Westen Gesell Saxophone Senior Recital- Jazz, Bethel College (May 5, 2018)

Jaunt (2017), composed by Westen Gesell (b. 1995)
Nightwalker (2017), composed by Westen Gesell (b. 1995)
Lush Life (1938), Billy Strayhorn (1915-1967)
Cherokee (1938), Ray Noble (1903-1978)

Bethel College Jazz Combo I

Neil Smucker, Alto saxophone
Evan Koch, Trumpet/flugelhorn
Ian Gingrich-Gaylord, Keyboard
Charles Lenley, Drums
Westen Gesell, Tenor saxophone
Jayce Yoder, Guitar
Eli Brockway, Bass

I composed “Jaunt” and “Nightwalker” while taking Jazz Composition with James Pisano in fall 2017. “Jaunt” is a contrafact, meaning it is an original melody written over a pre-existing chord progression. The melody draws from a variety of sources, including Ella Fitzgerald’s scat solo on “Blue Skies” (jazz language I was working on integrating into my playing at the time) and melodic fragments from other tunes. I chose the titke, “Jaunt”, due to the energetic, light-hearted feel of the piece. I wrote “Nightwalker” as an exploration of modal composition. The brooding, almost surreal feel of the tune inspired its new title because of the way it reminded me of the Nightwalker from Studio Ghibli’s “Princess Mononoke”.

One of the greatest composers in the history of America music, Billy Strayhorn worked closely with Duke Ellington, composing such jazz standards as “Take the A Train.” As an openly gay back man in the mid-20th century, Strayhorn shunned pursuit of a high public profile in favor of the personal freedom that staying out of the spotlight afforded him. The title of Strayhorn’s masterpiece, “Lush Life”, can be taken as suggestive of a life of elegance, or one of alcoholic loneliness. Many see the piece as a self-portrait. Initially titled “Life is Lonely”, this ballad has since become one of the great standards of the jazz repertoire, with hundreds of well-known musicians exploring its moving, densely harmonized melody. Strayhorn began work on “Lush Life” at the age of 16, in 1931, finishing the piece in 1938.

Ray Noble wrote “Cherokee” as part of his five-movement “Indian Suite”. The piece was initially intended for symphonic jazz. However, within a year Count Basie and Charlie Barnet arranged the tune for their bands. The song, with a simple melody and difficult chord progression, eventually made its way into the world of New York’s after-hours jam sessions, where soloists would use the tune’s complex structure to showcase their improvisational abilities. One of these soloists was Charlie Parker, who used the piece to develop innovations in the bebop language that would heavily influence the development of jazz. Since Parker’s recording of “Koko” (a contrafact written to avoid paying royalties on the piece while allowing him to play over the same chord progression), countless musicians have used this chord progression as a vehicle for artistic development and expression.

Видео Westen Gesell Saxophone Senior Recital- Jazz, Bethel College (May 5, 2018) канала Charlotte and Randy Gesell