Review a concert about jazz performance - Essay Example

Interestingly, even though most true jazz musicians seek to distance themselves from the understanding the jazz is ultimately a form of dance music, society’s perception of jazz continues to be concentric upon the belief that jazz is ultimately an early form of modern dance music. Some various jazz songs could be said to incorporate this element where the musicians thought it would be healthier to do something different instead of the ordinary music production. Likewise, for purposes of this performance review, the author will focus upon the following pieces and analyze how they were played and how this author reacted to the music: Andy Page’s “Up-End Adam” and “Jazzin’ in Jazz Town”, Brian Heater’s “Imagination”, and Mitch Rivet’s “Dancing with Pinkie”.

The first two pieces to be discussed, those composed by Andy Page was magnificent in that the audience instantly engaged with the content. The trumpet was the lead instrument in this performance, which appeared to guide the artists. It carried the melody of every tune. This was an interesting dynamic to note due to the fact that regardless of the musical genre that one seeks to discuss, ultimately a single instrument or a group of instruments will seek to differentiate themselves from the others as a means of providing a firm and solid lead.

Oftentimes within classical music this is realized within the lead violin or other instrument. Similarly, within rock ‘n roll this is oftentimes realized with regards to the lead guitar. Invariably, jazz exhibits the same constraints and allows different instruments to perform the lead even within the same song; thereby helping to set jazz apart from the other forms of music that a previously been listed by way of the fact that it is able to integrate and incorporate a number of instruments within any given piece that all can serve as the lead instrument.

The second song, also of Andy Page was not about the sharp nines, flat fives, substitutes’ chord or metric subdivisions. The feeling, message and honesty the artists gave the crowd was just phenomenal. What gave the performance an intellectual aspect was the emotional ends. A person could feel connected to the artist and his message. The mental aspect of the song was that, in the middle, it gave someone a funky feeling through the solos, which included drums beats, as well as the saxophones, being played unaccompanied.

It was within this very performance that the impacts of jazz upon modern music could be seen. Although the saxophone is not necessarily seen as a contemporary instrument within popular music, the means by which the saxophone solo was utilized to invoke strong melodic realizations and a differentiation from the remainder of the piece was munch it can to the way that modern singers perform a capello segments within their own songs. Though jazz oftentimes incorporates a vocalist, the utilization of the saxophone is almost indistinguishable from the way that a vocalist might operate within a jazz band.

The trumpet, in this performance, was the loudest, cutting instrument, above all others. The instruments guided other soloists in carrying out their performances. It was like the "alpha" instrument. The fourth piece which will herein be discussed is that of Brian Heater’