On June 21st, 2021, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill held a faculty concert as part of their yearly Summer Jazz Workshop. The quintet performing was made up of four UNC Department of Music professors and coordinators, as well as UNC Wilmington associate professor Jerald Shynette.
The concert was held both in-person and streamed live via Zoom and Youtube. I was one of the students joining remotely. Remote performances are often a challenge to organize, but it is a challenge that is necessary to overcome in order for concerts to reach a wide audience amidst the pandemic.
The concert took place inside the Moeser Auditorium on campus. Three members of the quintet performed onstage: pianist Stephen Anderson, bassist Jason Foureman, and drummer Dan Davis. Located center-stage, the three performers were positioned in close proximity and were in front of large curved wall, which likely aided the room’s acoustics to enhance their sound.
Saxophonist Rahsaan Barber and trombonist Jerald Shynette joined from offstage, visible on screens above the stage. However, using solely the audio, one likely could not tell they were not onstage, as their instruments blended in well with the stage musicians.
An interesting advantage of the virtual setup was it being presented through three unique camera angles. This allowed each performer to be viewed more clearly and made the presentation more dynamic.
The virtual concert did come with technical hurdles however. The audio dropped out at the beginning of the stream, meaning I missed the initial introductions of the performers and the first track’s title. When the audio did return, the sound was being picked up far too loudly by the Zoom microphone, with instruments frequently peaking and overpowering one another (to no fault of the musicians).
Thankfully, these issues had been resolved by the second piece, “Leap of Faith”. The subtlety of the performers and the tone of each instrument came through much clearer in this track. The piece had a relaxed atmosphere and was structured around a series of solos for all five musicians. During solos, the other players would support by creating a steady rhythm with intricate flourishes.
The next piece, “Pee Wee”, stood out for the variety of tempo and intensity throughout. The musicians would create a full, hard-hitting sound and then transition to an intentionally calm and sparse sound at several points.
The fourth piece, “Swing that Thing” was frantic and fast-paced. The musicians often harmonized for the main melody that repeated, mixing in solos and improvisation between repetitions.
The fifth piece, “The Mountain and the Sky” was back to a slow tempo, a nice contrast against the previous track that shows the range of these musicians. Rahsaan’s saxophone solos particularly stood out here, as well as Jerald’s harmonization with said solos. The piece also ended very calmly, with the piano and drums slowly getting softer and quieter.
In the final piece, “Just in Time”, the complexity of the drumming immediately stands out. Rahsaan and Jerald again play off each other well, dynamically filling the other’s gaps in the melody.
The full concert can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQLW_Xct_K0
Once the audio issues were fixed, the concert came alive and was a joy to experience. Each performer put in their best effort and the energy onstage was high. I could tell that they all knew each other well, both from their banter between tracks and the tightness of their performances. They each knew when to stop for solos, change tempo, and harmonize with one another.
Ultimately, the experience overcame the challenges of the virtual presentation and was truly engaging. Judging from today’s success, this week’s remaining concerts are not to be missed.