Jazz Senior Works
Monday, April 19th, 2010
Xander Naylor's senior recital was on April 5. Photo by Kristina Monllos.
“If you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, I don’t think you should be doing it,” Mallory Glaser said after her senior recital at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music on April 11. She picked her pieces by asking, “What songs do I love?” That love showed when, during her performance, she closed her eyes and swayed back and forth. Glaser, one of the members of a band called In One Wind, was joined on stage by the other five members to perform two of their songs. Of the band, she said, “It’s changed my life.”
Angelo Spagnolo, the writer, guitarist, and vocalist of In One Wind, will have his recital on May 2. He will use three different groups: a 14-piece ensemble, a chamber group (including a cellist, violinist, and clarinetist), and In One Wind. Although he feels confident about his performance, he said it’s not vastly different from those of other graduating guitarists. But, Spagnolo said, all music is personal and, “You can’t really put a genre name on a person.”
Max Jaffe and Steven Lugerner, respectively the drummer and multi-reedist for In One Wind, have known each other since middle school and hail from Burlingame, California. Their recitals were on March 28. Lugerner used his eponymous septet for his recital, while Jaffe composed some new music and used 14 people, including Lugerner, during his performance. They both take a page out of Spagnolo’s book when asked to classify their music—the closest Jaffe ever got was referring to his band, killer BOB, as “metal jazz.” Both Jaffe and Lugerner believe they have great chemistry with their recital bands. Lugerner said, “It’s kind of like magnets, where opposites attract.”
Xander Naylor’s recital was on Monday, April 5, during which he improvised the entire 45-minute set. He said, “It’s like, let’s do what we want to do for 45 minutes.” Naylor went this route because he spent a lot of time in class learning theory, but really enjoyed jamming with his friends. When asked about the performance, Naylor said, “With what we’re trying to do, it probably couldn’t have gone any better.”
Jacob Bergson started working on his recital piece last year, but the pianist hadn’t written its first note until the week before spring break. His recital on April 24 will involve up to four people, but he has a few solos. He said of the jazz-influenced piece, “I’m combining things and deconstructing things, but with simple material.” Bergson mentioned that many students ask well-known artists to perform with them, but he didn’t because, “It sounds like a hired gun is playing for their recital.” He involves friends from school, “the people who are willing to put in the time to make the music happen.”
Spagnolo recognizes that each student has a hook in mind for their recital. But when speaking of his own, he said, “It will be special, but everyone’s recital is special.”
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