One of the ways we are able to maintain our roots in jazz is by standing on the shoulders of some of the great jazz arrangers of all time. Fletcher Henderson, Duke Ellington, Thad Jones, Bob Brookmeyer, and Jim McNeely have all had a profound influence on this music. We hope that this tradition can be heard alongside our own voice.
This project also celebrates the voice of one of today’s most important saxophonists, Rich Perry. Rich is perhaps best known for his work in the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, but he has also been a longstanding member of the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, and is one of the most prolific soloists in the last three decades. In my opinion, Rich Perry is one of the most expressive saxophone soloists of our time. In writing for Rich, I wanted to showcase his distinctive voice while also giving him and the band the opportunity to interact in new and interesting ways. The result was five saxophone concertos, each showcasing a different aspect of both Rich’s playing and the band. The last two tracks feature the band exclusively.
“An Eye on the Future” – I wrote this lullaby for my son the day I found out that my wife and I were going to be having a baby. Rich’s beautiful sound perfectly captures the hopes and fears any new parent has.
“The Thursday Club” – I have always been a fan of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. This is our homage to the great Jazz Messengers tunes like Moanin’, One By One, and Dat Dere.
“Like Someone In Love” – When you consider the lyrics, we assume this to be a happy song. Love is not always a happy emotion; it is complex and ever-changing. Here we tap into the more complex aspects of love. This can be heard in my reharminazation of the melody and Rich’s understated yet sophisticated melodic interpretation.
“The Law of Contagion” – Unlike the previous four tunes, this piece integrates Rich with the band. The first theme is based on the half/whole diminished scale, and alludes to Bartok’s Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta. The form follows a theme and variation approach, but is broken up by solo statements, collective improvisation, shout choruses, episodes of boogaloo, and most notably, a four voice fugue.
“Without a Song” – This arrangement is about the ideals of freedom, love, and justice. The original lyrics to this song featured the racist line “A darkie’s born, but he’s no good no how, without a song.” This line was changed by Billie Eckstein in his famous 1946 version where “A darkie’s born” was changed to “A man is born.” This transformed the meaning of the song to signify concepts of racial justice and freedom. The new meaning was carried on in interpretations by many black artists including John Coltrane and Joe Henderson. My arrangement uses this meaning as a way of commenting on modern social, political, economic, and racial injustice. Today when we face so much division in our country, these issues are more urgent than ever. This can be heard in the deconstruction of the melody of “Without a Song,” and how I set it using textures borrowed from Stravinsky’s Petrouchka. The arrangement ends on a message of hope tinged with sadness and uncertainty.
“Crowd Control” – Last year a colleague bet me that I could not write in a modern big band style while conforming to the constraints of composers from the 1920s (Due to the limits of 1920s recording technology, arrangers had to be pretty sophisticated in their approach to form in order to incorporate complete melodic statements and multiple solo statements in under four minutes). This piece is based on Don Redman’s 1926 composition “The Stampede.” The form is almost exactly the same as “The Stampede” (I added a two measure piano intro to the melody, and an eight measure coda), but the style and texture are decidedly modern. Rather than break up solo statements between three soloists as was done in the Redman arrangement, I solo throughout.
1. Two or Three Birds With One Bird (Keith Karns)
Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone
2. An Eye on the Future (Keith Karns)
Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone
3. The Thursday Club (Keith Karns)
Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone
4. Like Someone in Love (Jimmy Van Heusen, arr. Keith Karns)
Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone
5. The Law of Contagion (Keith Karns)
Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone; Daniel Matthews, Trumpet; Connor Eisenmenger, Trombone; Connor Kent, Drums
6. Without a Song (Vincent Youmans, arr. Keith Karns)
Keith Karns, Flugelhorn; Devin Eddleman, Alto Saxophone; Garrett Wingfield, guest conductor
7. Crowd Control (Keith Karns)
Keith Karns, Flugelhorn
Woodwinds:
Devin Eddleman
Alex Fraile
Aaron Hedenstrom
Brian Horton
Spenser Liszt
Trumpets:
Jake Boldman
Michael Campagna
Kevin Swaim
Daniel Matthews
Stuart Mack
Trombones:
Carl Lundgren
Conner Eisenmenger
Matt Corrigan
Chris Sharpe
Kenny Davis
Rhythm:
Horace Bray - guitar
Colin Campbell - piano
Jack Helsley - bass
Connor Kent - drums
Featured Soloist: Rich Perry, Tenor Saxophone
Producer and Director: Keith Karns
Producer and Manager: Craig Marshall
Producer: Rich DeRosa
Recording Engineer: Kent Stump
Studio Photography: Jokobo Sopon Suwannakit
Recorded on December 14-15 2015 at Crystal Clear Sound Studio, Dallas, TX.
Mixed by Kent Stump at Crystal Clear Sound Studio, Dallas, TX.
Mastered by Nolan Brett at Crystal Clear Sound Studio, Dallas, TX
