The concert has not
even begun yet but, the room here at Royce Hall is filled with energy.
Amongst the sea of very lucky jazz fans are some of
Randall Kline, the director for SF Jazz spoke a few words, as he always does, about the great things and programs that are happening with the San Francisco Jazz Organization. Tonight’s show was one of the integral parts of this year’s series at SF Jazz. The musicians were not only selected because of their extraordinary talent, but also because of their outstanding composer abilities. Each musician wrote a piece designed especially for this band. Gil Goldstein helped with the arranging and we got to hear 5 out of 8 outstanding pieces by performers Renee Rosnes, Miguel Zenon, Bobby Hutcherson, Joshua Redman and Robert Hurst. It’s a collective and collectively speaking, there could not be a much more anticipated concert than this.
All of the cats including Brian Blade, Joshua Roseman, and Nicholas Payton are todays and yesterday’s heroes and heroins of the art form that we all live for. Jazz music baby!
And tonight it was at its best.
One by one each horn in the front line played it light and lovely until Nicholas Payton and Bob Hurst broke it down. With one of the best rhythm sections behind today’s top players in the game, you can only go in one direction and that is Straight Ahead!
The first half of the
performance were all compositions from the great Ornette Coleman.
Ornette also played last year as well as this year in the SF Jazz
Organization’s premier concert series and he was also on hand for one
of the collectives performances in
The SFC played the music of Ornette is such a way that made, at one time what was called the unacceptable; seem like the standard for yesterday’s music. Brian Blade is having such a great time. He is so lightening quick, it is just like watching an old Chinese movie jazz style. I mean, I could have sworn I saw him pause, while the drums kept playing and had to catch up! Redman hauntingly beautiful, Robert’s bass solo’s speak,
Roseman is sweet, Zenon is on fire, Renee is lovely, Nic is killin’ and Bobby’s personality is all over the vibes.
The second half of
the concert, as I mentioned, we were all treated to special selections
written especially for this band. Five great pieces, I wish we could
have heard the other three. Maybe you will! There are a couple more
performances left here in
LeRoy Downs
