Musicgroups jazz up Kent Concert Hall
Utah State University’s Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Orchestra presented an array of selections including swing, Latin and funk chart hits and they promise to keep the concerts coming.
The Jazz Ensemble is directed by professor and low brass specialist Todd Fallis.
“My students are usually first-year, beginning students,” Fallis said. “I teach a lot of style. When we begin, they are not a cohesive unit until that first concert.”
“[Dr. Fallis] is funny and jokes around a lot but makes us work hard to get the pieces sounding good,” Tim Beckstrand, alto saxophone, said. “As a senior majoring in finance I have too many classes that I have to worry about. It’s nice to have a class where you can sit back and enjoy yourself and relax. Jazz is a stress relief for me and that’s why I love it.”
“Todd Fallis is a great director,” Brandon Dayton, tenor saxophone, said. “He is hilarious and really knows what he is doing. His jokes keep us alive, and his intense directing keeps us grooving.”
The Jazz Ensemble ended their repertoire with a piece entitled New York, New York. This was a tribute to those affected by the terrorist attack on Sept. 11.
Larry Smith directs the Jazz Orchestra.
“I came here as a student back in the 50s,” Smith said. “I was a freshman when the first university dance band started … I led the group as a junior and senior … when I came back [to USU], I oversaw the dance band … when we quit playing at dances, I got it to be a class in the curriculum and we started meeting three times a week and playing in concerts.”
“Larry is the coolest guy ever. He knows everything about everything. He corrects without damaging self-esteem and he’s hilarious when he wants to be,” Brittain Barber, tenor saxophone, said. “He’s also my private teacher, so I guess I know him as a teacher pretty well. Every time I come out of a lesson it’s like my eyes have been opened to the mysteries of life or something.”
Keith Sorensen, drummer, said, “Larry Smith is one of my favorite people in the world. He truly loves music and helps the bands and all of his students to understand that it’s a lot more than just an intellectual endeavor. He’s truly a musician of heart, meaning that he feels every note that he plays or hears.”
Smith said, “I think this is one of the best bands we’ve ever had. It’s not easy but it is very fulfilling.”
Abbey Heck, alto saxophone, said, “I like to play jazz because it helps me become a better musician. It’s fun to play with talented musicians.”
Melanie Shore, piano, said, “Playing with an ensemble is different than playing in a small group. You really have to be unselfish and committed. There’s an awful lot of time where I don’t play anything exciting but if I mess it up, everything sounds bad. That goes for everyone, so it builds a lot of trust and personal responsibility. There’s a lot of cool effects that a big band can get that a quartet or something can’t.
“Being in this group helps me keep happy … It also helps me overcome shyness with the solos and just that fact of playing on stage in front of a couple of hundred people. And it helps me reach my dreams. I would like to be a pro-player some day,” she said.
“I love the energy that you get from 20 people all pouring their soul through their instrument and blowing their guts out. It’s an incredible experience every time I sit down to play,” Sorensen said. “Jazz forces you to streamline your musical ideas into cohesive and workable things, rather than just letting things fall out of you. The more you play, the better you get at communicating with other musicians as well as expressing yourself through the music and your instrument. Jazz has made me a musician instead of just a drummer.”
The concert on Wednesday night featured many soloists from both groups.
Beckstrand had two different solos in the Jazz Ensemble.
He said, “All jazz solos should be improvised or made up on the spot. The only thing I can tell you is that when I have a solo I just play what I feel sounds good on that certain day but every day is different.”
Barber said, “Ostensibly we are just making it up, but there’s so much that goes into a good solo: Knowledge of the chords and the notes in each that sound good, technique so your fingers can keep up with your head, general jazz know-how that tells you what sounds cool. It’s a difficult process. And when all the learning is done, if you don’t have soul or whatever you want to call it, your solos are boring anyway. Tricky, huh?”
Barber performed a number of solos throughout the Jazz Orchestra portion of the concert.
“I am playing a solo by Count Basie, a jazz piano legend who is famous for his great bands and clean piano style. The solo is improvised, but I listened to the recording to get some ideas for what I can play,” Shore said.
During the last few numbers of the Jazz Orchestra’s performance, audience members were out of their seats dancing to the music.
Both jazz groups will be performing again on Nov. 28. The Jazz Orchestra will also be traveling to Moscow, Idaho for a jazz festival in February.