It was an entertaining and varied night, even though it was
the same combination of six musicians throughout, and it led to two standing
ovations from the large crowd at the Strathmore in North Bethesda. There were
hundreds of people in the audience despite the pouring rain that had led to a
flood warning across the entire capital region.
The program had been put together by Christian Sands, a phenomenal
pianist with a highly unique style. Taking a youthful orchestra on tour to
celebrate the legendary Monterey Jazz Festival that is now in its 62nd
year was a great idea. Another innovation was to have the frontline horns
performed by two young ladies, Bria Skonberg and Melissa Aldana. The classic
jazz quintet was completed by the bassist Yasushi Nakamura and drummer Jamison
Ross. The singer Celine McLorin Savant would come and go throughout the
evening.
This outfit, it turned out, was capable of wide-ranging
versatility in terms of style, while mostly maintaining its post-bop
sensibilities, combining both original pieces as well as well-chosen and not
worn-out compositions by others. Sands had contributed a few of the ensemble
pieces that swung in a straight beat, but always with a twist, with the horns
blowing the lead. Sands has an ability to write jazz tunes that are original
and complex, yet still pleasing. They also provided ample solo space to all
players, not least the horns.
The Chilean Melissa Aldana is undoubtedly one of the best
sax players around today. Despite being only 30, she is a very mature player
who is fluent in the jazz vernacular. Last year I heard her with her own
quartet blowing hard at the DC Jazz Festival. She possesses full control of her
horn frequently utilizing its full range – she seems to enjoy the low honks on
her big pipe. Her sound is full and sonorous. She is also a highly creative
improviser. Watching her is a visual reminder that playing a musical instrument
is not only an intellectual and emotional exercise, but also a physical one.
Her whole body follows the movements of her music, and she rises on the tips of
her toes as she climbs up the scales.
Compared with her South American counterpart, Canadian Bria
Skonberg has a more limited vocabulary on the trumpet. She is a solid player
with a clear sound and wide range. But her chops just aren’t as smooth and
inventive as those of Aldana’s. Skonberg played fine and handled the at times
complex horn parts perfectly, but her soloing in the more modern idiom left
something to be desired. This is understandable given Skonberg’s past focus on
more traditional jazz.
The rhythm section of Yasushi Nakamura and Jamison Ross
worked perfectly together. Nakamura is a powerful bass player who is also very
inventive in his approach. His sound is strong and solid. In contrast, Jamison
Ross’ drum work tends to be quite fluid. He keeps the time but in a loose
manner creating light polyrhythmics on his small set. This pair complemented
each other excellently.
Ross also got his shining moment on stage. He introduced
himself as someone who has been singing all his life and who admires singing
drummers, like Grady Tate. He then proceeded to perform a soulful ballad which
allowed him to demonstrate his clear high-pitched voice and similar melodic
fluidity as evident in his drumming.
Cecile McLorin Salvant was a new acquaintance to me – but
not to my friend Freddie with whom I had come to the concert. She turned out to
be a highly skilled vocalist (she used to study classical and baroque singing
in France before turning to jazz) – but not gimmicky like so many other jazz
singers. There was nothing artificial about her singing. Apart from one Betty
Carter number, all of the songs that she would perform throughout the night
were her own, a few of them written only a couple of weeks ago, still without
titles. They were all beautiful and had at times funny and very human lyrics.
The only issue may have been that they were all ballads, quite slow and
featuring her voice in a rubato setting (Freddie confirmed that’s her style).
Sands had strategically spaced them out throughout the program, so that speedier
numbers livened up the mood in between.
Having said that, a highlight of the show was one of
Cecile’s yet unnamed songs to which Melissa had written an extended
introduction that featured elaborate arpeggios on the tenor sax and very
sensitive interplay with the piano.
If I had to pick one number, though, that was the high point
of the evening for me, I would have to select Christian Sands’ masterful rendition
of an aria from Puccini’s Tosca. He started it as a solo piano number, his
style mixing some jazzy harmonies into the classical tune. Later the bass and
drums joined in but the mood remained serious building to a powerful crescendo
before returning to the melancholy theme. Sands who is always an extraordinary
player here made a performance that brought tears to my eyes.
Naturally, as these things go, the latter part of the
concert provided some funkier stuff, including a Sands piece for the quintet in
the tradition of Sonny Clark and Horace Silver, and a Yasushi Nakamura original
– Yasugaloo -- a boogaloo with a strong beat and funky horn riffs. It also
featured a powerful bass solo from the Tokyo-born composer.
Bria Skonberg had a chance to demonstrate her bravado in a
solo number, a traditional jazz show tune by Valaida Snow. Snow (1904-1956) was
a rare female jazz trumpeter at her time and a good one: Louis Armstrong called
her the “second best trumpet player in the world” (after himself, of course),
which earned her the nickname “Little Louis.” Here Bria was in her natural
element, singing the lead vocals, interacting with the enthusiastic audience
and playing the trumpet solos with a flair that was genuine to the era. During
this number she seemed to switch her personality to free expression from her
somewhat more restrained performance during the earlier part of the evening.
Cecile McLorin Salvant returned once again for the encore.
Standing on the edge of the stage, she started her song without a microphone,
her voice carrying beautifully over the large concert hall. This was a highly
unusual encore and final number, a hauntingly beautiful story of a love that
was lost performed only by Cecile, Bria and Jamison singing in ethereal
harmonies with the latter providing atmosphere with mallets on his drums. The
beautiful evening was thus over.
