There was not a single unoccupied parking spot outside Boswell Hall’s Schuler Performing Arts Center. The NIC Jazz Co. and the Jazz Ensemble joined forces, attracting dozens of people for their presentation of “Close Enough for Jazz.” NIC students performed music by Gordon Goodwin, Fred Strum, John Clayton, Quincy Jones and Vern Sielert, among others.
Parents, teachers, and students gathered in Schuler the evening of Nov. 17 for the free concert. The reverberation of a roaring clarion of horns combined with a taste of harmonic rhythm enthused applause from the audience.
“I’m an amateur trumpet player myself,” said audience member Anthony Braden, who moved from Olympia, Wash., to Coeur d’Alene to be closer to family. “Louis Armstrong says if you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know, and baby, ain’t that the truth.”
Before the Jazz Ensemble took the stage, NIC’s Jazz Co. serenaded the crowd with gentle a cappella. Max Mendez, NIC choir director, led the Jazz Co. as they performed songs such as “The Flintstones” and the song “Blues for Elise,” based on the theme by Beethoven. Cassie Thompson, soprano, and Laurie Alker, alto, performed solo pieces in two out of the five songs.
The all-male Jazz Ensemble, directed by NIC band director Terry Jones, offered the audience barrelhouse blues without the booze. The group featured mostly brass instruments, backed by a rhythm section that supplied bass, keys, guitars and a trap kit.
Several members broke off to burn out their own licks or play unaccompanied during the transitional passage. Among the ensemble were trumpeters from the front line such as David Cooper, Adam Crandall, and Phil Aarhus. Saxophonists Alex Carr, Kris Waltrip and Tim Wood performed two Tenor-sax solo compositions. Russel Coler was given a dual opportunity on trombone. During the song “Riverscape,” Doug Wood busted out on the piano with a taste of the boogie-woogie. The ensemble featured Jordan Kees on bass and David Mills on guitar.
“I was dragged here by my girlfriend,” said Matt Tietz, 19, engineering. “But now that I’m here, it’s not so bad. It was better than I expected.”
Hundreds of middle school and high school students from across the region will participate in jazz clinics Jan. 31 through Feb. 2 at NIC during the annual JazzNIC program. Clinics will feature acclaimed guests such as University of Idaho professor Dan Bukvich, an internationally known composer whose works have been performed at the Lincoln Center and the Vatican. As well as siblings Alan Gemberling, band conductor and University of Idaho professor, and Gary Gemberling, Lewiston High School band director and acclaimed performer, including performing as a soloist for the Spokane Symphony.
The public is welcome to attend the jazz clinics. Groups will perform every hour on the hour beginning at 8 a.m. Jan. 31 through Feb. 2 in Boswell Hall Schuler Performing Arts Center.
The JazzNIC concert and clinics are sponsored by the Associated Students of NIC.
The “JazzNIC” concert, Tuesday, Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m. in Schuler, will feature the NIC Jazz Ensemble, as well as Al Gemberling, Gary Gemberling, and Dan Bukvich.
For information visit www.nic.edu/events or (208) 769-3276.
