartet’s most recent release, 2009’s “That’s Gonna Leave a Mark.” It’s jaunty, loping tempo and simple chord changes make it a versatile vehicle for rhythmic and harmonic improvisation.

Lederer switched to clarinet for “Rear Control,” a tune written by saxophonist Andrew D’Angelo, a former member of the quartet who is recovering from cancer. It began with an ominously funky backbeat, and then accelerated to a harrowing swing tempo that took the listener on a wild ride, with occasional rumbling flourishes from Wilson on toms. As the music veered sharply into the avant-garde, Lederer reached the outer limits of his instrument. Throughout the 90-minute performance, Wilson expressed his rhythmic impulses with assorted rim shots, cymbal crashes, hand slaps on the snare drum, and all sorts of percussive devices, including the clever use of a Chinese gong placed on the head of a tom-tom and scraping a drumstick across the snare drum to simulate the turntable technique of a demented hip-hop deejay.

Matt Wilson Quartet leads the chant, "Choose!" [Photo by Tom Ineck] Wilson took up the brushes for the odd, but lovely “Lucky,” a chamber-like tune composed by Lederer and his young daughter, who “gave him the notes and he put them in the right order,” according to Wilson. “Chirp” was the title given a brand-new composition “work-shopped” that afternoon. It featured Lederer on soprano sax. One of the highlights of the show was a rendition of “Choose,” based on a poem by Carl Sandburg, from a grant-funded project that Wilson did a few years ago. Described by the composer as “socialist march free-bop,” it did, indeed, march along with righteous moral fervor, eventually provoking Wilson into a recitation of the poem’s central question—“The single, clenched fist lifted and ready, or the open, asking hand held out and waiting?”—and answering, with fist raised as the rest of the band and audience members joined in the chant, “Choose!” In the grand tradition of political oratory, the drummer left his drum kit and strode to the front of the band, still shouting the one-word command.

From this lofty rhetorical peak, the band then descended to tongue-in-cheek banality with a simple but catchy tune by Beyonce, America’s current pop diva. The quartet somehow carried if off with a degree of panache as Knuffke played the melody with sensitivity on the cornet, Lederer accompanied on tenor sax and the rest of the band and audience members punctuated with ultra-hip finger-snapping.

Any doubts about the fun factor in Wilson’s band-leading style fell by the wayside from the start of the nine-minute “Schoolboy Thug,” a hilarious send-up of heavy metal pretense, with Wilson donning a black wig, spinning his drumsticks, hammering the drums and cymbals with wild abandon, and generally taking the Wilson dons wig for rock-star turn on "Schoolboy Thug." [Photo by Tom Ineck] caveman approach to rock rhythm. Lederer joined in the spree by kicking over the music stands as he honked and squealed on the tenor sax, inserting a quote from Black Sabbath. In classic rock style, the rest of the band then left the stage to Wilson for an extended solo shtick, which involved tossing his sticks in the air with each cymbal crash and catching them (sometimes), finally pretending to be impaled by one in the eye and pulling it out. The finale act in this farce was the “birth of a rock star,” in which Wilson removed his glasses and stretched his drumsticks along either side of his face in a simulated entry from the birth canal, a routine so outrageous it had the audience nearly rolling in the aisles.

After leaving the hall, the quartet returned to a standing ovation for a wonderful rendition of “Mopti,” a Latin tune by trumpeter Don Cherry from a 1980 recording of the group Old and New Dreams, a quartet of four Ornette Coleman alumni, also including saxophonist Dewey Redman, bassist Charlie Haden and drummer Ed Blackwell. It began with Wilson on mbira, or thumb piano, an instrument that he had purchased while in Lincoln, and ended with the band, still playing, slowly exiting the room to applause, then reentering from the opposite door to finish the tune.

The BMF awarded a $7,000 grant for the second annual UNL Honor Jazz Weekend, which gathered high school musicians from Nebraska and surrounding states for a comprehensive playing and learning experience, including master classes with UNL faculty and guests. Among other things, the grant covered expenses for five Berman Music Foundation Jazz Fellows—high school educators who participated in the entire weekend of activities.

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Concert Review

NET's Studio One becomes "Jazz Cabaret"

By Tom Ineck

LINCOLN, Neb.—A modest plan to tape a 30-minute performance by the UNL Faculty Jazz Ensemble for later broadcast on NET Television expanded into a more ambitious and educational “Jazz Cabaret,” at a performance March 21 at NET’s Studio One.

The fruitful Sunday afternoon collaboration between NET and the UNL School of Music yielded an hour-long performance and a "Jazz Cabaret," March 21 at NET Studio One [Courtesy Photo] subsequent question-and-answer session with musicians that will be posted on the NET website. The broadened scope of the project was made possible, in part, by a $10,000 grant from the Berman Music Foundation.

Studio One was decked out with small, round café tables, colored mood lighting and large potted plants to give it the right cabaret ambience. Several dozen invited “patrons” provided the enthusiasm and give-and-take response essential to a live jazz performance. Six studio cameras—including one on a movable boom above the audience—would capture every movement, and a high-definition mobile recording studio would ensure high-quality sound reproduction.

Of course, the most important contribution to this project came from the Faculty Jazz Ensemble, an eight-piece group featuring several veterans of the Lincoln jazz community, including trumpeter Darryl White, bassist Rusty White, pianist Tom Larson and guitarist Peter Bouffard, and more recent additions to the UNL faculty, such as saxophonist Paul Haar and trombonist Eric Richards. Also added to the mix were drummer Steve Helfand and saxophonist Brandon Holloman, an outstanding graduate teaching assistant at UNL.

Once the cabaret atmosphere was established, the septet (minus Holloman) took the stage for the opener, “The Third Degree,” a composition by New York-based trombonist and Big Band leader John Fedchock. The tune was difficult and contained some minor fluffs as the players got their bearings, which can be problematic when considering the constant distraction of lights and cameras. They quickly resolved the problems and launched into a gorgeous rendition of Gershwin’s “A Foggy Day,” with Holloman added on alto sax. Bouffard had imaginatively arranged the old chestnut in a manner that made it brand new and allowed for nice contributions by Darryl White on flugelhorn and Tom Larson on piano.

Saxophonist Paul Haar acted as spokesman for the UNL Faculty Jazz Ensemble [Courtesy Photo] The ensemble was reduced to a six-piece group and White remained on flugelhorn for “Ancient Memories,” the title track from his 1999 debut recording. Written by Fred Hamilton, it was a showcase for Holloman’s stirring alto sax work, plus solos by White and Larson. With a slightly different lineup, Paul Haar introduced Hank Mobley’s 1957 classic “Funk in Deep Freeze,” a suitably soulful number with Haar excelling on tenor, Richards soloing warmly on trombone, Bouffard turning in a Wes Montgomery-style guitar solo, and Rusty White maintaining the groove with a stunning walking bass line and a thumping solo. The sextet also delivered a mournful rendition of J.J. Johnson’s ballad standard “Lament,” as arranged by Richards, who stated the familiar melody with call-and-response counterpoint by Haar on tenor and Bouffard on guitar.

The band returned to its octet formation for Nat Adderley’s celebrative “Fun,” with Holloman back on alto sax, admirably taking the part that Cannonball Adderley played on the live 1966 recording “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy.” Adding to the fun were Darryl White on trumpet and Bouffard comping solidly on guitar. A couple of the musicians had a chance to showcase their own composition, beginning with Tom Larson on his beautiful “Luke.” The composer stated the theme on electronic keys before turning to the piano, assisted by Haar on soprano sax, White on flugelhorn, and Richards on muted trombone. The rhythm section accompanied with aplomb, and Bouffard delivered a lovely solo. The guitarist’s “Petite Pas (Little Steps),” is the composer’s answer to Coltrane’s notoriously difficult “Giant Steps.” Recorded a few years ago as a duet by Bouffard and Rusty White, here it was performed by a quartet adding Haar on tenor sax and Helfand on drums.

Bringing the taping to a close was “Sweet Georgia Brown,” with the full eight-piece ensemble gathering on stage for the familiar, foot-stomping, feel-good finale. After a short break, the musicians returned to take questions from the audience. Emphasizing the educational aspects of music and performance, they related their own experiences as young students who were first introduced to jazz, rock and classical music. They talked about how they chose their respective instruments and shared advice for today’s young music students.

After considerable post-production work, “Jazz Cabaret” will have its premiere screening at 7 p.m. May 25 at the Sheldon Museum of Art auditorium and will be broadcast on the statewide public television network sometime in June.

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Concert Review

Blue Room reverberates with Charlie Hunter

By Jesse Starita

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Near the corner of 13^th and Main streets, I rolled down my window. What’s going on tonight?” The determined pedestrians and animated conversations suggested an event of some significance. Over the commotion, a ticket hawker elevated his voice: “Billy Joel and Elton John.” He said this as though I’d asked if the sun would come up tomorrow. Kansas City has just over two million residents and tonight it looked like all of them were taking the Yellow Brick Road for a communion with the piano men. But my business was elsewhere, east, along a less gilded path towards 18^th and Vine.

The Blue Room at the corner of 18th and Vine [Photo by Jesse Starita] Driving down the Paseo—a lush boulevard with broad, elegant medians—I wondered if Kansas City had enough left to populate a jazz concert. The line snaking out the Blue Room quickly answered that. Jazz in Kansas City reached its zenith in the 1930s and 40s, during which time saxophone icons Lester Young, Ben Webster and Charlie Parker transformed The Blue Room into a temple for musical worship. In the 1990s, city council members moved to preserve that heritage, rescuing the area and its history from decades of decay. Perched underneath the neon glow and moonlight, I thought about that history. Seventy years later, I was here to see a different Charlie play The Blue Room.

My two previous trips were straightforward affairs. Easy-going female vocalists. Surplus chairs. A one-to-one waitress-to-table ratio. The Charlie Hunter Trio would have none of that. A packed house forced staff to borrow chairs from the neighboring American Jazz Museum. Eventually, I nestled into a corner table, surrounded by the eclectic audience that Hunter courts—tidy, middle-aged management types and shaggy-haired jam band devotees.

The Blue Room is packed for The Charlie Hunter Trio [Photo by Jesse Starita] Last August, Hunter released his 20^th studio album, cheekily titled “Gentlemen, I Neglected To Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid.” The magnificence of Hunter’s guitar playing is not entirely revealed on iTunes or compact disc. I spent the first few songs trying to figure out who was playing bass. Hunter was—while playing guitar. He’s the jazz equivalent of a football player who throws a touchdown pass to himself. How does he do this? It’s an amalgam of immeasurable hours of practice and superior dexterity channeled through a custom-built seven-string that simultaneously churns out bass lines, rhythm and solos.

Striking the evening’s first note, he immediately drove the trio in a funky direction. Through myriad effects pedals, Hunter’s guitar took on the sound of a Hammond B3 organ. Drummer Eric Kalb clutched a thick backbeat, melting his snare and crash cymbal into a separate instrument. Kalb and Hunter worked this terrain for a few minutes, ironing over the groove, removing coarseness. The trio’s lanky trombonist, Curtis Fowlkes, finally balanced the equation, jabbing and slicing over the beat the way an air horn does over a the hum of an auditorium.

Curtis Fowlkes, trombone; Charlie Hunter, guitar; Eric Kalb, drums [Photo by Jesse Starita] After a lengthy intermission, the group opened set two with a slower, deliberate tone. Kalb’s drumming traded punch for polish. Fowlkes, utilizing his elastic wingspan, extended slurs an extra step. And although Hunter’s attempt at late-night serenade was sincere and melodious, even his superb talent could not mask what they lacked—a big, rich acoustic bass. The Blue Room’s antiquity and my jazz sentimentality, surely the latter one more, missed the reassurance that emanates from those four strings.

In any case, two hours into the set, Hunter kept churning. As the trio reached their final number, Hunter flashed a mischievous grin. He looked like a train conductor ready to call everyone on board. In fact, few had departed all night. And, on the heels of a 12-minute blues jam, 18^th and Vine reverberated with the notes of jazz past and present.

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Concert Review

Fleck's African Project is "girls' night out"

By Grace Sankey-Berman

OMAHA, Neb.—It has been the worst winter in many years, and the snow and cold did not seem to be letting up but, undeterred by the weather, my girl friends and I were eager to do something fun. On Feb. 20, a concert by Bela Fleck and The Africa Project at the Holland Performing Arts Center provided a great opportunity for such a night out.

A night out wouldn’t be complete without a good meal and some libation. We agreed to check out The Twisted Cork, which The Food Network says serves the best-tasting burgers in Nebraska. It has convenient parking and it’s just a few minutes from the concert hall. None of us had been there before so we were eager to see what the hype was about. It was a small space, but cozy, and a couple tables were already seated. The wine list was decent and the menu had a variety of other staples, but we all ordered the hamburger. Ruthann said it was the best burger she ever had. However, the hamburger was served with only a taster’s portion of delicious coleslaw and some potato chips, which was disappointing, and the bun could have been more wholesome. Overall, it was a decent meal because the hamburger was delicious.

The Africa Project was born out of a trip Fleck took to Africa to learn about the roots of the banjo, an instrument introduced to America by slaves who brought Bela Fleck and the Africa Project [Courtesy Photo] the prototype from their homeland. While in Africa, Fleck collaborated with some incredible musicians from Gambia, Mali, Uganda, and Tanzania, some of whom performed with Fleck at the Holland Center.

The concert hall was almost sold out, and at 8 p.m. Bela Fleck walked onto the stage with his banjo and immediately lightened the mood when he playfully performed his rendition of “The Beverly Hillbillies” theme song. The appreciative audience erupted into giggles, laughter and applause.

I have never been to a banjo concert before and was not sure what to expect. We were in for a real treat when the Tanzanian musicians came on stage—the incredible, blind thumb piano player and singer Anania Ngoliga and his very talented accompanist, guitarist and vocalist John Kitime. Ngoliga’s pure voice was rhythmic and soothing. He sang about the Ngorogo “cradle,” which has the highest concentration of wildlife in Tanzania, and about Mount Kilimanjaro. His voice, ringing through the hall, almost painted a picture of how wild and free that part of the world is.

The next song was “Home is Best.” Even though he sang in his native language, the emotions clearly conveyed how much he loved and missed his The African Project [Courtesy Photo] homeland. Fleck teased that Ngoliga was in a bad mood because of the cold weather. Ngoliga was serious, yet very playful, in his delivery, punctuating his songs with chicken-like quakes. John Kitime, the guitar player, and Fleck on banjo played along with him, trying to mimic Ngoliga’s sounds. It certainly was not your everyday concert, but it was great and unique improvisation. They performed most of the songs in their native language, but the emotions were raw, real, and soulful. It felt like I was on a journey to an exotic land, without the passport and plane ride.

Next was the Malian band of the great Bassekou Kouate and N’goni Ba. N’goni is the Malian banjo master. The band consisted of four banjo players and the bigger the banjo, the bigger the sound. His instrument is rectangular and looked like it was carved out of wood. There was also a calabash player and a beaded gourd player. The big sound of the calabash was a cross between a Japanese taiko drum and a bass guitar, yet uniquely different.

On vocals was Ami Sacko, bandleader Kouate’s wife. The chemistry between them was undeniable when they sang together. Ami’s vocal range was showcased in a traditional Malian song that was a tribute to an ancient King. Starting out almost quietly, her voice slowly soared with a sound that had a vibe that beautifully blended Middle Eastern and African influences. The band was tight, playing just enough to compliment and showcase this unique art form.

Some of the music was up-tempo dance tunes that built up to almost-hypnotic crescendo. The African tamas, a shoulder drum that fits under the arm, was a crowd-pleaser. The crowd may have been unfamiliar with the style of the drum and its unique sound, but it is arguably the most widely used drum in West Africa. I particularly enjoyed it because it took me back to my homeland. The beautiful purple and yellow costumes and elegant dance also brought some color to a cold winter night.

Bela Fleck (upper left) and African musicians sign CDs and talk with fans after the concert [Photo by Grace Sankey-Berman] After the intermission, Fleck played a banjo solo, seducing the audience with deep, yet sparse and gentle notes. Again, the Tanzanian musicians Ngoliga and Kitime joined him on stage to play some bluegrass and Tanzanian music, which they called “Blackgrass and Bluegrass,” also featuring American fiddler Cassey Driessen. The fiddle and hand-held piano proved to be a great combination in the song “I Wanna Go Home.” Cassey slowed the traditional tempo of bluegrass to blend with the slow, melodic African singer, creating a perfect harmony of music from opposite spectrums.

The Malian musicians also joined in for more blue- and blackgrass music. The musicians got down to business, producing a robust and sophisticated blend of bluegrass and exotic African music. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, and their energy was infectious. They concluded with a sort of anthem called “Africa,” again featuring Ngoliga on vocals, making for a thrilling night of jazzy music unlike any I have heard.

Bela Fleck’s Africa project is compiled in a three-volume CD called “Throw Down Your Heart” and in a documentary movie of the same name, which earned him Grammy Awards in February for best contemporary world music and best pop instrumental performance. His ability to explore new forms of music and to integrate great music, regardless of genre or origin, into brilliant compositions makes it hard to box him into a strict category. His discerning taste keeps his music fresh and sets him apart. This explains why he is the artist with the most diverse Grammy nomination in history, including jazz, pop, bluegrass, country and classical.

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Concert Review

Amy Denio celebrates Women's Week at UNL

By Grace Sankey-Berman

LINCOLN, Neb.—Seattle-based musician, composer and producer Amy Denio was on hand to perform at a special edition of the Clawfoot Salon March 10 at the Nebraska Union, during the UNL Women’s Week celebration. The annual event celebrates and reflects on the progress of women’s rights. Ember Schrag of Lincoln’s Amy Denio [Courtesy Photo] Clawfoot House, in collaboration with the Berman Music Foundation, brought this accomplished musician to town for the event.

Denio, a self-taught accordion player and guitarist, was flanked by young female musicians and one or two men who played a variety of instruments, including congas, guitars and accordions. She played the accordion while directing the group in a sing-a-long of a variety of songs. The jam session was relaxed and interactive and included folk, tango, Scottish music, and what Denio described as an Algerian waltz, all done with a twist. And that is her musical style. She does not restrict her music to a particular genre, but will let the instrument bring out different aspects of her musicality. For example, she said the saxophone brings out her jazzy side and the accordion brings out the folk side.

Amy Denio on accordion [Photo by Grace Sankey-Berman] Denio spoke about her experience as a musician, how she started in the business by organizing concerts. While performing, she traveled to Japan, South America, Hong Kong and throughout Europe. Along the way, she met a network of independently thinking people who along with her life experiences help shape her mission of using music as a tool for social change.

Denio said she wants musicians to be more interactive. She and others employ very creative and unconventional ways to engage people. In Seattle she plays with a band that sits in the middle of the audience in order to promote interaction. They play live in public buses, or even audition the bus drivers to sing opera while driving or to use the horn or brakes as musical instruments. She said, “The buses came alive like cartoon characters, it became a musical experience to ride the bus.”

Amy concluded her lecture by singing a few solos while playing the accordion. She encouraged women to pursue their dreams and not worry about potential setbacks.

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Concert Review

"In the Mood" revue appeals to crowd of 1,900

By Tom Ineck

LINCOLN, Neb.—Sometimes adventurous patrons of the arts crave the visceral stimulation of avant-garde jazz, the metaphorical gymnastics of modern dance or the cerebral drama of cutting-edge theater productions. Other times we are simply in the mood for the warm blanket of nostalgia and those comfy pillows of the familiar.

"In the Mood" musical revue features String of Pearls orchestra, singers and dancers [Courtesy Photo] Such was the case March 9 when 1,900 people turned out for “In the Mood,” a 1940s musical revue at the Lied Center for Performing Arts. An unabashedly sentimental journey through the Big Band era, the retrospective combined the 13-piece String of Pearls orchestra with a group of six singers and dancers to document the evolution of the swing decade from the mid-1930s to the end of World War II. In classic revue fashion, it delivered the goods in rapid-fire succession, squeezing some four dozen tunes into two hours.

The entire brass section entered the hall from the audience, marching up to the stage to the tune of “St. Louis Blues.” A brief tribute to early big bands went from Glenn Miller’s signature “In the Mood” to Ellington’s “C Jam Blues,” Goodman’s “Jersey Bounce,” Les Brown’s “I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm,” Shaw’s “Moonglow,” and Basie’s “Jumpin’ at the Woodside.”

A “class of 1940” vignette was a clever device to introduce “Jukebox Saturday Night,” “Saturday Night is the Loneliest Night of the Week,” “Taking a Chance on Love,” “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” the rumba “Green Eyes,” “Accentuate the Positive,” and a jitterbug dance segment with some lively rug-cutters.

With a dramatic change of costumes, the singers returned for a set of romantic favorites, including “Moonlight Serenade,” “Laura,” “Blue Moon,” and a very effective rendition of “At Last,” introduced by a solo trumpet cadenza and sung by a lone woman in dramatic spotlight. The whole chorus joined in on “I’ll Never Smile Again,” “Sentimental Journey,” and “Tuxedo Junction,” which also feature a nice trumpet exchange.

The first half of the show ended with “The House I Live In”—a patriotic song first introduced by Frank Sinatra—which extols the American virtues of equality and community, followed by an announcement of the 1939 invasion of Poland. That set the stage for a second-half nod to wartime songs like “Over There,” “What Do You Do in the Infantry?” “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” and “He’s 1-A in the Army and A-1 in My Heart,” eventually leading to the hopefulness of “I’ll Be Seeing You,” “We’ll Meet Again” and “When the Lights Go on Again (All Over the World).”

After moving performances of “America” and the memorial “Danny Boy,” active duty and veteran members of the military were asked to stand and be recognized, a fitting salute to “the greatest generation.”

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Concert Review

Brewsky's is setting for jazz experimentation

By Tom Ineck

LINCOLN, Neb.—Of late, the Capital Jazz Society has been presenting some very provocative and interesting music Thursday nights at Brewsky’s Jazz Underground, also the venue for a big band gathering every Monday eve.

Bryan McCune Combo at Brewsky's [Photo by Tom Ineck] The lower level room at 201 N. Eighth St. in the Haymarket District was the setting for the March 31 reunion of trumpeter Bryan McCune with old bandmates Tom Larson on keys, John Scofield on drums, Dana Wheary on guitar, and Bill Wimmer on saxophones, with Mark Luebbe added on bass. Also joining in the fun was Bryan’s dad, trumpeter Mac McCune, and Larson’s son, guitarist Will Larson.

The performance—which was recorded in both audio and video formats—alternated straight-ahead standards such as the Bobby Timmons’ “Moanin’,” “Caravan,” “All the Things You Are and “What Now My Love,” with the younger McCune’s edgy fusion compositions and arrangements, aided by his adept use of electronics. It was especially instructive to hear the Miles Davis and Harry James schools of trumpeting bridge the McCunes’ generational gap.

Group Sax brought its formidable brand of brash brass attack to bear in a sparsely attended April 7 performance. The saxophone quartet’s founder and baritone saxophonist Scott “The Beast” Vicroy has pursued this difficult music for nearly 20 years, much of that time with veterans Ed Love and Mark Benson. With newcomer Paul Haar, director of jazz studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, they continue to yield exciting results performing the music of such legendary sax foursomes as Itchy Fingers and Bobby Watson’s 29^th Street Saxophone Quartet.

Yes, it is often challenging music, for both performer and listener, but the joy of discovery is latent in every tune, whether it’s Gershwin’s “Love is Here to Stay,” Monk’s “’Round Midnight,” or Mingus’ “Jelly Roll.” Benson’s notable contributions included imaginative arrangements of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and George Harrison’s “Taxman.”

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Concert Review

Sax man Paul Haar shines in NJO limelight

By Tom Ineck

LINCOLN, Neb.—With so much talent in its ranks, the Nebraska Jazz Orchestra is featuring some of the band’s stellar soloists this season. Saxophonist Paul Haar took honors Feb. 5 at The Cornhusker hotel with a program suggestively called “Sax and the City.” Director of jazz studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Haar is a regular member of the NJO sax section, but this was his first night in the limelight.

Paul Haar with the Nebraska Jazz Orchestra [File Photo] “Perdido,” a favorite from the Duke Ellington songbook, warmed up the band and the audience of 320, which were relegated to the rather inferior lower-level Lancaster Room for the concert due to a conflicting event in the main ballroom.

The guest soloist first took the stage for a lilting version of the standard “There Will Never be Another You,” arranged by former Haar mentor Don Galley. On alto sax, Haar demonstrated the self-assurance of a veteran, stating the melody and soloing with ease and inspiration. Guitarist Peter Bouffard also contributed a tasteful solo.

A Dirk Fischer arrangement of Cole Porter’s “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To” followed in a lightly swinging tempo. Tom Harrell’s lovely “Sail Away” was a pleasant surprise as arranged by UNL composer-in-residence Eric Richards for tenor saxophone, flutes, bass clarinet and muted trumpets. True to its title, the tune was breezy, wind-driven and warm.

By way of dedication, Haar introduced his wife before launching into the romantic ballad “Hey There.” On alto sax, Haar’s beautiful melody was aided by Bouffard on guitar. “Friends Again” was a modern take by Lanny Morgan on the old standard “Just Friends.” Haar, Ed Love and Andrew Janak stated the melody on tenors before turning it over to Haar, Tom Harvill on piano and Bob Krueger on flugelhorn for their solos.

The evening’s program opened with three tunes by this year’s crop of young jazz hopefuls collectively know as the Young Lions All-Star Band, including students from Lincoln, Omaha, Waverly, Gretna and Millard. As usual, the young players were most capable in their tight section work.

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