The performers are all faculty members from the UNC Summer Jazz Workshop, and they are playing a series of original compositions by Al Strong. They have never rehearsed as a group before, but they are able to play together seamlessly as a group for they have practiced the scores beforehand. Dr. Anderson says that in order to prepare for this concert, he had to practice while he was camping with his family in a rainstorm.
The group starts by launching into a challenging dissonant piece of jazz, as if to demonstrate their technical prowess to their own jazz students in the audience and give them a glimpse of what is possible through hard-work and dedication.
My favorite moment of the entire night was during Roland Barber’s trombone solo on the first song. He built up so much noise and intensity that it sounded like a raucous hoard of elephants stampeding.
The group played for nearly two hours, and covered a diverse catalog of jazz, blues, and Latin fusion.
Between songs, Strong, looking dapper in a pair of red pants, white button-up shit, and eggshell fedora, remarked that this lineup was his “dream band” and that he wished that he could take them on the road. He also admitted that he panicked for a week straight when he saw the words “music by Al Strong” on the program.
Overall, the music was incredible, and the charisma of Strong made the music even more compelling.
During the last song, which was a boogie-woogie type blues, Strong sang call-and-response to the crowd, which served as a fun way to end the night.