Wycliffe Gordon – Paul Hall – February 4, 2013
Juilliard School’s jazz program has really hit the jackpot this year regarding its guest artists, mentors, artists-in-residence, whatever they call them. Gordon is the latest; here he collaborates with two distinct student jazz ensembles. Besides being an all-around excellent entertainer (including as vocalist), he is also a swell composer, so they end up playing a bunch of his excellent stuff. He put in a lot of time on the trumpet, and also played a hybrid mini-trombone that had the sonic range of a trumpet. There was plenty of room for the students to shine, and they did. I think there still something about the exits from Juilliard that I don’t yet “get”. I did not see the big man, nor obtain his autograph, despite waiting upstairs, where all of the students emerged, for about a half hour. Oh well.
Wycliffe Gordon
Matthew Musselman
Jordan Pettay
Chase Baird