I attended a Brown Bag Event featuring the Temple College Jazz Combo, on November 29, 2016 from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM. The recital took place at the Mary Alice Marshall Performing Arts Center in the Jackson-Graeter Backstage Theatre. The combo consisted of four members of the Temple College Jazz Ensemble, who “weren’t getting enough jazz” so the smaller group was put together, per their director, Dr. Benjamin Irom. The quartet is comprised of Jacob Armstrong from Belton on guitar, Ray Palousek from Holland on piano, Blaine Smith from Temple on the double bass, and Charles Reid III from Harker Heights on the drums (Temple College Jazz, 2016). This group is unusual in that it is made up of instruments from just the rhythm …show more content…
In “A Night in Tunisia” I could pick up on the “different rhythms sound[ing] simultaneously” and because of the combining of instruments with dissimilar timbers, I could recognize the different instrument groups. The textbook also states the jazz composers “expect interpreters of their works to include improvisation in each performance” (Ferris & Worster, 2014). When I saw Dizzy Gillespie’s name on the program I was expecting classic jazz, but “A Night in Tunisia” was played using a beat that combined Latin and Swing. I wonder if the beat used was written in by Gillespie or improvised.
The instruments played in “A Night in Tunisia” by Dizzy Gillespie were electric keyboard, electric guitar, electric double bass and drums. The dynamics of the piece were moderately loud (mezzo-forte). The tune was played at a fast, upbeat (allegro) tempo, using a homophonic harmony. The melody line was played by the pianist; although the melody line was not constant, it reminded me of a repeating theme. I prefer this song played the way Dizzy Gillespie performed …show more content…
The dynamics of the number were moderately loud (mezzo-forte). The piece was played at a very fast (pesto) tempo, using a homophonic harmony. Once again the melody line was played by the pianist. Blaine Smith described this composition as “an endurance piece”. The group did well keeping up with the tempo and not leaving anyone behind.
In “Body and Soul” by Johnny Green & Edward Heyman the instruments were changed out to get a different sound or feeling. The instruments played for this number were the melodica, classic guitar, electric double bass and drums. The drummer used the brushes for this piece. The dynamics of the song were moderately loud (mezzo-forte). The piece was played at a moderately slow (andante) tempo, using a homophonic harmony. The melody line was played on the melodica, once again throughout the song. This time the audience got a small taste of what the group would sound like with a