NEW YORK (Jazz-y Daily News Website) - Carnegie Hall has a rich jazz history, including the Jan. 16, 1938 concert when the "King of Swing" Benny Goodman brought America's indigenous art form into the country's most prestigious concert hall.
The latest chapter was written Friday night when the JVC Jazz Festival presented a concert that proved to be an emotional roller-coaster for jazz fans.
There was the joy of watching 30-year-old pianist Brad Mehldau make an impressive Carnegie Hall debut and establish himself as a future star. But it was tempered by the sadness of bidding goodbye to the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band directed by trumpeter Jon Faddis , which is being forced to break up this year after a decade of memorable performances in the hall.
Mehldau, who has released a series of CDs titled "The Art of the Trio," has been playing with bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Jorge Rossy since making his debut recording as a leader in 1995, and the trio now interacts seamlessly.
The closest reference point on the contemporary scene might be Keith Jarrett's long-lasting Standards trio with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette . But while Jarrett's trio relies more on spontaneous improvisation, Mehldau's group has clearly worked out frameworks for their arrangements, leaving space for the improvisations.
What Mehldau shares with Jarrett is an emphasis on improvising off the melodic lines; a strong classical background that is reflected in both his influences and commanding technique, and an individual personality that is not averse to bucking trends and taking risks.
Mehldau's set included one original and four standards - Cole Porter's ` Anything Goes ," Harold Arlen's "Get Happy," Lerner and Loewe's "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face," and Charlie Chaplin's "Smile."
Mehldau offered apologies to Arlen for the trio's version of "Get Happy," saying "I hope we didn't mess with it too much," but that was exactly the point. As with the best jazz musicians, Mehldau showed the ability to take well-worn material and craft it into a fresh, contemporary artistic statement.
The 17-piece Carnegie Hall Jazz Band walked onstage for the second half of the program to a rousing standing ovation from fans upset with Carnegie Hall management's decision in December to disband the ensemble after this season.
New executive and artistic director, Robert J. Harth, decided the Hall should present a wider variety of jazz and jazz artists rather than support just one band, said Ann Diebold, a Carnegie Hall spokeswoman.
"I think the main emotion for a lot of the musicians, myself included, is one of pain rather than anger," said Faddis, interviewed before the concert.
"I've had a great 10 years playing with some of the greatest musicians and having the opportunity to play some of the greatest arrangements at the hall. ... It's been very difficult at times, but it's also been very rewarding."
The band has concerts booked outside New York through October, and after that Faddis hopes to keep the ensemble together under a new name and sponsorship.
Before opening the performance, Faddis read a letter from band members to JVC Festival artistic director George Wein appealing for support and declaring, "It is our intention to continue our musical quest. The best is yet to come."
The big band then proceeded to give an impassioned performance featuring new arrangements of standards from the Great American Songbook, showing just why it remains a much needed presence on the contemporary jazz scene - a band that as Faddis says has "one foot in the past, one foot in the present and also looks to the future."
The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band was never about being a mere repertory band, recreating classic big band arrangements and solos. Instead, the band strove to keep the mainstream big band tradition alive by building its own book, including big band arrangements of classic tunes by Miles Davis and John Coltrane and original compositions especially commissioned for the band such as Lalo Schifrin's Dizzy Gillespie tribute "Gillespiana."
The set opened with trumpeter Michael Phillip Mossman's arrangement of "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes," featuring one of Faddis' trademark high-register trumpet solos and precise, powerful ensemble playing. Slide Hampton's arrangement of Henry Mancini's "Days of Wine and Roses" showcased the band's more delicate side with muted trumpet and trombone section playing.
"You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," arranged by Michael Abene, was highlighted by an unusual flute duet by Frank Wess and Jerry Dodgion. Wess, an 80-year-old Basie band veteran, also played a tender tenor sax solo on "Body and Soul."
After a rousing version of George Gershwin's "Fascinating Rhythm," arranged by Frank Foster , Faddis sprung a surprise by bringing out another big band legend, Clark Terry , for a performance of "Blues In the Night." The 82-year-old Terry had to be assisted on stage, but once he put his trumpet to his lips the years melted away and his solo emoted the suffering and joy of the blues.
The evening closed on a poignant note with a dirge-like version of "Goodbye," Benny Goodman's closing theme, featuring a stirring trumpet duet by Faddis and Mossman. It was a reminder of Carnegie Hall's jazz legacy, but hopefully not the final coda for the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band.
