IAJE Annual Convention 2008 Toronto, Canada - January 2008 Written by Jamie Baum, flutist/composer
Both the upside and downside of the annual IAJE Convention is that there
are so many concerts, clinics and masterclasses to attend, people to meet, instruments
to try, booths to see and schmoozing to be done. Deciding what to do, actually making
your way and arriving in time at your chosen destination are some of the issues
one must face when venturing from your warm, cozy hotel room. (Why can't they finally
hold a convention in the Caribbean?).
Being that I live in NYC and can often hear many
of the performers featured at these conventions, both seasoned and up-and-coming,
I like to make my way to the musicians I don't get to see. Of course this year's
main event, the Saturday night concert, showcased four top Canadian bands. Competing
with trumpet star Randy Brecker who performed at the famed downtown Rex Hotel
Jazz & Blues Bar, attendance was lighter than hoped for this diverse offering presented
by the Canada Council for the Arts. Beginning with the Francois Houle Octet,
followed by Les Projectionists, Barry Bromberg's Random Access Large Ensemble
and ending with Mainstream Icon Quintet, the music ranged from straight-ahead
modern jazz to rock-infused fusion. While each group's set was quite long for a
four-band evening, the audience seemed enthusiastic, enjoying the different styles
offered.
The UK maintained an unusually large presence at this year conference with
support from their Arts Council, record labels, radio stations and industry organizations.
With a gathering of Irish, Scottish and British industry representatives and musicians
performing and attending to the largest booth at the Industry Exposition, their
goal was summed up in their entitled promo CD "Brit Jazz
breaks Out". Two performances that were particularly notable included
the "young lions" group Empirical who were winners of the EBU European Jazz Competition
2007, and of course, the always inspiring
Kenny Wheeler and Norma Winstone performing with the Conservatories UK
Big Band. While much of the music was interesting and played well by this group,
the audience (myself included) were disappointed that the featured artists were
only brought out for the last piece of the hour-long performance.
A composer myself, I try to make it attend the annually commissioned pieces
performed at the Conference Opening General Session. Sponsored by the IAJE and ASCAP,
these awards are given both to an established composer and an emerging composer
for outstanding compositional achievements. Each composer is commissioned to compose
a work in honor of a chosen artist, this year being Frank Foster, to be premiered
at the IAJE. Having enjoyed both pieces, I caught up with the composers for descriptions
of their work.
Established
composer recipient Tim Hagans is a renowned trumpet player, composer/arranger
who has also been nominated for a Grammy on one of his many CDs. "For
Box of Canoli, I composed four different events
for the piece. All events were seemingly unrelated to each other in melody, harmony
and general vibe. The differences were apparent and obvious. But as I worked with
the materials more and more, similarities, subtle and hidden, became obvious. The
final three minutes of the piece combines these materials to form a fifth.
I love to work in this manner. Even though I wrote 4 different happenings,
subconsciously I may have placed a few commonalties knowing that I would attempt
to combine all ingredients for the summation. This successful musical conclusion
gives the listener a sense of wholeness and satisfaction as well giving the musicians
an interesting playing experience. Influences for the piece aside from honoree
Frank Foster include Dmitri Shostakovich, Einojuhani Rautavaara,
Aaron Copland and Thad Jones."
Emerging composer Ayn Inserto has received several awards for her
composing and is a teacher the Berklee College of Music. "My piece,
Vinifera, comes from the phrase Vitis vinifera
which is the Common Grape Vine from which most wine is made from. The inspiration
for this piece came from going wine tasting in the Napa Valley and was the most
different piece of music I've written in a while. I wanted to compose a piece that
was energetic, outside conventional tonality but still accessible by many. I hoped
to have accomplished this by writing in a more "minor" setting and also utilizing
more counterpoint than I have in the past. Overall, I just wanted to compose a good
piece of music that flowed well that can be enjoyed by the listener."
Established
composer recipient Tim Hagans is a renowned trumpet player, composer/arranger
who has also been nominated for a Grammy on one of his many CDs. "For
Box of Canoli, I composed four different events
for the piece. All events were seemingly unrelated to each other in melody, harmony
and general vibe. The differences were apparent and obvious. But as I worked with
the materials more and more, similarities, subtle and hidden, became obvious. The
final three minutes of the piece combines these materials to form a fifth. 
