POP MUSIC
In a tribute to Benny Carter, an ensemble from the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra brought to light some of his compositions.
(Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra)
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Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Ensemble
Several seldom-heard delights were among the pieces performed Saturday night by the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Ensemble during a tribute to the late jazz legend Benny Carter.
Some of the tunes, unearthed by saxophonist and ensemble director Charlie Young after examining Carter's scores in the Smithsonian archives, were so obscure they lacked titles. Instead, numbers had been assigned to them. Surely a ballad as dreamy as "51," with its swirling harmonies, deserves a better fate.
Young's research paid off handsomely in the concert at the National Museum of American History's Carmichael Auditorium. Besides being well suited for a sextet performance, the music colorfully displayed Carter's prodigious gifts. Mostly mid-career compositions -- Carter died in 2003, at age 95 -- the pieces included the signature tune "When Lights Are Low" (complete with the original and little-known bridge) and "Malibu," a noirish theme that brought to mind Carter's extensive film work.
Mood shifts were built into the program, triggered by tailored-for-Basie swing ("Easy Money"), a Carnavalesque romp ("Southside Samba"), a rollicking, piano-driven blues ("Boogie") and several lyrical ballads.
A Duke Ellington Orchestra alum and Howard University professor, Young projected a full, rounded, gliding tone on alto that evoked Carter's harmonic finesse. At one point, he used a soprano sax, which Carter rarely played, to illuminate the sinuous melodic charm that distinguished the ballad "Ennui."
Other performances boasted crisp ensemble work and were enhanced by the solo space allotted to trumpet and flugelhorn player Tom Williams, trombonist Bill Holmes, pianist Bob Butta, bassist James King and drummer Harold Summey.
-- Mike Joyce
Shirley Caesar
Shirley Caesar has devised a new way to deliver gospel. At the Hylton Memorial Chapel in Woodbridge on Saturday, the singer/pastor kicked verse (minus chapter), opening her performance with a quick rap.
"Stomp on the Devil, take you to another level," she rhymed, in the middle of the revivalist "I Know the Truth (Lies)." Not exactly Rakim-caliber wordsmithing, but with her impassioned delivery and a voice filled with gravel and grace, Caesar put more than a few secular rappers to shame. Not bad for the 67-year-old doyenne of traditional inspirational music.
Aside from that moment, Caesar's performance was more Sunday morning than Saturday night. The bulk was from 2005's "I Know the Truth," the 41st recording from the First Lady of Gospel, and the debut project of her own Shu-Bel Records. The multiple Grammy winner performed new material such as "Jailbird," a striking piece about salvation for the imprisoned, and the soothing "Touch, Heal and Deliver."
