The University of Houston MSM Jazz Festival 2010

So, you're thinking about attending the 2010 Jazz Festival, but you're still not sure if you should throw down the cash, eh?  Well, who can blame you?  Ten dollars for a ticket can be a lot these days, after all.  Perhaps I can help.  If I tell you what's going on, would that entice you?  Maybe?  OK, good enough for me...

On Friday evening at 7:30pm, The Texas Music Festival Jazz Project will be performing.  This is Houston's all-star big band comprised of top-notch Texas musicians playing a wide array of music written for the classic big band setup.  If you like swing, you're in luck; if you like bebop, you'll be happy as well; if you like a great ballad, prepare to be wowed; even if you like contemporary music that's a little harder to understand... well you get the point.  The point being that this band can play anything and everything and they do it VERY WELL.  As I said, the band is full of top-notch players and there are plenty of solos to be passed around, so you won't be disappointed!  It will be an entertaining and exciting evening.  Here's the roster:

Saxophones David Caceres, Kelly Dean, Dr. Woody Witt, Warren Sneed, Karl Fulbright

Trombones Dr. Armin Marmolejo, Ed Lowe, Bruce Melville, Ryan Gabbart, Jim Pedigo

Trumpets Danny Wilson, Mike Harris, Dennis Dotson, Steve Brown, Noe Marmolejo

Rhythm Section Mike Wheeler, guitar; Matt Lemmler, piano; Anthony Sapp, bass; Joel Fulgham, drums

Playing the following:Outside In, Tom Garling A Little Minor Booze, Willie Maiden Dauphin Dance, arr. Bob Mintzer Take the ‘A’ Train, arr. Gordon Goodwin A Flower is a Lovesome Thing, arr. Mike Tomaro Housewife from New Jersey, Tim Hagans Soft Lights and Sweet Music, arr. Michael Abene Wade in the Water, arr. Matt Lemmler Skylark, arr. Mike Harris Let’s Eat Cactus, Gordon Goodwin Ecaroh, arr. Rob McConnell

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And can you believe it?!  Saturday evening features even more big band jazz!  On Saturday night at 7:30pm, the UH Jazz Orchestra will perform with featured guest artist, Brian Lynch on trumpet.  I know, I know... it's ridiculous how much good music you'll need to see this weekend, but trust me, it's TOTALLY worth it.  Brian will be playing a slew of his own compositions and arrangements (which are incredible to hear and incredibly hard to play, check this one out) with the students in the UH Jazz Orchestra to close out the weekend's festivities.  And this isn't your ordinary college big band, all these guys (and girl) can PLAY!  Get ready to be amazed at the level of virtuosity this band has.  You still want to see a program, don't you?  No worries!

Saxophones Bob Eason, Darrel Materum, Eric Bustamante, Zach Spruill, Scott Baker

Trombones Tim Dueppen, Henry Darragh, John Grimmett, Thomas Neal, Jaime Ramos, Glen Scarborough

Trumpets Steve Brown, Cameron Kubos, John St. Julian, Kristen Finley, Zachary Lerner

Rhythm Section Robert Wolf, guitar; Michael Ward, guitar; Landon Petersen, guitar; Joel Love, piano; Henry Darragh, piano; Glen Ackerman, bass; Gerald Massoud, bass; J.D. Guzman, drums; Terence Hobdy, drums; Chad Tumminello, drums

Playing the following:Point Aconi, Aaron Lington Things Are Getting Better, arr. Rob McConnell The Palmieri Effect, Brian Lynch Blue Moon, arr. Brian Lynch Guajira Dubois, Brian Lynch Peer Pressure, Brian Lynch One for Mogie, Brian Lynch

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And if all of that STILL isn't enough for you, did you know that you can see visiting middle school and high school jazz ensembles perform on each day, all day for FREE?  You would probably be surprised by how many of these groups sound great, also.  There's a lot of talented youngsters in Texas, so come see for yourself!  Oh, and you can also check out the free clinic featuring Brian Lynch and and the UH Jazz Orchestra at noon on both days, too.  Free?!  Yes!  See you there!

(All events take place in the Moores Opera House)

UH Jazz News: Trip to Colorado and 12th Annual MSM Jazz Festival

What's going on with Ryan in the new year?  2010 holds a very busy schedule, especially for the University of Houston Jazz Orchestra.  The group traveled to Colorado from January 26-30 to perform at the Colorado Music Educators Association Convention/Clinic.

UHJO in Colorado

The band did great in both their performances, one at the convention (held at the historic Broadmoor Hotel) and another at the Air Academy High School.  I'm pleased to report that reviews were more than favorable and the University of Houston was represented well by the Jazz Orchestra and Wind Ensemble!  All this, PLUS a day of skiing at Breckenridge!  It was an excellent trip!

The 12th Annual MSM Jazz Festival, featuring Brian Lynch

Another year, another jazz festival... But I can guarantee that it won't be business as usual.  The 12th Annual Moores School of Music Jazz Festival looks to be a weekend full of musical excitement and energy at the University of Houston.  The festival takes place February 19 and 20, 2010 as two all-day events, featuring performances from local and visiting middle and high schools in an adjudicated setting.  Each evening will feature a concert showcasing new and old compositions of big band music; Friday evening’s concert (2/19) is the Texas Music Festival Jazz Project, featuring professional Texas musicians, and Saturday evening’s concert (2/20) is a performance by The University of Houston Jazz Orchestra with guest artist, Brian Lynch.

Brian Lynch is a Grammy Award-winning trumpeter with many albums and accolades to his name.  An active performer, composer and educator, Lynch’s presence will be an experience that any jazz lover or student will not want to miss!  He will be playing his own compositions and arrangements, ranging from straight-ahead swing to Afro-Cuban styles.  In addition to his Saturday evening performance, he will be giving free clinics to the general public each day at 12pm.  If you appreciate music at all, you will not want to miss this weekend of jazz madness!

Looking back at Terry Riley's "In C"

After listening to this RadioLab podcast on the anniversary of Terry Riley's minimalist work, "In C," my mind began to wander on the true purpose of music. You see, the whole point of "In C" (at least, to me) was the notion of inclusion. They point out in the podcast how difficult and dissonant classical music had become by 1964, making "In C" sound like a breath of fresh air. Now, I'll admit that I like minimalist music, but only to a certain point.  There's only so much repetitive patterns that I can stand.  Eventually, one longs for an actual chord progression.  And I'm not even the big fan of Terry Riley's work, but there's a concept and an execution about "In C" that I can get behind.  First of all, it isn't just a minimalist piece in the strict definition of that sub-genre of contemporary art music, it is also aleatoric.  To me, music should not be pretentious and exclusive, and aleatoricism seeks to destroy the conventions (and perceived stuffiness) of Western art music by adding in improvisational elements and (sometimes) audience participation.  John Cage's '4'33"' is a perfect example of this.

The impact and influence of "In C" is clearly far-reaching.  Just look at the work of Brian Eno and pretty much the entire electronic music constituency (especially dance music).  However, this really matters very little to me, the reason I like it so much is because it thrives on audience participation.  It's not even written for musicians!  Anyone can play a single note or two, or three. To most people, "In C" may now seem like an outdated notion of peace, love and understanding from the 1960s, but I truly think that in order to make a statement or get your voice heard, this is a key element to your development as an artist.  The truly greatest works of music (or art in general) usually communicate with their audience on a higher level than their contemporaries. This hasn't changed, either.  Look at today's technological breakthroughs in communication and the attempts of businesses to become more conversational with their clients.  It's the same motto and message: "Everyone is welcome, and everyone has a voice that should be heard.  We're listening."  This is the true achievement of "In C".  Once the concept is in your head, you won't forget it, and you're always welcome to participate.

Now, about those "serious" composers with their serious and difficult pieces of music: How many times do you think they're actually heard on a regular basis?  I don't mean to downplay the importance of composers like Schoenberg and Webern, they are very important to history and I personally enjoy certain pieces of theirs.

But I forget, how does the melody to "Pierrot Lunaire" go?  You can't remember, either?  Oh, who cares...

Improvisation

This is the definition of a great musician, jazz or otherwise.  Thanks, Seth.

It's far easier to mix up a Rubik's cube than to solve one.

People are often paid to enforce compliance. The job is to ensure that everything is in its place, that errors are zero, that things are delivered on time and as expected. The random event is a problem, something to be feared and extinguished.

A few people (not many) get paid to create a ruckus, to insert the random, to yell 'fire' and to shake things up.

Most people, though, the ones with great jobs, are in the business of dancing with entropy, not creating it. Take what comes, sort it, leverage it, improvise and make something worthwhile out of it.

The secret of dancing is that you must respect and admire your partner. Thus, entropy isn't the enemy, and the goal isn't for "everything to be all right."

Without random events, there is no dance.

There is no good, there is no bad, there's just what happened. Dance with it.

Original post here

Let it Snow, Caroling in the Heights on 19th Street

Well, it's been a week since (what just may be) our annual snowfall here in Houston. Personally, I enjoyed the day and took some time off to walk around in the snow while it lasted. A good friend and I even got together that evening to play Christmas carols and some other tunes on 19th Street in the Heights for their annual "Holiday on 19th" celebration. We a blast playing for strangers in the holiday spirit and attracted quite a crowd of singers and dancers. Unfortunately, the overall turnout was a bit down from its usual commotion. I guess people didn't want to risk it out there on the roadways. Oh well, better safe than sorry, I suppose...

I hope everyone had a great time nevertheless, and a wonderful holiday season. Merry Christmas!