From the first snap of the director鈥檚 fingers to the final echo of the steelpan, the Moraine Valley Jazz Ensemble鈥檚 latest concert on Feb. 27 gave the audience a taste of big band jazz with a bit of the Caribbean.
After the ensemble members sauntered onto stage, director Doug Bratt filed in, counted off and snapped his fingers, igniting high-octane music. The smooth saxophones, bellowing trombones, wailing trumpets, dynamic guitar, rhythmic string bass, versatile piano and seamless percussionists launched into the opening tunes of the night.
The first half of the program ran the gamut of what an audience would expect of a jazz concert 鈥 solos throughout each piece, including at least one groovy string bass cadenza, a big band sound and pieces that drew from popular music. One song was a leisurely, jazzy version of Radiohead鈥檚 鈥淓verything in Its Right Place.鈥 Bratt shared about early jazz influences and how today鈥檚 jazz draws from pop music.
For anyone who has never attended a jazz concert, pieces often include segments where the director moves aside to spotlight different musicians who stand in place and improvise an extended solo.
The second half of the concert showcased the steelpan stylings of guest artists Liam Teague and his 17-year-old son Jaden Teague-N煤帽ez, who already has been a guest soloist with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Fox Valley Orchestra and more while attending high school 鈥 impressive resume. Dancing along with the music practically was a requirement.
Teague-N煤帽ez opened with a piano solo before his father gave the audience its first taste of the national instrument of his home country of Trinidad and Tobago 鈥 the steelpan 鈥 a chromatically pitched instrument made from industrial drums. The solo preceded the piece 鈥淪ummer Song,鈥 which transported listeners to a beach chair by the ocean, palm trees swaying all around.
Several of the pieces were written by Teague, who interspersed explanations of the steelpan and, with the help of his son, displayed the inside of the inverted drum with its indentations around the cylinder that create varying pitches. He smiled while verifying that he actually was performing on the steelpan and not mimicking a recording playing simultaneously with the Jazz Ensemble.
Teague joked with the audience every time he took the microphone, claiming one piece was written by his mother鈥檚 favorite composer 鈥 him. Later, father and son bounced and swayed side-to-side in tandem for every piece while the percussionists smiled widely while providing background rhythms.
Amid the excitement, Teague encouraged the crowd to stand up, dance and clap. And in a rare concert-going moment, the audience grooved for an entire song. He even got the audience to follow his lead in a call-and-response, with people vocalizing his patterns.
For the closing number 鈥 鈥淗ands Like Lightning鈥 written by Teague 鈥 he told the crowd it was illegal for anyone to sit while enjoying calypso music. So, we rose once again and for good reason. Who could stay seated while listening to pansticks whip around the drum in sync with the thumping ensemble?!
The next Moraine Valley Jazz Ensemble concert 鈥 鈥淪pring Jazz Spectacular鈥 鈥 is on Friday, May 1.
