The theme was “Made in Minnesota” for the JazzMN Big Band’s second concert of the season last Saturday night, and the rafters of the Ted Mann Auditorium must have been vibrating long after the last chorus. A popular staple of the local jazz scene since 1998, this ensemble of the area’s top band performers never disappoints with its fresh takes on standards and original compositions. Under the baton of director Doug Snapp, JazzMN Big Band paid tribute to local connections to the big band canon, from Lester Young and Oscar Pettiford to contemporary composers and arrangers, including Maria Schneider, Pete Whitman, Laura Caviani, Steve Devich, Dean Sorenson, and John Ahern. In addition to the instrumental charts, Saturday night’s performance featured three popular soloists, vocalists Charmin Michelle and Jose James, Jr., and sax legend Percy Hughes.

Photo by Howard Gitelson
The always sensational Charmin Michelle provided the other vocals of the evening, each arranged for her by Twin Cities’ pianist/arranger Adi Yeshaya, including “Weep No More,” the Cole Porter gem “So in Love,” and Johnny Mercer’s “I Remember You.” With traces of Billie Holiday and Nancy Wilson, there is no doubt that Michelle owns these tunes, and Yeshaya’s arrangements gave the audience the best of both worlds—the American songbook and classy big band sonics. Further, “So in Love” gave pianist Mary Louise Knutson ample opportunity to stretch out with some inventive, lyrical improvisation.

Veteran tenor player/jazz educator Percy Hughes, who in recent years has led the Ellington Echoes, joined the band for a breezy run through “When You’re Smiling.” Along with Hughes’ edgy vibrato, drummer Joe Pulice provided some crackling percussion, and in the end, all were truly smiling.

There wasn’t a weak moment in the entire program, but other highlights included Brian Grivna’s alto solo on “Double Bogey Blues”; Pete Whitman’s “Dr. No-Know” which featured percolating statements from Whitman’s alto, Clay Moore’s guitar, and Pulice’s drum kit, along with a delightfully squeaking closing from the trumpet section;  Jeff Gottwig’s flugelhorn romp through Laura Caviani’s “Take it Light;” the snappy, march-like tribute to St. Paul’s O’Gara’s Bar, written by trumpeter John Ahern and featuring some dazzling guitar from Clay Moore; the mellow tenor of Dave Karr on a very swinging “Lester Leaps In”; the trombone antics of Dave Graf on Dean Sorenson’s “Samba de Carrera”; and an incendiary sax quartet on Pettiford’s “Blues in the Closet.” Throughout the evening, the rhythm section (Mary Louise Knutson on piano, Terry Burns on bass, Joe Pulice on drums, and Clay Moore on guitar) provided impeccable support, with each musician getting a chance to open up now and then; Burns’ driving bass was particularly notable on Maria Schneider’s arrangement of  Tad Dameron’s “Lady Bird.” The closing tune, John Ahern’s “Expecting Tom Boogie,” featured quick, sequential vamps from each member of the sax section, ending in a power explosion from Pulice—like the evening as a whole, nothing short of high velocity.

JazzMN Big Band proves that great charts and virtuoso performances never go out of style, that large ensembles in the 21^st century can breathe new life into the standards of the 1930s and 40s dance bands as readily as they can embrace the new directions of contemporary composers and arrangers. And lucky us, here in Minnesota, not only do we have the JazzMN Big Band, we also are home to some of those top composers and arrangers.

There are two remaining concerts on the JazzMN Big Band season calendar: On February 12, the band performs with baritone sax/flute/scat singer Denis DiBlasio and local baritone Bruce Henry; on March 19, big band/tentet legend Rob McConnell will join forces with local diva Judi Donaghy. All shows are at the Ted Mann Auditorium on the University of Minnesota’s West Bank campus.

For ticket information and reservations, call (612) 624-2345. More information on the JazzMN Big Band is available at www.jazzmn.org