Photo Courtesy of May Kotsen ’23
On Nov. 30, Conn’s Jazz Ensemble performed its fall concert, “Classical Jazz,” in Evans Hall. There was a notably large audience considering the severe stormy weather, but not so large that the auditorium was completely full. The ensemble performed seven pieces, featuring nine Conn students and a faculty member on the clarinet, a Conn alumnus on the bass, and a New London community member on the trombone.
The first selection was “Splanky” by Neal Hefti, arranged by Sammy Nestico. It featured many trombone solos, as well as piano, bass, electric guitar, and a baritone saxophone solo by Enrique Lopez ‘26. “Splanky” was written in the 1950s, when the composer, Hefti, began collaborating with jazz legend Count Basie. It was an excellent introduction to the concert as it was a fast paced piece with a joyful mood and every instrument had its chance to shine.
The band performed a second selection: a suite based on Edvard Grieg’s “Peer Gynt,” arranged by jazz legends Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington. Kelli O’Connor, the faculty clarinetist, was featured, and the suite had five pieces: “Morning Mood,” “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” “Solvejg’s Song,” “Ase’s Death,” and “Anitra’s Dance.” The first piece, “Morning Mood,” was based on the famous “Morning Theme,” a common tune to indicate morning in television. It featured Davi Schulman ‘25 on tenor saxophone, O’Connor on clarinet, and Lopez on baritone saxophone. Strayhorn and Ellington captured the quaint mood of the piece, while also keeping the quaint mood that Grieg intended. The second piece, “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” was a jazzy version of the well-known piece with the same title, and featured Alex Jutt ‘24 on the electric guitar and Manoli Despines ‘23 on piano. The third piece, “Solvejg’s Song,” featured a muted trombone and O’Connor’s amazing cadenza skills on clarinet. The fourth piece, “Ase’s Death,” was a somber piece which included all instruments. The fifth and final piece in the suite, “Anitra’s Dance,” was a fast and joyful piece that featured the saxophones and clarinet. This selection was an interesting variation on songs so famous that they have cemented themselves in music history, by two iconic musicians from centuries later.
The third selection was “Orange Colored Sky,” a medium tempo romantic song written by Milton DeLugg and Willie Stein and arranged by Roger Holmes, which included all of the instruments except for guitar, as Jutt was on vocals. The piece was made famous by Nat King Cole, and separate versions of the song were performed in 1966 by Adam West and Burt Ward, who were famous for playing Batman and Robin on the TV show in the 1960s. It was a sweet, happy song about love, and Jutt’s voice was perfectly suited to the song.
The fourth selection was “Jelly Roll,” written by Charles Mingus and arranged by Sy Johnson. May Kotsen ‘23 began the piece with a trombone solo, Karina Rosario ‘26 played a drum solo, and Despines shone on the piano. The medium tempo, big-band style piece “was originally meant to provide a musical bridge from Jelly Roll Morton to Mingus’ own unique compositional voice,” as stated in the concert’s program.
The fifth selection was “The Nutcracker Suite,” a Strayhorn and Ellington arrangement containing variations of songs from Tchaikovsky’s famous ballet. It opened with “Overture,” a swing played at a walking speed andthat featured a trumpet solo played by Leo Franceschi ‘26. The second movement was “Chinoiserie,” a variation on the “Chinese Dance,” featuring O’Connor and Schulman. The final movement the ensemble played was “Dance of the Floradores,” which was slightly fast and featured Lopez, O’Connor, and Franceschi. The piece was another interesting take on an iconic work by the same two iconic musicians from centuries later.
The sixth selection was “Feeling Good,” a song written by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, and arranged by Roger Holmes. Originally composed for a movie titled “The Roar of the Greasepaint—The Smell of The Crowd,” Nina Simone’s version made the song famous, and most recently, Michael Buble’s cover has become popular. Jutt was on vocals again, and the song had a slow build into its iconic and hard-hitting melody. This was probably the most well-known selection in the concert, and because I was familiar with it, it was one of my favorite selections of the night. The song was engaging, and it once again showed Jutt’s excellent vocals.
The seventh and final selection was another one of my favorites, titled “Trombones Under the Tree,” which highlighted all of the trombone players. It is a Christmas medley featuring the tunes “Joy to the World,” “The First Noel,” and “Jingle Bells,” and it was a wonderful close to the concert that put me in the holiday spirit.
Overall, the concert was very enjoyable. It featured a variety of selections, but there was still cohesion in the setlist. Everything went smoothly, the music was wonderfully engaging, and I found myself tapping my foot or nodding my head to every selection. The rest of the audience seemed to enjoy it as well, with each audience member not only applauding after each selection, but also after any solo. I liked how involved the piano was, because as someone who played the piano in my high school band, I rarely got to play a complex piano part, and many pieces I played had multiple measures of rests and were extremely simple. Many performers stood up to perform their solos, which was, in my opinion, a good decision, because it allowed for them to be distinguished from other players. I had a great time at the concert, listening to engaging pieces performed by my fellow Connecticut College students, and sitting with my friends.
