University jazz groups to present “Just Jazz”

The Cal Poly jazz ensembles will present an evening of jazz music and showcase their talents in their winter concert “Just Jazz” Saturday night.

This end-of-the-quarter event will feature about 38 student musicians, focusing on the ever-changing world of jazz music, from classical to contemporary jazz styles, as well as everything in between.

“It’s such a broad spectrum,” said graphic communications senior and four-year University Jazz Band #2 drummer Aaron Kroeger.

“(There will be a) mix of materials. (The bands will) do some standards, some contemporary, rock or funk tunes, et cetra,” said Paul Rinzler, director of jazz studies and Cal Poly music professor.

The University Jazz Band #1 will be performing a song called “Grass is Greener” composed by Boston-based trombone player Adam Bartczak.

“It’s a pretty good fusion of big band and hip-hop. It’s also got vocals in it. It’s a really good composition and fusion of the two,” Rinzler said.

“I’m a firm believer of branching into different areas of jazz. Hip-hop and jazz is an obvious combo. But there’s not a lot done for big bands, so I was really happy to stumble on this guy’s music (which I purchased) over the Web,” he added.

The University Jazz Band #1 will also be performing the classic “Cherokee” as recorded by jazz vocalist Sarah Vaughan and the modern, rhythmically complex composition “Guten Tag, Zigaretten?”

The University Jazz Band #2 will feature two jazz standards as recorded by Frank Sinatra, “I Get a Kick Out of You” and “Only Have Eyes for You.”

Both jazz combos, which are smaller performance groups of about four to five musicians, will also be performing original student compositions and musical arrangements.

Philosophy junior and singer and guitarist Matt Donner composed an original song titled “Turn Around” for the concert with the help of saxophone player Sean Grimes.

He will be performing it with the five-person jazz combo band #2. “It’s upbeat. I put a bunch of jazz turnarounds together and Sean helped with the melody and we filled in the blanks,” said Donner, who said composing can take anywhere from 20 minutes to several hours.

Political science and music senior and guitarist Brandon Rolle has been with the University Jazz Bands for four years and has since been composing and arranging songs for them.

He arranged a piece by jazz musician Pat Metheny called “Songs for Bilbao” which he will be performing with other musicians in Jazz Combo Band #1.

“It is a contemporary piece that uses less traditional jazz theory. There are lots of layers and musical texture,” Rolle said about his arrangement.

The concert will also feature an original musical arrangement of jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock’s tune of “Watermelon Man” arranged by trumpet player and pianist Justin Au.

“It’s done with seven beats to the bar rather than four or eight, which is normal. The rhythm is going to feel really unusual,” Rinzler said.

“Hopefully I’ve been able to inspire them to be interested in all sorts of different fusion and then the most standard, straight-ahead classical jazz. To do both things is really thinking widely,” he said of his student musicians.

The Cal Poly jazz ensembles are four different ensembles comprised of two big bands, University Jazz Bands #1 and #2, and two jazz combos under the direction of Rinzler. They are music department classes, which perform in concerts at the end of every quarter with varying themes.

For the spring, the ensembles will have the opportunity to play with a world-class jazz musician, clarinetist and saxophonist Don Byron.

The bands rehearse anywhere from two to four hours a week.

The concert is sponsored by Cal Poly’s Music Department, College of Liberal Arts and Instructionally Related Activities program.

“The music department is under-funded and there are a lot of good musicians (in the concert) and it surprises people. It’s good music for the most part,” Kroeger said.

The concert will cater to music lovers and even the jazz music novice.

“I think the overwhelming odds are (the audience is) going to like it because the music is great. Also, their fellow students are up there playing,” Rinzler said.

“Not only does that help the audience relate to the students, but it also helps the students who are playing relate to their audience, too. They’re playing in such a fashion that they know they are communicating to their fellow students,” he added.

The concert will begin at 8 p.m. Saturday night in Harman Hall at the Performing Arts Center. Student tickets are on sale at the Performing Arts Center box office and will also be on sale at the door.