FEATURE ARTICLE

Tanglewood Jazz 1997

by Seth Rogovoy

(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., Aug. 28, 1997) -- This is the age of corporate downsizing, and this year's Tanglewood Jazz Weekend, down to five concerts from a high of seven, is no exception.

While the number of concerts has shrunk due to poor audience response, what hasn't shrunk is the stature of the performers in this summer's festival. While this weekend's mix of musical improvisers is noticeably lacking in representatives of the younger generation -- of all the headliners, Gary Burton checks in as the youngest at a spritely 54 -- it more than compensates for that oversight in terms of sheer talent.

This year's model also rectifies some longstanding oversights in terms of programming, with not just one but three performers making their Tanglewood festival debuts.

It's hard to believe that such mainstays of the modern jazz scene as Chick Corea (with Gary Burton, Friday, 7:30) and Sonny Rollins (Saturday, 7:30) have never before been a part of Tanglewood's annual salute to jazz. But what's even more amazing is that pianist Randy Weston (Saturday, 1:30) -- who has lived on and off in the Berkshires since the 1950s and has been a linchpin of jazz in the area -- has never before played Tanglewood. All we can say about the man who immortalized our region in his composition, "Berkshire Blues," is: it's about time!

Rounding out this weekend's program on Sunday are two perennial favorites of Tanglewood's jazz program: the New Black Eagle Jazz Band (Sunday, 1:30) -- this time appearing with special guest vocalist Odetta -- and the incomparable Dave Brubeck (Sunday, 7:30), who also has strong local connections dating back to the '50s and the heyday of the Music Inn down the road from Tanglewood.

All performances in the 1997 Tanglewood Jazz Weekend are in Seiji Ozawa Hall. For more information, call 637-5165.

Chick Corea and Gary Burton

This past year, pianist Chick Corea and vibraphonist Gary Burton picked up where they left off over a decade ago, playing and recording as a duo. The union of these two virtuosos dates back to their historic 1973 album, "Crystal Silence," which was followed by four more recordings over the next decade, including two Grammy Award winners, "Duet" and "Concert in Zurich." The two are expected to release a new duet album this winter.

Randy Weston

Randy Weston's life and music has three geographic and spiritual reference points -- Brooklyn, Africa and the Berkshires. He was born in Brooklyn, which he still calls home, and where he first heard the likes of Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk, who all exerted crucial influence on him both as an improviser and composer.

In the 1950s, Weston was spending summers in the Berkshires, playing at local venues including the legendary Music Inn, where he composed "Berkshire Blues." His 1960 recording, "Uhuru Africa," was a landmark in jazz in its use of African motifs and sonorities. By 1967, Weston was living in Tangier, where he owned and operated a jazz club that drew artists and musicians from around the world. Weston has been returning more frequently to the Berkshires in the last few years, and his performance at Tanglewood on Saturday marks a long-overdue debut.

Sonny Rollins

Saxophonist Sonny Rollins is generally regarded as one of the jazz world's greatest improvisers. He has played with all the greats, including Charlie Parker, Lester Young, Bud Powell, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Art Blakey and Elvin Jones. In 1959, at what some regard as the peak of his career, he took a self-imposed sabbatical, living on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and practicing on the Williamsburg Bridge. He returned to performing in 1962 after releasing an album aptly titled "The Bridge." Like Weston, Rollins was a veteran of the Music Inn, and recorded a live album there. He will be performing with his quartet.

New Black Eagle Jazz Band

This year, the Eastern Mass.-based, traditional-minded New Orleans- style New Black Eagle Jazz Band teams with folk legend Odetta for its Tanglewood show. The unusual pairing goes back to 1983, when the two joined forces in an attempt to present the music of singers like Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey in a setting true to their history. Incidentally, one of the main venues for that original experiment was Jacob's Pillow in nearby Becket. Odetta and the band reunited last fall to celebrate the band's 25th anniversary, and the reunion was so successful they decided to pursue further joint appearances.

Dave Brubeck

Dave Brubeck is one of the rare artists of any kind whose popularity is matched by his creativity. Wildly popular with young fans in the '50s and '60s when, with Paul Desmond, he produced works like "Blue Rondo a la Turk" and "Take Five," Brubeck has continued to break ground as a performer and composer. In addition to his solo piano pieces, he has composed works for ballet, a musical, an oratorio, four cantatas, a mass and orchestral jazz pieces. A longstanding favorite of local audiences since his days in residence at the Music Inn, Brubeck will perform with his quartet.

[This article originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on Aug. 28, 1997. Copyright Seth Rogovoy 1997. All rights reserved.]

Seth Rogovoy
rogovoy@berkshire.net
music news, interviews, reviews, et al.

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