"And that's kind of our motto...to swing at all cost," declared Wynton Marsalis to the eager crowd of over 600 before his septet began their first set. Through loud applause, Marsalis snapped out the tempo for the first song, "Louisiana," and with the opening notes from his trumpet, set the tone for the entire concert. During the next two hours, the septet played music with energy, enthusiasm, vigor, and of course, plenty of swing.
The septet had four soloists, Marsalis (trumpet), Wes Anderson (soprano, alto saxophones), Victor Gomez (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet), and Wycliffe Gordon (trombone), each of whom displayed considerable mastery of their respective instruments. Marsalis, the leader, who has won several accolades for his spectacular technique, speed, accuracy and range, did not dissapoint his audience.
While many trumpet players have an extensive range, what sets Marsalis apart is his equality of strength in all registers. His sound is just as clear and unforced in the topmost notes as it is down in the bottom. He has also developed a certain style of playing where the trumpet almost sounds like an extension of his voice, a technique he uses most effectively while expressing the emotional tone of a blues piece.
His sidemen are no slouches either. Gordon, Anderson, and Gomez played their respective instruments with such intensity and emotional color that they consistently drew loud cheers from the audience. Gordon, in addition to being a swift improviser, had a prominent voice in Marsalis' three compositions from "Citi-Movement," "Down the Avenue," "Stop and Go," and "Nightlife Highlife."
The rhythm section of Herlin Riley (drums, percussion), Eric Reed (piano), and Reginald Veal (bass) was excellent in support and maintained the "groove" that Marsalis attributes to good jazz. Riley had a light, fiery stroke on the drum set and used the entire range of sounds available to him to constantly solo "under" the leader. Reed had a sensitive touch on the piano, playing chords that gave Marsalis leads for his solo, but somehow had less freedom because the drums and bass played quite tightly together.
Marsalis has evolved a great deal in the past few years, both in relation to technique and voice. Whereas a few years ago, listening to one of his ballads would be like listening to a Miles Davis ballad from the 1950's, today Marsalis plays without the shadow of Davis because he has found a new musical direction.
His original compositions reflect his own cultural background, and his selections on last night's program indicated that he is moving away from the '50's standard-style of playing (his haunting rendition of "Initiation" for the encore would be considered a truly modern piece). And like Miles Davis tried to imitate Dizzy Gillespie and Clifford Brown before he found a voice of his own, Marsalis had to play his music knowing that he would be compared to Davis, note by note.
Though he may still imitate Miles in some respects, Marsalis is using his virtuosity on the trumpet to developing and changing the language of jazz so it becomes a look into the future, and not one into the past.
