Student Jazz Syncopation Enlivens Performing Arts
By JACOB KRAMER
Last Thursday, as six Vineyard students ambled out on stage at the
packed Performing Arts Center, it was clear they were unaccustomed to
playing for such a large crowd. Their apprehension was understandable.
They were about to play with Phil Wilson, a jazz legend in his own
right, and as he explained, they had only rehearsed on three occasions
- two days in Boston and once before the show.
All worries were allayed by the first bars, as the students melded
strings, skins and brass into tripping melodies and articulate solos.
SRC="http://www.mvgazette.com/news/2005/08/09/content/vibes_adam_lipsky_sm.jpg" The students were the opening act for Vineyard Vibes, the four-day
festival staged by the Berklee College of Music. Performances from
Thursday through Sunday spanned a range of genres, from jazz and mambo
to rock music and gospel.
Although the main acts each night were all students, professors or
alumni of Berklee, two of the opening acts featured young Island
performers. On Thursday, recent graduates from the Martha's
Vineyard Regional High School set the stage for the jazzed up Wizard of
Oz Suite by Mr. Wilson. And on Saturday, The Unbusted, a Vineyard rock
group, warmed up the crowd for Juliana Hatfield.
The Jazz Band All Stars performing Thursday included David Bouck,
Eric Herman, Adam Lipsky, Niko Ewing, Matt Rosenthal, and Eric T.
Johnson. They opened with The Cameldriver, a challenging composition by
Mr. Wilson, played in five-four time. The piece was surprising. Mr.
Wilson started it out with a slow, Mideastern flavor accompanied by a
strong bass line, then threw in an abrupt switch, with the horn section
breaking into much brighter, big band-style playing.
Listening to the opening septet, one never would have guessed that
Mr. Wilson wrote Cameldriver for a much larger orchestra. But he played
an extended version with his Rainbow Band later in the evening.
SRC="http://www.mvgazette.com/news/2005/08/09/content/vibes_ragsdale_sm.jpg" The jazz band and Mr. Wilson took turns alternating between tightly
composed riffs and improvisational solos.
Mr. Lipsky went first on piano, starting out tentatively, choosing
each note with care. He was followed by Mr. Ewing's calm, fluid
ad-libbing on his cherry red Fender guitar. Along the way, Mr. Wilson
gave the audience a few choice slides of the trombone - a taste of
what they were in store for later.
They next played Cedar's Blues by Cedar Walton, a brassier and
high-spirited piece. It was with this song that the high school band
really shone: Mr. Herman worked out a lively solo that meshed well with
the tune, and Mr. Lipsky came back stronger with an intricate, extended
solo that continued through the crowd's applause.
Their participation in the show was made possible through an
outreach program funded by Vineyard Vibes. Earlier in the year, the
students spent time in Boston under the tutelage of Mr. Wilson.
With him, the horn players learned crucial skills such as how to
breathe circularly and had their first in-depth lessons on the logic and
technique behind great jazz solos. Mr. Wilson, who has performed with
such greats as Louis Armstrong, Herbie Hancock and Frank Sinatra, was
enthusiastic about his pupils.
"These kids did a great job. They are very talented young
musicians who have a serious need for top notch teachers," he
said. "What they need is focused direction. I gave them the
confidence to focus at the level that they are currently on - they
need to raise that level and keep their ability to focus as they
improve."
SRC="http://www.mvgazette.com/news/2005/08/09/content/vibes_rosenthal_ewing_sm.jpg"As for the students, they said they were in awe of Mr. Wilson.
"He's an incredible teacher - he knows exactly how
much encouragement to give along with his critiques," Mr. Lipsky
said. "He knows what buttons to push, and how to finesse a
mistakes into a teachable lessons."
In addition to piano, Mr. Lipsky plays banjo and guitar, rock,
bluegrass, classical and jazz. He plans to take a year off and then
attend Hampshire College; he hopes to become a professional composer.
"I want to write innovative music and really express something
with - that is exactly what I want to do," he said.
"I learned as much from Phil in those three sessions as I did
in all of high school," Mr. Bouck said. "He put so much more
depth in it - at school it's the basics, but Phil put it all
together. I mean, he opened the door for the rest of my life." Mr.
Bouck will be attending Endicott College, and hopes to continue his
musical career there.
Though part of the same festival, the music Saturday night at the
Hot Tin Roof could not have been further from the bubbly jazzified
renditions of Wizard of Oz tunes at the Performing Arts Center. The
Unbusted opened for Juliana Hatfield, rocking out to a crowd of bouncing
teenagers, some of whom sang along to the catchy, angst-filled lyrics
In its various incarnations The Unbusted has been around for eight
years, but this latest group has been together for one. It features Joe
Keefe on vocals and lead guitar, his younger brother Sebastian on drums
and Ben Smith on bass.
SRC="http://www.mvgazette.com/news/2005/08/09/content/vibes_herman_bouck_sm.jpg" All are Islanders, born and raised. They are self-taught musicians,
having learned the basics from their parents, who at an early age who
introduced them to The Beatles and Bob Dylan. These days, they draw from
different influences, including as Weezer, Nirvana, The Strokes and Ms.
Hatfield's old band, The Lemonheads.
Mr. Keefe was thrilled to open for her. "It's awesome to
be invited to play among world-class musicians, especially because
we're not Berklee students."
He added: "It's so great to be here with Julia -
she puts on an excellent show."
The Unbusted needn't have worried about comparisons to Ms.
Hatfield - they drew the larger crowd of the evening.
Many Unbusted songs center on heartbreak and romantic troubles, but
a few break out with an optimism that reflects the band's latest
successes. Choruses such as "We're on a roll" and
"I think she said we're gonna' make it" sound
like references to their pending signing with a record label. A
professionally produced album will be out in the coming year.
Unbusted has also toured the country with Cheap Trick, and three of
their songs were featured in the Farrelly brothers' movie, Stuck
on You. George Davis, the deejay at WMVY Radio who introduced the set,
was very optimistic about their future.
"It's wonderful to see how far they've come, they
have a tremendous future ahead of them. The the sky's the
limit."
As for encore performances, he warned, "Pretty soon
you're not going to be able to catch them here at all -
they'll be bigger than the Vineyard."
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