Tommy Igoe and the Birdland Big Band Tour and New CD

contents

jazz

"We are a big band designed for the 21st Century- we play loud and fast and we don't dwell on the past", drummer Tommy Igoe proudly boasts of his Birdland Big Band. "We love and explore music from every corner of the world. We're unafraid to try it all. We're hungry. And we're just getting started." Although the band began its weekly tenure at the famed New York City jazz club from which it takes its name more than a half dozen years ago, Igoe is being honest when he speaks of things just now beginning for the phenomenal ensemble, with the release of its debut CD Eleven and the launching of the group's first national tour this October.

Tommy Igoe and Birdland Big Band is one of New York City's major jazz success stories. The powerhouse ensemble with its own style and sound has grown from virtual anonymity to enormous popularity since its inaugaral days in June 2006. "We were on life support when we first began, " the drummer recalls. "I mean literally, the band outnumbered the crowd, but we didn't give up. I knew it could work if we create the right material and get the right players. In six months, we were filling the room and within a year, it was hard to get in at all. It's turned into a phenomenon, with some fans scheduling their vacations to New York around whether they can get tickets."

"The band is special, " Igoe proclaims. "It's unique; there's nothing else like it. Our popularity is due to our passionate fans; a grass roots movement of people talking, tweeting, yelping – spreading the message of who we are. We're cultivating a new audience for this great music. The band members mirror the diversity of our audience. The musician's range in age from 24 to 64— some have just graduated college and many are established New York legends. Everyone is learning from each other; the young 'un's are learning from the seasoned pros and vice versa. A healthy creative environment for everyone that comes out in the music."

The proof of the bands growing popularity; the BBB is embarking on two separate month-long tours of the USA booked by the iconic Columbia Artist Management Agency. "The band is ready for its time in the spotlight away from New York. There are a lot of people who have wanted to see the group for a very long time but never had the opportunity so this is our chance to bring what we do around the country. We aspire to greatness as a band, because we know that is what people want to experience. Does the world need another "good" big band? No, it does not. But there is always room for greatness. Greatness will be embraced. That's what drives us. Folks spend their hand-earned money for a concert; they deserve to be blown away. Our goal is simple: we want to provide the finest musical experience of their lives—an emotional journey that leaves everyone uplifted."

Eleven is the BBB's statement recording, showcasing the bands passion and power. Its opening number, New Ground, is emblematic of the band's philosophy. The alluring melody by New York Voices' singer/saxophonist Darmon Meader is reworked here in a new arrangement for large ensemble by the band's trumpeter Nick Marchione and features Igoe and percussionist Rolando Morales-Matos mixing it up on a grooving Caribbean soca rhythm that serves as a propulsive setting for the song's two soloists, tenor saxophonist Dan Willis and pianist Kenny Ascher.

Bobby Timmons' classic Moanin', the date's one standard receives a fresh makeover in an original arrangement by the group's other tenor saxophonist, Rob Middleton. Igoe says, "It's a shuffle, of course; a shout out to the great Art Blakey. It features Rob Paparozzi on harmonica, which is really cool because it's a greasy little tune and harmonica is just perfect on it." It also features Middleton, who delivers a crowd-pleasing sax solo in true Jazz Messenger fashion.

"Common Ground is the first piece of music that I had written for the band, " Igoe says, "Interestingly enough for us because we are a muscular, high velocity group and it's a ballad, by guitarist Mike Stern. The primary arranger for the band is the great pianist Tedd Firth and he was able to transform this heartbreakingly beautiful guitar ballad into a superb piece of music that features saxophonist Nathan Childers and the glorious brass of the BBB."

Two tunes by Chick Corea follow. Armando's Rhumba, from the iconic pianist's classic My Spanish Heart album, is another Firth arrangement, one that features exciting solos by Kennedy, Childers (on soprano) and baritone saxophonist Barbara Cifelli, on a rhythmic tour de force. "The whole band does some flamenco clapping, which was a challenge, " Igoe says. "Everyone has a really great time trying to pull it off live." Got A Match, written for Corea's Electric Band has long been a favorite of fusionists. Igoe always thought that the highly arranged piece would be really great to play with the big band, so he asked Texas arranger Mike Bogle to freshen up and rearrange his Grammy-nominated orchestration of the tune, adding some insane pyrotechnics for the BBB. A straight ahead burner, featuring Igoe's virtuoso drums and a long line of horn soloists, it's become one the group's most requested pieces of music.

Michael Brecker's Spherical is a piece of music from one of Igoe's favorite musicians. It's a funky outing arranged by Rob Middleton, featuring the saxophonist along with fellow tenorist Dan Willis alto saxist Matt Hong, pianist Kenny Ascher and the entire ensemble, over a slinky feel laid down by Kennedy's electric 6-string bass, and Igoe's syncopated grooves.

Uncle Bob, by Brecker's frequent colleague Don Grolnick, is a tribute to two icons who, in Igoe's words, "left us way too soon." The drummer kicks of this arrangement by Darmon Meader of the song he remembers from the great Smokin In The Pit trilogy by Steps, with some slick licks. The most traditional swinger on the date, the drummer powers the ensemble to its own smoking heights, with incendiary solos by trumpeter Glenn Drewes and tenorist Dan Willis.

One of the band's signature arrangements is Tedd Firth's re-visioning of Michel Camilo's On Fire. The montuno driven outing, featuring special guest Hector Martignon at the piano, highlights the compete virtuosity of each section of the BBB. Igoe and Morales-Matos and Martignon ignite a flame under alto soloist Matt Hong and the horn sections' gasp-inducing ensemble playing.

Rob Middleton's arrangement of Herbie Hancock's Butterfly (from the album Thrust) shows off the band's more pensive side. "Rob did a beautiful job, allowing the band to be more subtle and introspective." The sounds of flutes and muted trumpets give the piece an airy sound true to its title, while Kennedy's electric bass and Morales-Matos give it an earthiness over which Ascher's piano floats delightfully.

Open Invitation is another tune by the New York Voices' Darmon Meader, this time arranged by the composer himself. Igoe beams, "It's a gorgeous piece of Brazilian of music, one of the prettiest pieces of music that I ever heard. Our jazz trumpeter Glenn Drewes has one of the most beautiful flugelhorn sounds that I've ever heard and I had this written specifically for him. It's just an unforgettable piece of music with a lot of space built in for Glenn to do his thing."

The concluding Alma Llanera is another stunning large-ensemble achievement. “It’s a Venezuelan folk song in three/four,” Igoe says. “It’s just a great, great piece and very tricky to play correctly. The rhythm section, featuring Morales-Matos on vibes, gets to do all sorts of rhythmically adventurous things inside the framework. It’s just so much fun to play that kind of music. I sometimes can’t believe how lucky I am, I mean how many chances do you get to play great music from Venezuela when you’re a kid who grew up in New Jersey? I’ve never had more fun than playing with this band.”

Tommy Igoe hits the road with his Birdland Big Band for a month long tour this October that begins near New York and takes the spectacular group to 18 more performing arts centers, treating listeners throughout the Northeast and Midwest to the music on Eleven and much more.

write your comments about the article :: © 2012 Jazz News :: home page