Tuan Huy Ly Professor McLaughlin Intro to Music Theory 7 November 2013

Reflection on Cuban Safari concert I went to Cuban Safari, a concert by the New-York based jazz drummer

Francisco Mela. As Im from Vietnam, and I have had very little experience with Western music, aside from Pop and Hip-hop music, going to a Jazz concert is a totally new experience for me. After the brief introduction by a speaker, the band went at it right away without introducing themselves or the piece they will play. They start out with the alto saxophonist Uri Gurvich playing solo. Uri is in his twenties and a very skillful musician. The saxophone solo is graceful, sentimental and somewhat nostalgic. I really enjoy it. Uris solo lasts for around five minutes and then was met by a round of applause from the audience even though the music kept playing. A single piece was structured into different ongoing sections with different leading instrument. This isnt mentioned in the program so I find the audience instant recognition of this to be quite interesting. Despite of my novice understanding of Jazz, I could tell that the music has now seamlessly shifted the focal point to the pianist Elio Villafranca as the saxophone retreats into the background. With the piano now in the lead, the music becomes very soothing. Then Elio slowly build up the speed. His music now becomes more fast-moving and rifting. The other supporting instruments the drums and the bass also starts to intensify. The tempo started out slow and swinging with the saxophone has now quickened.

As Francisco the drummer takes over the spotlight, he also continues to build up the intensity of the music. Eventually the drums become so loud and the beats so intense, feverish and explosive that it drowns out the other instruments. This makes me feel like I am at a dance club rather than a Jazz concert. Francisco is clearly a great musician, and he has great panache. But I find the drum solo to be a bit uncomfortable mostly because of the volume. Furthermore, I find this to an unorthodox break from classical Jazz (or what I think is classical Jazz) that is classy, swinging and sentimental to a type of Jazz which is quick tempo, intense and perhaps inspired with touches from modern music which is for me quite thunderous to the ears. Eventually the drum subsides giving the spotlight the bass player Peter Slavov. At this point, I realize the group has decided to introduce themselves through their individual solos rather spoken words. I really like this idea. Let the music you play speak for who you are! Anyway, the bass player took the tempo down to a slower level. I really enjoy his solo. Peter is really into his performance rocking head, tapping feet and dancing a bit while playing the bass. Hes a very charismatic musician. The piece eventually comes to an end by a brief solo by the saxophone player. The band then takes some time off by introducing themselves and interacting with the audience. Then they begin their second piece, which I find to be absolutely marvelous. The piece starts out with intense bass, which conveys a more subtle intensity than that of the drums. The focus subsequently is then shifted between the saxophone and the piano. The music is beautiful. The band is in sync, and the rhythm is great.

Everything sounds perfect to my ear. The emphasis on the saxophone makes the piece very moving and nostalgic. The music conjures up in mind an image of a character wandering the streets on a winter evening soul searching. I really enjoy listening to the second piece. The band then suddenly abandons their instrument, stands up, and starts clapping and singing. The lead is now shifted to the percussionist Miguel Valdez playing the African drum, which, up until this point, has been drowned out by other instruments. The singing and clapping sounds it might have been inspired by African music. I find this to be a clever break from Jazz music. The band then ends the concert in fashion similar to how they open it with individual sections focused on different instrument. This piece is enjoyable but for me it just could not be compared to the second piece of concert, which is my favorite of all.