Subject: TROMBONE-L Digest - 20 Sep 2002 to 21 Sep 2002 (#2002-70) There are 25 messages totalling 1424 lines in this issue. Topics of the day: 1. Carl Fontana tribute in Las Vegas 9/23 2. A MEMORABLE Gig (3) 3. DISGUSTING! (3) 4. Doug Crane-C. Fontana Tribute 5. Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job [was Re; valve trombone] (2) 6. What was your BEST gig ever? (5) 7. Worst gig/Best Gig 8. new 61/2 bone mpc cheap 9. Fw: [TBN-L] Worst Gig 10. Where Abouts?? 11. worst gig 12. [JJ-LIST] Carl Fontana tribute in Las Vegas 9/23 13. Jazz repertory 14. Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job [was Re; valve trombone] 15. TVI Thayer Valves (was Trombone web survey) 16. gigs - memorable, and otherwise burned into the consciousness ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 02:33:26 -0600 From: Doug Crane Subject: Carl Fontana tribute in Las Vegas 9/23 From the Las Vegas Sun: A tribute to legendary trombonist Carl Fontana will be held the evening of Sept. 23 at the Bootlegger Bistro. Fontana suffers from Alzheimer's disease. Keyboardist Gus Mancuso, a close friend of Fontana's, is hosting the event. A trombone will be placed in the middle of the stage and Mancuso says if Fontana comes and wants to play, he is welcome. Meanwhile, Mancuso will mix music with reminiscing about the man considered to have been one of the greatest trombone players in the world. Jerry Fink's lounge column appears on Fridays. Reach him at jerry@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4058. ___________________________ Denver singer (and long-time friend of Carl's) Joni Janak told me of this tribute after we finished a big band dance gig in Denver on Friday night. She'll be one of the artists performing in Las Vegas this Monday. She encouraged anyone who would like to send an e-mail or other correspondence to feel free to do so although I have no address, e-mail or otherwise, to share with you. Perhaps contacting the columnist at the Las Vegas Sun would be the best thing to do. Joni also told me of two new CD releases. One is the second to pair Carl alongside Jiggs Whigham for which I have no other info than to say that it exists. The other CD will be appearing in the next few weeks and features Joni and Carl backed by the Ellyn Rucker Trio. My first exposure to a lengthy Carl Fontana solo was on a 2-LP set from Dick Gibson's 1971 Colorado Jazz Party. For me, it's still my very favorite recorded solo of his. Johnny Mandel's tune "Emily" has been recorded by a lot of great jazz players but none have played it better than Carl Fontana did that day. His solo is one of the most well-crafted yet spontaneous musical creations that I can think of. Doug Crane dcrane@rmi.net Volunteer Jazz DJ KUVO Denver 89.3 FM www.kuvo.org ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 08:09:43 -0400 From: Eric Subject: A MEMORABLE Gig I don't know if this falls under the "BEST" or "WORST" gig, but I'll sure call it memorable... TIME: Spring 1979 PLACE: A small "working man's" suburb of Pittsburgh As part of an informal type of "Jazz Outreach", the Duquesne University Jazz Ensemble occasionally booked afternoon concerts at local high schools during their "Assembly" periods. As we were loading our gear into this little high school gym (already a bad sign) , we began to get foreboding vibes as some of the students came up to ask questions like: "Hey, man that must be one HUGE ass guitar!" (commenting on the size of the bari sax player's case) "Hey, do you guys know FREEBIRD?" (N.B., that's FREEbird, not FIREbird...Lynard Skynnard, not Stravinsky) So, soldiering bravely on in the cause of jazz education...we set up our stuff. The class bell rings and the teachers start to herd the students into this gym where they begin to take seats in the bleachers all around us. Musically, we were all starting to feel like the settlers in the Western movies with the "wagons in a circle". We were lucky to have an outstanding musician as our director (John Wilson) who programmed (and wrote!) some very hip stuff. However, the phrase "Too Hip For The Room" definitely came into play that afternoon. We opened up with Clare Fisher's great straight ahead chart THE DUKE. The boos and catcalls started. Uh-oh. Then, since this was the '70s-the whole "Fusion" thing was still a novelty. So... we were ALMOST able to connect with the audience by playing John's chart on the Brecker Brothers SOME SKUNK FUNK. However, the musical "straw that broke the camel's back" was the next chart...a lush, beautiful ballad by Toshiko titled TRANSIENCE featuring baritone sax. We started in...the chart is quite gorgeous...lots of VERY hip harmony...colorful orchestration..our soloist (a young Don Aliquo, if anybody knows Don-you know that even as a youngster he was a monster player) sounded great! But...the boos and catcalls really crank up during this tune. The chart finally gets to a point where the ensemble plays a big, "kitchen sink" altered dominant chord which leads to an unaccompanied solo cadenza...and Don is ALL OVER IT! He brings his fiery cadenza down to a very quiet note of resolution. At that point, most of the guys in the band are thinking "Man..a heartfelt, exciting solo like THAT oughtta reach 'em!" Unfortunately, in that nanosecond of silence before the band can come back in after the cadenza ...one of the students screams... "F - - - YOU!" Half of the band breaks up (along with all of the students). The other half of the band was probably in shock or in tears. Realizing our "mission of jazz enlightenment" that day was an exercise in futility...we didn't even finish the chart. We waited for the teachers to restore control of the crowd, played 1 or 2 more tunes and "got out of Dodge". I still get residual (bittersweet) chuckles from that concert...23 years later! ER ================== ERIC RICHARDS Composer - Arranger Trombone - MIDI For information on music for jazz ensemble: UNC (University of Northern Colorado) JAZZ PRESS: http://arts.unco.edu/uncjazz/jazzpress/composerlist.html C.L. BARNHOUSE CO. : http://www.barnhouse.com/ “It’s hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.” Calvin (the cartoon character, not the Reformed theologian) ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 08:14:34 -0500 From: E P LUKAS Subject: DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! WHAT'S HAPPENING???? There's a new radio station here in Memphis (WJZN-FM). Their newspaper ads call it Smooth Jazz 98.9 and feature pictures of Kenny G., Celine Dion, Sting, Phil Collins, Sade, Anita Baker, and George Benson. Hmmmmm, says I, let's give it a listen. EEK! Elevator music!!! Easy listening!!! Soul!!! Whatsis??? I'm getting the idea that if it isn't rock, rap, or country, it's jazz. This is sick!!! ...and not a trombone anywhere!!! Where do we go for help??? Paul: Memphis ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 09:50:02 -0400 From: Denver Seifried Subject: Re: Doug Crane-C. Fontana Tribute Thanks Doug for the head's up to the Carl Fontana Tribute coming up very soon, in Las Vegas. Check out Rene Lannen's wonderful web page titled "Trombone Page of the World", which is located at www.trombone-usa.com. It gives a lot of information concerning Carl's health issues and Carl's address: Mr. Carl Fontana Aegis of Las Vegas Room 126 9100 West Desert Inn Road Las Vegas, NV 89117 702-240-3070 My mother is dealing with some of the same health issues which Carl, his family and friends are dealing with , and it is very sad to see a loved one go through this terrible disease. Luckily for my mother, she is not nearly as severe as Carl. I hope those of you in the LV area can attend. Denny Seifried Bass Trombone-Springfield (OH) Symphony & Dayton Jazz Orchestra Adjunct Trombone-Wittenberg Univ. Dept. of Music ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 10:13:14 -0400 From: sabutin Subject: Re: Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job [was Re; valve trombone] >In a message dated 16/09/02 21:23:50 GMT Daylight Time, glangfur@YAHOO.COM >writes: > >> I've got nothing against reproducing sounds of the past, >> but a lot of the time - not all - I would rather hear >> creative reinterpretation, particularly of music like >> Ellington's, which was so wonderfully fluid in spirit. For >> example, the Joe Henderson "Lush Life" album is much more >> interesting to me than the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra >> playing Ellington, good as it can be... >-------------------------------------------------------------------- > >I have bored feelings welling up inside me whenever i hear a current ensemble >playing swing and jazz in that pre-packed way. Lifeless and dull. I >completely agree with the idea of having the right tools for the job. The >sound from any group of players playing in the way and on the instruments the >composer anticipated can be a revelation. But still it's a performance. >Isn't it about bringing something new (or truly of yourself) to the music >each time you play it? Otherwise, pretty much everything's been done >already. > >Steve C =========================================== Yes + no. I would of course be interested in hearing a group of serious musicians try to "modernize" Beethoven or Mozart or Brahms, but in my opinion the best thing we can do w/the work of serious geniuses is to try to perform them in as close to the manner the composers intended as possible. The mere facts that these pieces can be heard live...I increasingly detest all recorded music as an esthetic experience...and that the performance practices that go along with them are being preserved in the living archive of human beings and will inform future players and composers is reason enough for "repertory" efforts in any idiom. I see no difference whatsoever in the idea of doing this w/"jazz" (HATE THAT WORD !!! W/American idioms...), except that this movement is financially unsupported on a grand scale and as a result there is only one thriving group trying to do this, the JCJO. i don't particularly like that group or the way it plays...there is a smarmy, insular vibe running through it that reflects Wynton's view of himself...but the idea...that's fine. People hear the LCJO or some underfunded group like the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra and say "Oh, that's not as good as Duke's band; the idea doesn't work", but the fact is, it DOES work when done well. It's just not being done very well yet. How many symphony orchestras are there in the world, funded on a $50 million plus level. How many conservatories dedicated to that music, how many smaller orchestras scuffling along an a mere $20 million or so? Put one hundredth of that money into repertory "jazz" on a worldwide basis...five bands, ten bands...and wait two or three years, and I guarantee you would hear Ellington, Basie, Gil Evans, Chico O'Farrill, Oliver Nelson, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Holman and the pantheon of other great "jazz" composers performed on a level that would put you on the floor. No money, no music. Wynton's own unshakable self-belief plus great talent (make no mistake...he is as gifted a musician as you are going to find) and some modicum of sheer luck has allowed him to get in a position to do this, but he is essentially all alone at the top of the totem pole. Don't judge the idea by one example. There's more coming...or, the music will wither and die. I know which side I'm on. Later... S. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 09:17:40 -0500 From: Jay Heltzer Subject: Re: What was your BEST gig ever? Two years ago, I was playing with the UBS Verbier Youth Orchestra in Switzerland for the summer. Its a new, and pretty outstanding 3 week festival with a great slate of musicians showing up each year. That summer, one of the artists performing was violin soloist Kennedy. If you are at all familiar with his style, it varies from Bach to Jimi Hendrix and hits everything in between. Earlier in the festival, I had participated in a free-form jam session, that impressed even myself. I'm primarily an orchestra guy, not a jazzer. (No offense to our fellow jazzers here. I don't use it as a "bad word" :) So one night, while playing cards, someone popped their head in and asked if we were going to the jam session at the pub. I thought "why not? I did ok the other night" I grab my horn and head over to the Pub Mont Fort to see a huge crowd getting ready to watch Kennedy, and his rhythm section setting up. What was I getting myself into? After two Hendrix tunes (and a Cardinal Beer on my part) Kennedy asks if anyone wants to join them. Bravely, my hand shoots up in the air, and I walk forward. I take my horn (bass trombone) out and introduce myself. All Kennedy can say is "Whoa, 'ats a big f*&%er!" He then turns to the mike and says "LETS HEAR IT FOR JAY ON THE BIG F*&%ER!" He then asks what tunes I know and I just say "Keep it simple". I don't remember what tune he called up - All Blues, Maiden Voyage come to mind - but we play the head, I'm trying to fill in harmonies to his lead - and then he turns to me indicating it was my turn to solo. Armed with only one semester of Jazz Improv (David Baker would be so proud) I begin. With no music, no changes, and no information in front of me, I go. Boy did I go. I had no idea that I had any jazz licks in me. Aside from impressing all my friends and colleagues, and guests of the festival, I IMPRESSED THE HELL OUT OF ME! Who knew? I did this for two more nights and it was easily one of the best musical moments of my life... so far! Jay Heltzer ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 10:39:19 -0400 From: Steve Beck Subject: Worst gig/Best Gig I'm pleased to say I have many more memorable gigs than bad ones. However, the worst gig I was ever involved with was similar to Eric's story. Our big band played for a "hip" local college bar. The band owner - quick I need a polite word for Whore - told them we were just what they were looking for. We were not. We played wonderfully that evening and were just about lynched. The best, there have been too many. I really liked the freebee we did for a nursing home in a lousy room. The people, who were swingers when our music was "pop," really appreciated us. Not surprising that the best and worst aren't really about money. They were all about the band connecting with the audience. Off the thread, but what is your favorite musical experience as the audience? I've been in the audience when Sam Burtis played (SJO - Warton Center, MSU, E. Lansing, MI) and when Wayne Dyess played with the Battle Creek Brass Band.) It doesn't get much better than that. Not only was the music great but it's like cheering for a family member at a sporting event. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 09:50:05 -0700 From: Barry Green Subject: Re: A MEMORABLE Gig I'm lucky enough to play with Don Aliquo on a regular basis....he's simply one of the best jazz soloist's I've ever heard. He played on a big band cd of yellowjacket tunes I have coming out soon. Thanks for sharing this. I printed this out and will take it to him this week, I'm sure he'll get a laugh out of it. Barry Green Nashville ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 10:51:16 -0400 From: kalwas Subject: Re: What was your BEST gig ever? One of the best gigs I ever played was at the old Town and Country Dinner Theater outside of Rochester, NY. This was a place in the '70s that brought in Las Vegas style acts that stayed for a week. We played for such diverse acts as Mel Torme, Vic Damone, Jack Jones, Eartha Kitt, Milton Berle, Rich Little. You get the idea. Usually a Tuesday afternoon rehearsal and eight shows during the week. What a great education for a kid just out of college. Great reading, diverse styles, different conductors and a GREAT house band. Towards the end of the theater's life, Tony Bennett did a week there. They had a fabulous rhythm section, and some wonderful arrangements, including a long medley of Gershwin tunes. Tony sounded fantastic and it was a wonderful week. We were unaware of the depth of the financial difficulties of the theater. All our checks for the week's work bounced. The reason I remember the week is NOT because of being stiffed on the check (we made about $.25 on the dollar about 6 years later). It was because the room and the band and the artist were about as close to perfect as anything I have done before or since. What a great time! Bob Kalwas ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 22 Sep 2002 09:39:19 -0500 From: "D.J. Kennedy" Subject: Re: Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job [was Re; valve trombone] seattle high schools are playing some of the best ellington possible more rehearsal time steady personell in band funding by good ol taxpayers ---------- see articles in seattles newspapers ---the model city for jazz is seattle !!!!!!!!!! ---------- seattle kids went to nyc --took 4 out of 5 places at massa wyntons lco ellington thing -----------the kids swing !!!!! -------- possibly more than a buncha moldy fossil bands -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- the difference in ellington -------players with extreme personality and evolved styles --very recognizable tone ---vibrato-- emotions ----vitality ----almost agitated --- blue intonation --hats worn off the side of your head ----a jungleboogie caravan ----------------- wear powdered wigs ??????? gut strings ----small bore horns ---- -------------- jazz is mainstream now ----are they teaching kids how to be rockers yet ?????? sabutin wrote: > >In a message dated 16/09/02 21:23:50 GMT Daylight Time, glangfur@YAHOO.COM > >writes: > > > >> I've got nothing against reproducing sounds of the past, > >> but a lot of the time - not all - I would rather hear > >> creative reinterpretation, particularly of music like > >> Ellington's, which was so wonderfully fluid in spirit. For > >> example, the Joe Henderson "Lush Life" album is much more > >> interesting to me than the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra > >> playing Ellington, good as it can be... > >-------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > >I have bored feelings welling up inside me whenever i hear a current ensemble > >playing swing and jazz in that pre-packed way. Lifeless and dull. I > >completely agree with the idea of having the right tools for the job. The > >sound from any group of players playing in the way and on the instruments the > >composer anticipated can be a revelation. But still it's a performance. > >Isn't it about bringing something new (or truly of yourself) to the music > >each time you play it? Otherwise, pretty much everything's been done > >already. > > > >Steve C > > =========================================== > > Yes + no. > > I would of course be interested in hearing a group of serious > musicians try to "modernize" Beethoven or Mozart or Brahms, but in my > opinion the best thing we can do w/the work of serious geniuses is to > try to perform them in as close to the manner the composers intended > as possible. The mere facts that these pieces can be heard live...I > increasingly detest all recorded music as an esthetic > experience...and that the performance practices that go along with > them are being preserved in the living archive of human beings and > will inform future players and composers is reason enough for > "repertory" efforts in any idiom. > > I see no difference whatsoever in the idea of doing this w/"jazz" > (HATE THAT WORD !!! W/American idioms...), except that this movement > is financially unsupported on a grand scale and as a result there is > only one thriving group trying to do this, the JCJO. > > i don't particularly like that group or the way it plays...there > is a smarmy, insular vibe running through it that reflects Wynton's > view of himself...but the idea...that's fine. > > People hear the LCJO or some underfunded group like the > Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra and say "Oh, that's not as > good as Duke's band; the idea doesn't work", but the fact is, it DOES > work when done well. > > It's just not being done very well yet. > > How many symphony orchestras are there in the world, funded on a > $50 million plus level. How many conservatories dedicated to that > music, how many smaller orchestras scuffling along an a mere $20 > million or so? > > Put one hundredth of that money into repertory "jazz" on a > worldwide basis...five bands, ten bands...and wait two or three > years, and I guarantee you would hear Ellington, Basie, Gil Evans, > Chico O'Farrill, Oliver Nelson, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Holman and > the pantheon of other great "jazz" composers performed on a level > that would put you on the floor. > > No money, no music. > > Wynton's own unshakable self-belief plus great talent (make no > mistake...he is as gifted a musician as you are going to find) and > some modicum of sheer luck has allowed him to get in a position to > do this, but he is essentially all alone at the top of the totem pole. > > Don't judge the idea by one example. > > There's more coming...or, the music will wither and die. > > I know which side I'm on. > > Later... > > S. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 10:12:47 -0500 From: Charles Levine Subject: new 61/2 bone mpc cheap Blessing (Bach copy) 61/2 (never taken out of the box) $23 ppd. Blessing (Bach Copy) 3C trumpet mpc new (in box) $18 ppd charlie ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 11:42:25 -0500 From: Mike Switzer Subject: Re: A MEMORABLE Gig Boy, this is a hard one, so I'll just hit a few highlights... One of my first gigs out with one of my first free improv units... we're playing in what is essentially a speakeasy, above a coffee shop, and apparently the guy who set the gig up, well, didn't really set the gig up, never really cleared it with the owner, but us being us, it barely slowed us down. The owner wouldn't give us any power at first for our bass amp, so we ran out and got our own extension cord. Once we finally start the crowd almost immeadiately turns hostile. The odd thing this place was full of the modern theatre crowd who would be horribly offended if you ask them to do a neil simon play, but the they have no problem yelling things like, "Play a song!", etc. Another time, with another group, we actually had a drunk guy get on stage and start yelling at us, through the microphone... we just kept up our racket making, and incorporated him into the band for a bit... eventually he got bored and crawled off somewhere to pass out... then there was the time at an open mic my group, The Democratic Art, was introduced with, "next up, some really smart music, The American Art", and we played an aggressive hard set sandwiched between guys on acoustic guitars playing don mclean and bob seeger covers... most of the audience went out to the patio, but there was one older hippie guy who was really into it, and told us so after the set... Hopefully my best gig is the one I haven't played yet... I am set to make my solo trombone debut on oct 27th as a part of the Pauline Oliveros Foundation Houston series "Sounding Ground" I am hoping that this will be my best gig... ;) Mike Switzer "Seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of the inferno, are not inferno, then make them endure, give them space." -Italo Calvino ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 12:44:35 EDT From: Dslide13@AOL.COM Subject: Re: What was your BEST gig ever? I have a couple of best gigs. Tops on the list would be last May when we recorded the new World of Trombones gig with Slide. The ensemble was great, the music was great, the money was great, and everyone realized that we were making history. The performances were a little stressful and didn't feel relaxed, IMO, but you couldn't deny the buzz of energy traveling through the group. The last day we were out we did a studio style recording of the music we'd been playing live. I think those were the most solid performances, but I've been proven wrong before. My other best gigs have involved very little money. I have a weekly hit at SMOKE in NYC. We play Wednesdays with a jazz/funk band called, "the Hot Pants Funk Sextet +1". Every once in awhile, I'll look out and see Harold Mabern, or Eddie Henderson, or someone of that generation...and I'll get into a zone. It's easy on that gig to hit the zone if you've prepared physically because the club is always packed and the people are on top of you and each other. Their energy inspires the band and in turn we give it back to them. One last one.....I also have a steady jazz quartet hit way Uptown. I booked the band on night with organ, drums, myself and Ryan Kisor on trumpet. Ryan and I had been doing a lot of playing together, and I feel like he challenges me whenever we play. Ensemble playing becomes more intense, and he lays the gauntlet with every solo. That night I exceeded my expectations because I became a listener. When it was my turn to play, I was still listening and not imposing my will upon the music. I "got out of the way" as Jeff said. David Gibson dslide13@aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 14:00:23 -0400 From: Dave Wank Subject: Fw: [TBN-L] Worst Gig I am re-sending this because I addressed it wrong, originally! Sorry, Mike, that you have to get this twice. My apologies. dave ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dave Wank" To: "Michael B. McCreless" Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 1:17 PM Subject: Re: [TBN-L] Worst Gig > Back around 1950, when I was still in high school, there were several of us well-intentioned > musicians who wanted desparately to start a dance band. The problem was that none of us had enough > cash, even collectively, to acquire a library. > One day our trombonist announced, happily, that he had found a huge trunk of music, in his basement, > that belonged to his father. True, they were all arrangements designed for a band of about our size > but, and this didn't seem to matter to us, the most recent tune would probably have been published > in 1930! > We spent days digging through that stuff until we finally found about 50 arrangements that were > complete and looked easy enough. Meanwhile, our lead alto had a cousin in a town about 50 miles > away who needed to get a band for his senior prom. We were offered the job! Wow! Our first gig > and a senior prom! > The dance was from 9 to 1 and about 15 minutes after we started we noticed most of the kids just > standing around the dance floor, doing nothing. We were impressed. We thought they were listening > to us and too entranced to want to dance. Remember, this was in the 50's. Lots of good swing still > available and that was all one still heard on the local radio stations. > Then, several kids came up and asked us to play many of the currrent favorites. Naturally, we didn't > have them. The crowd seemed to be getting smaller. When we decided to take a break, about 9:45, we > stepped off the bandstand just as the last of the kids were going out the door! When no one came > back in by 10:15, we went home, too. > Dave Wank > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Michael B. McCreless" > To: > Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 12:42 PM > Subject: [TBN-L] Worst Gig > > > > What is your worst gig played. I remember playing at a high school in south > > Alabama, when I was in the Air Force, called Beauregard High. The hall had > > spittoons every few feet. We were a jazz band and you can imagine the cool > > reception from students in the heart of "cuntry" music. I swear I thought > > every male student had a bag of chewing tobacco in their back pockets. > > Michael McCreless > > Alabama > ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Sep 2002 11:11:20 -0700 From: Randy Fendrick Subject: Where Abouts?? Am wondering if there are any players in the Dallas area who have come across Neal Wood? A wonderful player I worked with about 10 years ago. He moved back to Dallas and have lost track of him. If anyone there happens to know him let me know and how to contact. Thanks, -Randy Fendrick- Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra Southside Chicago Seven ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 11:18:23 -0700 From: Gary Sloane Subject: Re: worst gig Back in the days when "CEO" was a prestigious title and dot.com millionaires were common (OK, some of them are still common but there were more of them then), my old octet played a CEO Night benefit for the San Jose Symphony. Lew Rawles opened, over hors d'oevres, members of the symphony played chamber music during dinner, and we were there for dessert, playing mostly old Dave Pell charts. We were fed and paid well, and it should have been a great gig. The bari sax player, fronting the group, kicked off all the first tune *much* too fast -- he's one of those guys who has to prove how high and fast he can play but really can't do either very well -- and at the beginning of the second tune, he started the count before I could get the horn up to my face for the G above the staff entrance, so I said, "Wait a second". He came back with a speech that began, "Don't give me that f**kin' shit, you guys are supposed to be f**kin' proFESSional musicians..." Really cussed a blue streak, right into the mike. It was a long, angry tirade, too much influenced by his having listened to a Buddy Rich tape. I just said, "Y'know, that's a live mike." He continued to fume and call overheated tempi. The rest of the night was terrible, too. Everybody was rattled. The rhythm section fought so badly that the bass player tried to stomp time on the risers (always an effective technique!). The trumpet player we hired at the last minute -- I heard him play beautifully recently on a salsa gig -- chipped notes and missed entrances. The lights were really hot and I was sweating so much that whatever was in my hair was melted and ran into my eyes and made them burn and fogged up my glasses. Even worse, the audience was knowledgeable enough to shout out, "Hey, that's a Shorty Rogers tune" and make comments about Bill Harris during my solo on Bijou. Thank god I didn't run into anyone from the low brass section! The worst aspect, though, was that this music, which should be fun to play and, to my way of thinking, should sound relaxed even at difficult moments, was extremely strained ... and, did I mention the vibes? OK, I'll leave the vibraphone player out of it. You get the idea. -- Gary Sloane sloane@batnet.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 20:18:39 +0100 From: Adrian Drover Subject: Re: DISGUSTING! From: "E P LUKAS" > DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! > > WHAT'S HAPPENING???? > > There's a new radio station here in Memphis (WJZN-FM). Their newspaper > ads call it Smooth Jazz 98.9 and feature pictures of Kenny G., > Celine Dion, Sting, Phil Collins, Sade, Anita Baker, and George Benson. > > Hmmmmm, says I, let's give it a listen. > > EEK! Elevator music!!! Easy listening!!! Soul!!! > > Whatsis??? I'm getting the idea that if it isn't rock, rap, or country, > it's jazz. > > This is sick!!! > > ...and not a trombone anywhere!!! > > Where do we go for help??? > > Paul: Memphis Now that sounds exactly like Jazz FM in the UK. I guess all radio stations are run by accountants, dictated to by advertisers. A. Adrian Drover ADIOS, Scotland www.adios.co.uk Personal email: adrian@adios.co.uk ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 15:42:40 EDT From: Zemry@AOL.COM Subject: Re: [JJ-LIST] Carl Fontana tribute in Las Vegas 9/23 
This is a long over due tribute to one of the greats.

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 15:12:01 -0500
From:    richard johnson 
Subject: Re: DISGUSTING!

Hmmmmmm.....where DO we go for help? Perhaps we teach our kids to play
"smooth jazz" on trombone! Glenn Miller played it!
----- Original Message -----
From: "E P LUKAS" 
To: 
Sent: Saturday, September 21, 2002 8:14 AM
Subject: [TBN-L] DISGUSTING!


> DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING! DISGUSTING!
>
> WHAT'S HAPPENING????
>
> There's a new radio station here in Memphis (WJZN-FM). Their newspaper
> ads call it Smooth Jazz 98.9 and feature pictures of Kenny G.,
> Celine Dion, Sting, Phil Collins, Sade, Anita Baker, and George Benson.
>
> Hmmmmm, says I, let's give it a listen.
>
> EEK! Elevator music!!! Easy listening!!! Soul!!!
>
> Whatsis??? I'm getting the idea that if it isn't rock, rap, or country,
> it's jazz.
>
> This is sick!!!
>
> ...and not a trombone anywhere!!!
>
> Where do we go for help???
>
> Paul: Memphis

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 15:15:52 -0500
From:    richard johnson 
Subject: Re: What was your BEST gig ever?

I played a r&b gig at Anne Rice's mansion in New Orleans about 3 years ago.
Decent pay and GREAT food. The only drawback was that we had a substitute
pianist who got drunk, tried to start a fight with the trumpet player after
the gig was over and was arrested and toted off to jail. However, since I
wasn't the one being arrested, I didn't care. His being arrested did not put
a damper on my good time!
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jay Heltzer" 
To: 
Sent: Saturday, September 21, 2002 9:17 AM
Subject: Re: [TBN-L] What was your BEST gig ever?


> Two years ago, I was playing with the UBS Verbier Youth Orchestra in
> Switzerland for the summer.  Its a new, and pretty outstanding 3 week
> festival with a great slate of musicians showing up each year.  That
summer,
> one of the artists performing was violin soloist Kennedy.  If you are at
all
> familiar with his style, it varies from Bach to Jimi Hendrix and hits
> everything in between.  Earlier in the festival, I had participated in a
> free-form jam session, that impressed even myself.  I'm primarily an
> orchestra guy, not a jazzer.  (No offense to our fellow jazzers here.  I
> don't use it as a "bad word" :)  So one night, while playing cards,
someone
> popped their head in and asked if we were going to the jam session at the
> pub.  I thought "why not?  I did ok the other night"
>
> I grab my horn and head over to the Pub Mont Fort to see a huge crowd
> getting ready to watch Kennedy, and his rhythm section setting up.  What
was
> I getting myself into?  After two Hendrix tunes (and a Cardinal Beer on my
> part) Kennedy asks if anyone wants to join them.  Bravely, my hand shoots
up
> in the air, and I walk forward.  I take my horn (bass trombone) out and
> introduce myself.  All Kennedy can say is "Whoa, 'ats a big f*&%er!"  He
> then turns to the mike and says "LETS HEAR IT FOR JAY ON THE BIG F*&%ER!"
> He then asks what tunes I know and I just say "Keep it simple".  I don't
> remember what tune he called up - All Blues, Maiden Voyage come to mind -
> but we play the head, I'm trying to fill in harmonies to his lead - and
then
> he turns to me indicating it was my turn to solo.
>
> Armed with only one semester of Jazz Improv (David Baker would be so
proud)
> I begin.  With no music, no changes, and no information in front of me, I
> go.  Boy did I go.  I had no idea that I had any jazz licks in me.  Aside
> from impressing all my  friends and colleagues, and guests of the
festival,
> I IMPRESSED THE HELL OUT OF ME!  Who knew?
>
> I did this for two more nights and it was easily one of the best musical
> moments of my life... so far!
>
> Jay Heltzer

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 16:35:19 -0500
From:    Jeff Albert 
Subject: Re: Jazz repertory

All of this talk about repertory ensembles has got me thinking, which
can often be dangerous.  Really there is very little music that isn't
repertory.  People like to hear what they know.  I play in a large
ensemble that is very cutting edge (which could just be a euphemism for
weird) and even our forward listening adventure seeking audience (of
about 12 people) has favorite pieces that they want to hear at the gigs.
The solos may be different, and we may screw up different parts of the
piece, but it is greatly the same music as the record or the last gig.
Last week I played an Allstar Soul Jam put on by a local production
company that has a great feel for what pseudo hippie college kids will
pay to hear.  We played Marvin Gaye, Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Al
Green, etc.  I wrote the horn charts, and was excited to write for the
great section we had, but the producer just wanted record lifts.  It was
repertory.  I guess Sam has it right in that the only difference between
a repertory ensemble and a cover band is financial backing.  Once we
realize that's what we do, it makes sense to try to do it as well as
possible.

Jeff Albert

www.jeffalbert.com


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Trombones and related issues forum. [mailto:TROMBONE-
> L@PO.MISSOURI.EDU] On Behalf Of sabutin
> Sent: Saturday, September 21, 2002 9:13 AM
> To: TROMBONE-L@PO.MISSOURI.EDU
> Subject: Re: [TBN-L] Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the
job
> [was Re; valve trombone]
>
> >In a message dated 16/09/02 21:23:50 GMT Daylight Time,
> glangfur@YAHOO.COM
> >writes:
> >
> >>  I've got nothing against reproducing sounds of the past,
> >>  but a lot of the time - not all - I would rather hear
> >>  creative reinterpretation, particularly of music like
> >>  Ellington's, which was so wonderfully fluid in spirit. For
> >>  example, the Joe Henderson "Lush Life" album is much more
> >>  interesting to me than the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra
> >>  playing Ellington, good as it can be...
> >--------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >I have bored feelings welling up inside me whenever i hear a current
> ensemble
> >playing swing and jazz in that pre-packed way.  Lifeless and dull.  I
> >completely agree with the idea of having the right tools for the job.
> The
> >sound from any group of players playing in the way and on the
instruments
> the
> >composer anticipated can be a revelation.  But still it's a
performance.
> >Isn't it about bringing something new (or truly of yourself) to the
music
> >each time you play it?  Otherwise, pretty much everything's been done
> >already.
> >
> >Steve C
>
>
> ===========================================
>
>     Yes + no.
>
>     I would of course be interested in hearing a group of serious
> musicians try to "modernize" Beethoven or Mozart or Brahms, but in my
> opinion the best thing we can do w/the work of serious geniuses is to
> try to perform them in as close to the manner the composers intended
> as possible. The mere facts that these pieces can be heard live...I
> increasingly detest all recorded music as an esthetic
> experience...and that the performance practices that go along with
> them are being preserved in the living archive of human beings and
> will inform future players and composers is reason enough for
> "repertory" efforts in any idiom.
>
>     I see no difference whatsoever in the idea of doing this w/"jazz"
> (HATE THAT WORD !!! W/American idioms...), except that this movement
> is financially unsupported on a grand scale and as a result there is
> only one thriving group trying to do this, the JCJO.
>
>     i don't particularly like that group or the way it plays...there
> is a smarmy, insular vibe running through it that reflects Wynton's
> view of himself...but the idea...that's fine.
>
>     People hear the LCJO or some underfunded group like the
> Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra and say "Oh, that's not as
> good as Duke's band; the idea doesn't work", but the fact is, it DOES
> work when done well.
>
>     It's just not being done very well yet.
>
>     How many symphony orchestras are there in the world, funded on a
> $50 million plus level. How many conservatories dedicated to that
> music, how many smaller orchestras scuffling along an a mere $20
> million or so?
>
>     Put one hundredth of that money into repertory "jazz" on a
> worldwide basis...five bands, ten bands...and wait two or three
> years, and I guarantee you would hear Ellington, Basie, Gil Evans,
> Chico O'Farrill, Oliver Nelson, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Holman and
> the pantheon of other great "jazz" composers performed on a level
> that would put you on the floor.
>
>     No money, no music.
>
>     Wynton's own unshakable self-belief plus great talent (make no
> mistake...he is as gifted a musician as you are going to find) and
> some modicum of sheer luck  has allowed him to get in a position to
> do this, but he is essentially all alone at the top of the totem pole.
>
>     Don't judge the idea by one example.
>
>     There's more coming...or, the music will wither and die.
>
>     I know which side I'm on.
>
>     Later...
>
>     S.

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 17:51:24 -0500
From:    Fred Hudson 
Subject: Re: Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job [was         Re; valve trombone]

Another great reinterpretation of Ellington is Dave Grusin's "Homage to
Duke" released in 1993. Dave varies the instrumentation from cut to cut and
on no cut does he use traditional "big band" instrumentation.The most used
combination is three horns plus rhythm, Clark Terry is the only Ellington
alumnus in the bunch.

Fred H

----- Original Message -----
From: "D.J. Kennedy" 
To: 
Sent: Sunday, September 22, 2002 9:39 AM
Subject: Re: [TBN-L] Jazz repertory (was: Get the right tool for the job
[was Re; valve trombone]


> seattle  high schools  are  playing some of the best ellington  possible
>   more rehearsal time steady personell in band  funding  by  good ol
taxpayers
>  ----------
> see articles in seattles  newspapers  ---the model city  for jazz is
seattle
> !!!!!!!!!!
>  ----------
>  seattle kids  went to nyc  --took 4 out of 5 places at  massa  wyntons
lco
> ellington thing  -----------the kids swing  !!!!!
> -------- possibly   more  than a buncha moldy fossil bands
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
------
>  the difference  in ellington -------players with  extreme personality
>      and  evolved  styles  --very recognizable tone ---vibrato--
>       emotions ----vitality   ----almost agitated  ---
> blue intonation  --hats worn off the side  of  your head ----a
jungleboogie
>    caravan
> ----------------- wear powdered wigs  ???????
>     gut strings  ----small bore  horns  ----
> --------------
> jazz is  mainstream  now  ----are they teaching  kids how to be rockers
yet
> ??????
>
>
> sabutin wrote:
>
> > >In a message dated 16/09/02 21:23:50 GMT Daylight Time,
glangfur@YAHOO.COM
> > >writes:
> > >
> > >>  I've got nothing against reproducing sounds of the past,
> > >>  but a lot of the time - not all - I would rather hear
> > >>  creative reinterpretation, particularly of music like
> > >>  Ellington's, which was so wonderfully fluid in spirit. For
> > >>  example, the Joe Henderson "Lush Life" album is much more
> > >>  interesting to me than the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra
> > >>  playing Ellington, good as it can be...
> > >--------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > >I have bored feelings welling up inside me whenever i hear a current
ensemble
> > >playing swing and jazz in that pre-packed way.  Lifeless and dull.  I
> > >completely agree with the idea of having the right tools for the job.
The
> > >sound from any group of players playing in the way and on the
instruments the
> > >composer anticipated can be a revelation.  But still it's a
performance.
> > >Isn't it about bringing something new (or truly of yourself) to the
music
> > >each time you play it?  Otherwise, pretty much everything's been done
> > >already.
> > >
> > >Steve C
> >
> > ===========================================
> >
> >     Yes + no.
> >
> >     I would of course be interested in hearing a group of serious
> > musicians try to "modernize" Beethoven or Mozart or Brahms, but in my
> > opinion the best thing we can do w/the work of serious geniuses is to
> > try to perform them in as close to the manner the composers intended
> > as possible. The mere facts that these pieces can be heard live...I
> > increasingly detest all recorded music as an esthetic
> > experience...and that the performance practices that go along with
> > them are being preserved in the living archive of human beings and
> > will inform future players and composers is reason enough for
> > "repertory" efforts in any idiom.
> >
> >     I see no difference whatsoever in the idea of doing this w/"jazz"
> > (HATE THAT WORD !!! W/American idioms...), except that this movement
> > is financially unsupported on a grand scale and as a result there is
> > only one thriving group trying to do this, the JCJO.
> >
> >     i don't particularly like that group or the way it plays...there
> > is a smarmy, insular vibe running through it that reflects Wynton's
> > view of himself...but the idea...that's fine.
> >
> >     People hear the LCJO or some underfunded group like the
> > Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra and say "Oh, that's not as
> > good as Duke's band; the idea doesn't work", but the fact is, it DOES
> > work when done well.
> >
> >     It's just not being done very well yet.
> >
> >     How many symphony orchestras are there in the world, funded on a
> > $50 million plus level. How many conservatories dedicated to that
> > music, how many smaller orchestras scuffling along an a mere $20
> > million or so?
> >
> >     Put one hundredth of that money into repertory "jazz" on a
> > worldwide basis...five bands, ten bands...and wait two or three
> > years, and I guarantee you would hear Ellington, Basie, Gil Evans,
> > Chico O'Farrill, Oliver Nelson, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Holman and
> > the pantheon of other great "jazz" composers performed on a level
> > that would put you on the floor.
> >
> >     No money, no music.
> >
> >     Wynton's own unshakable self-belief plus great talent (make no
> > mistake...he is as gifted a musician as you are going to find) and
> > some modicum of sheer luck  has allowed him to get in a position to
> > do this, but he is essentially all alone at the top of the totem pole.
> >
> >     Don't judge the idea by one example.
> >
> >     There's more coming...or, the music will wither and die.
> >
> >     I know which side I'm on.
> >
> >     Later...
> >
> >     S.
>
>

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 17:12:12 -0700
From:    Daryl Burch 
Subject: Re: What was your BEST gig ever?

In '91, while attending Cincinnati Conservatory, I played in  the "Freddy
Love Big Band," a pick-up big band that got hired for casuals and local
events around town. We got called to play the grand opening of the
Cincinnati Museum Center ( http://www.cincymuseum.org/ ), located in Union
Terminal. They renovated the beautiful art deco train terminal back to the
glory of it '20's & 30's hay day.

The terminal itself is a half-dome shell, like the Hollywood Bowl, and
acoustically perfect. It's a breathtaking station with frescos and marble
floors, etc. etc. For the grand opening the caterers set up "stations" of
food at various points. Imagine a 10' round of shrimp, crab, oysters. And
another of meats. Another of cheeses & fruits. Another of desserts. It was a
glutton's delight.

I wasn't so much into "gor-met" food then. But I contribute this gig to the
demise of my wasteline!

As far as the performance goes, we were an 18-piece big band, in black tie,
set on 4'-high risers at the head of the dome. The book: 3-sets of
everything Basie and Ellington. Perfect for this setting!

The dome shell made us sound (or at least "feel") 10x's bigger than we were.
And the setting coupled with the vibe of the building and everybody dressed
to the nines, swillin' champagne and eating like kings, made me think "This
is what the best of the Big Band era was like!"

I played the 2nd book with Marc Fields on lead. Marc was on/off the road
with Ray Charles' band. Whenever he was around he'd play with us. The man
has a real sweet sound and gave me a serious schoolin' that night on what a
"Lead 'bone" in a big band should be! {Now Marc is Jazz Trombone instr. at
UC--CCM.}

We even got paid decent. And the capper on the night was: as I was packing
up, I noticed on one of the ticket windows, a server left about a case of
the wines they'd been pouring that night. I walked over to look at the
labels and see what the "elite set" drinks. I saw that about half of them
had been opened.

About then, the server comes back. So I make small talk asking about the
wines & what made them so good. We chat for awhile and my sideman intuition
kicks up. I ask "So are you guys charging [billing the client] by the bottle
or the case?" thinking he might slide me a half-bottle o' anything.

The server replies, "All of it's paid for already. What we don't pour goes
back to the caterer for 'whatever.'" Then he picks up the tray and starts by
me. As he goes to pass he grabs an un-opened bottle of Chardonnay off the
tray and hands it to me saying "Put this away."

I'm aghast (since I'm only 20 at the time and haven't even tried wine
before) and immediately put it in my gig bag. I don't even know what it
is...

That night, my roommate (bass trbn head) and I split said bottle o' chard
over our leftovers from Thanksgiving. It's was stellar, of course. I find
out later it was a $50 bottle of wine.

Now I'm a confirmed foody and wine hound. So I gig to support my habits!

...and whenever a Basie chart is called, that gig comes to mind.

Daryl Burch
CCM '87-91
www.radionoise.com


----- Original Message -----
From: "richard johnson" 
To: 
Sent: Saturday, September 21, 2002 1:15 PM
Subject: Re: [TBN-L] What was your BEST gig ever?

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 18:13:52 -0700
From:    ETHAYER 
Subject: Re: TVI Thayer Valves (was Trombone web survey)

Steve, here is an explanation of the differences between the "Orla Ed
Thayer"
valve,  the Edwards valve and Shires Thayer valve.

ORLA ED THAYER VALVE
    Rotor:   Machined from a single piece of aluminum, then it receives a
hard anodized treatment (aluminum oxide) The anodized surface is about .002"
thick. Finally it receives a proprietary treatment to totally seal the
molecular surface. This sealant guarantees against corrosion. Weighs less
than one ounce. A light weight rotor can operate fast with less spring
tension on the lever.

    Fitting:  A properly fitted valve is a demanding operation. The
axial-flow valve,
because of its conical shape, allows the adjustment of all four ports at
once.
With the Orla Ed Thayer valve it is possible to decrease or increase the
endplay of the valve.It is important to control this endplay for two
reasons: (1) It can limit
any leakage, and (2) eliminates a noisy action.

    Lubrication: We have found that on a close fitting rotor, oil tends to
slow the
action. One needs to realize that naturally occuring condensation will
displace
the oil in time, and the rotor then runs on water only. A light spray of
water through
the hand slide receiver while operating the valve works very well.
One may apply a tiny drop of valve oil to the shaft.

    Precision standards: Through the years Ed has demanded precise machining
of the valve parts. As an example, Ed insists that the angle of the rotor
and the
angle of the inside of the case be exactly alike. He believes that this
precise
standard keeps the sound centered. A freely operating rotor does not rub on
the inside of the case. The only contact between the rotor and the case is
the one-
quarter inch wide journal at the tip of the rotor cone. This journal is a
band
that is less than .002" above the conical surface.

Precision Brass (Greg Maloney) is maintaining these high standards.

EDWARDS VALVE
    Edwards have always manufactured their own Thayer valves.

    Rotor::  Assembled from four brass pieces silver brazed together. After
final
machining of the assembly it is nickel plated. Weighs about one and a half
ounces.

    Fitting Procedure: Only allows for tightening the endplay. An
excessively tight
fit is resolved by lapping the rotor.

    Lubricating: Place oil in the stop arm screw hole in the rotor shaft.
Close to the rotor face is a hole that automatically oils the shaft.

SHIRES THAYER VALVE
    Steve has manufactured his own Thayer valve since 1999.

    Rotor:  Originally a machined cast aluminum rotor then anodized. Now we
understand that the rotors are a four-piece brass assembly brazed together,
machined and then nickel plated. Weight about an ounce and a half.

    Fitting: Steve has retained the fitting advantage of the original Thayer
valves.
That is the ability to both tighten and loosen the fit of the rotor by
sanding the edge of the brass cone or flat surface of the head.

I hope that this comparison is accurate and useful.

Barbara Thayer                                    Precision Brass
P.O. Box 475                                      PO Box 54102
Waldport OR 97394                            Eugene OR 97402
Ph. 541-563-2183                               Ph. 541-434-6710
Fax. 541-563-5806


----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve LaRue" 
To: 
Sent: Thursday, September 19, 2002 9:04 PM
Subject: Re: [TBN-L] TVI Thayer Valves (was Trombone web survey)


> Would you please explain the difference between your valve and the
> Getzen/Edwards valve and the Shires valve.  Thank you

------------------------------

Date:    Sat, 21 Sep 2002 21:17:08 -0400
From:    "Wessner, John" 
Subject: gigs - memorable, and otherwise burned into the consciousness

I was thinking this wouldn't necessarily be much of a thread, but it's =
developed nicely.  My candidate for memorable was a surprise, and in =
many respects had nothing to do with the usual things that make gigs =
stand out.

As a few of you know I played the first eight years of the 80s as a =
house musician at Phillips Harborplace here in Balto (aka Crabtown).  =
This was not a great musical career, but I had kids in college, etc. In =
mid 1987, the market for "old-timey ragtime sing-along" stuff was =
beginning to wane and it was decided to change the repertoire to include =
more "golden age of American popular song" and 50s' rock and roll.  The =
morning after the first expanded offering, I was taking a bath and lying =
in the tub awash in memories of the places I had played those things =
initially and the rest of my late adolescence.  I'm not all that =
nostalgic, but revisiting Elvis and others whom I'd really only paid =
attention to originally as a professional musician really set me off.

I'll not try to describe the most recent "best" gig.  And there have =
been far too many "worst" gigs over the last 50 years.
jw

------------------------------

End of TROMBONE-L Digest - 20 Sep 2002 to 21 Sep 2002 (#2002-70)
****************************************************************