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“Unique” and “labor of love” are overworked terms in contemporary parlance, but if ever a recording project merited such descriptions, it’s this one. The brainchild of composer-arranger-bass trombonist Ed Partyka, this CD is a seventieth birthday gift to Bob Brookmeyer (born on December 19, 1929), one of the great players and composer-arrangers in jazz history, and at the peak of his powers as he begins his eighth decade.
Born in Chicago and educated at Northern Illinois University, Partyka moved to Germany in 1990 and earned a master’s degree from the conservatory of Music at Cologne. From 1993 to ’95, he was a participant in a Jazz Composer’s Workshop taught in Cologne by Brookmeyer. Those composers (including myself) who have been members of Brookmeyer’s conclaves in the United States and Europe have generally been deeply affected by them; Partyka was no exception. His experience led him in the winter of 1998 to conceive a tribute CD that would feature Brookmeyer as soloist, playing specially-written pieces by a variety of contributors.
Partyka began by contacting Bill Holman, Jim McNeely, and Maria Schneider, three masters spanning as many generations. His hope was that “maybe one of them could be coaxed into helping;” to his surprise, all three readily agreed to participate. And as a further incentive, Manny Albam, another distinguished virtuoso of pencil and scorepad, heard about the project and offered his services. To this inspired array of writing talent, Partyka added the Austrian Marko Lackner, the German Frank Reinshagen (like Partyka, an alumnus of Brookmeyer’s Cologne Worshop), the American John Hollenbeck, and himself.
Having lined up the composers, Partyka then set out to assemble an orchestra to record the pieces. The instrumentation, excepting a standard five-saxophones-with-woodwind-doubles, was patterned after the 1958 Miles Davis-Gil Evans Porgy and Bess recording. Several of the musicians—including lead saxophonist Lackner, drummer Hollenbeck, lead trumpeter Thorsten Benkenstein, and Partyka—have also been key players in Brookmeyer’s German-based New Art Orchestra of recent years. (One of the best jazz CDs of the 1990s was Brookmeyer’s New Works—Celebration with the NAO, also on Challenge.) The rest of the players—eight nationalities in all—come from throughout Western Europe; in two cases (French hornist Christine Chapman and bassist John Goldsby) they are American expatriates, as is, of course, Partyka.
In September of 1999, Brookmeyer and the orchestra gathered in Ludwigsburg, Germany for three days of recording. Says Partyka: “The band and Bob worked extremely hard; we went from sight-reading to recording within hours and managed to even have some fun along the way. And we tried for full takes.” Therefore, the post-production editing is minimal—all the more impressive considering the challenging and varied nature of the compositions.
With the following exceptions, the music requires little explanation. Brookmeyer’s valve trombone is the principal solo voice, but tenor saxophonist Matthias Erlewein and clarinetist Oliver Leicht are heard to advantage on Reinshagen’s and Partyka’s pieces, respectively. Partyka’s “Madly Loving You” is a recomposition, in the best Gil Evans manner, of Duke Ellington’s “Love You Madly.” And without giving away a most pleasant surprise, Hollenbeck’s use of Brookmeyer on “Desideratea is truly, in Partyka’s words, “a stroke of genius.”
One bit of advice to the listener: this is rich, demanding music, with each piece giving different rewards. Don’t try to listen to the entire CD in one sitting.
The most fitting way of ending these notes is by quoting the guest of honor. “The idea of recording a ‘CD for me’ was a great surprise and an honor. I guess the idea of turning seventy was also a factor—we don’t have such long shelf lives—and the band was such a wonderful gift, as were the composers. Some of them had been my students, some of them were my mentors, and all are my dear friends. It could only have been done in Europe. It is our life.”
Bill Kirchner
“Trying to write a piece as a gift for Bob felt something like it might feel trying to design a suit for Armani. I never threw away so much paper in my life. Thank goodness paper is cheaper than fabric. Finally I realized that it was much easier than it seemed, as this wasn’t just a gift for Bob, but it would also feature Bob—and Bob Brookmeyer would undoubtedly make any attire appear elegant. There’s no person that can dress a melody the way he does.”
Maria Schneider
“I have attempted with this piece to convey to Bob (and others) how much I appreciate all that he has given the world. I envision “Father Bob” leading a procession through the great hall of worship where he delivers his sermon, a poem entitled “Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann. This text endorses a fatherly optimism which Bob has imparted to countless students. The voice of experience, the voice of God: “Strive to be happy!”
John Hollenbeck
“Das Außergewöhnliche bei der Arbeit für mein Werk “Green Dreems” lag einerseits darin, für ein Ensemble zu schreiben, das ein nahe zu symphonisches Klangspektrum beitet, andererseits für den so begnadeten Solisten wie auch Komponisten Bob Brookmeyer ein Werk zu schaffen, das seiner Melodie und Klangvorstellung entgegen kommt.”
Marko Lackner
“To write a piece for Bob was a sobering and trepidatory experience, but one for which I’m very grateful; it gave me an opportunity to express my love and respect for the man, and the musician, feelings for which we don’t always manage to find workds.”
Bill Holman
“Bob has, for almost fifty years, been my dearest friend and inspiration. I am amazed how his growth as a musician has been never ending. I’ve never heard him play so beautifully.”
Manny Albam
"I still remember the Autumn day in 1986 when my friend Dave Morehead came into my dorm room with a copy of ‘Bob Brookmeyer, Composer/Arranger.’ From the first notes of ‘Ding Dong Ding’ I was captivated. Without sounding too dramatic, it changed my life. Fate later played a role in allowing me to be in the right place and time to be a part of Bob’s composer’s workshop in Cologne, the Schleswig Holstein Musikfestival Big Band and later his New Art Orchestra. This project grew out of these experiences, my love for this man and his incredible gifts as a musician, teacher and mentor."
Edward A. Partyka |
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| | Septuagenary Revels |  | | Green Dreams | | | Anthem | | | Going On 29 | | | A Nice Tie, A Pair of Socks... | | | A Small Prelude, You Will See It (If You Go There) | | | Madly Loving You | | | Processional | | | Desiderata | |
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Bob Brookmeyer, valve trombone
Ed Partyka, conductor
REEDS
Marko Lackner
Oliver Leicht
Matthias Erlewein
Frank Delle
Edgar Herzog
TRUMPETS
Thorsten Benkenstein
Sebastian Strempel
Torsten Maaß
Thomas Gansch
TROMBONES
Dominik Stöger
Ansgar Striepens
Christian Jaksjö
Richard Henry
FRENCH HORNS
Christine Chapman
Pip List
Isabelle van de Wiele
TUBA
Andy McKreel
RHYTHM
Ingmar Heller, bass (tracks 1,3,4,5,6,9)
John Goldsby, bass (tracks 2,7,8)
John Hollenbeck, drumset |
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