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ndianapolis-Based Saxophonist/Composer Sean Imboden Makes Big Band Leader Debut with Communal Heart Communal Heart is Not Only the Result of Imboden’s Journey Towards Gathering and Nurturing Both His 17-Piece Orchestra and His Audience, But in a Way Tells That Personal Story in Musical Form While he cites the possibilities for “compositional power” and “orchestrational ideas” inherent to the big band, the main reason that Indianapolis-based saxophonist/composer Sean Imboden formed his own 17-piece orchestra is captured in the title of the ensemble’s brilliant debut album. Communal Heart vibrantly captures the community spirit that Imboden has fostered not only within the ranks of his Sean Imboden Large Ensemble, but between the band and its fervent, ever-growing audience of loyal fans. “There's an old adage among musicians, ” Imboden explains. “It says, ‘To make it a great gig, you have to have two out of three elements: you want the money to be good, you want the music to be good, and you want the hang to be good.’ I realized maybe there's a fourth: if the audience is amazing, that raises up the experience for everyone.” Due out April 18, 2025, Communal Heart is not only the result of Imboden’s journey towards gathering and nurturing both his band and his audience, but in a way tells that personal story in musical form. Though unintentional, Imboden’s multi-hued compositions are autobiographical in giving voice to the ambitious drive and imagination that led the saxophonist from a comfortable career as a journeyman musician to take a leap of faith into the daunting big band arena. The example of success as a professional musician was set for Imboden from an early age. Both of his parents are musicians. His father, still active on the Indianapolis scene at 77, is a woodwind player who played on recording sessions and for traveling Broadway musicals, and contracted orchestral musicians to accompany touring artists. His mother was a freelance violinist who took on a middle school teaching job to be at home with her young children; now semi-retired, she continues to perform in church. “Most kids are rebelling against their parents when they choose to go to music school, ” Imboden laughs. “But mine always encouraged me to take that path, so it just felt natural.” After finishing his studies, Imboden launched directly into a thriving career touring with Broadway productions and as a featured soloist with the Tony-winning brass- and percussion-focused production Blast! II. He also found opportunities to perform and record with Grammy-winning artists and jazz luminaries, including Slide Hampton, Taylor Eigsti, Mike Rodriguez, Sean Jones, Emmet Cohen, Steve Allee, Kenny Phelps, John Raymond, and Valery Ponomarev. At the same time, he began to forge relationships on the local jazz scene that would come to fruition in the Large Ensemble, including recording four albums with the Tucker Brothers quartet. Eight years along this road, Imboden discovered that he felt unfulfilled, and looked back wistfully on his days playing in school big bands. “The things that excited me about jazz at a younger age were improvising, creating and trying to express myself. When those options are taken out of the equation, even though it’s nice to have job security and a steady income you start to wonder if it’s really worth it. I really wanted to make something happen for myself, and to do something in the community where I live and get more people involved.” The Sean Imboden Large Ensemble was born in 2017, and gradually accumulated a loyal fanbase through the bandleader’s dogged work ethic and spirited compositions, and the inspired and fiery playing of his selected bandmates. Imboden cites the modern impressionism and lively improvising of the Maria Schneider Orchestra as a primary influence, though his touchstones span the history of big band music, from Sammy Nestico’s arrangements for the Count Basie Orchestra, through Charles Mingus’ large ensemble compositions and Gil Evans’ lush orchestrations for Miles Davis, to the contemporary reinventions of Darcy James Argue. Communal Heart was funded in part through a successful Kickstarter campaign, strong evidence of the supportive community that has aggregated around the band. The album explodes out of the gates with the powerhouse “Fire Spirit, ” which the composer describes as the musical embodiment of his impetus to devote himself to his own creative impulse – “a drive so strong it becomes impossible to ignore.” The inquisitive nature and irrepressible curiosity that fueled this impulse are illustrated with the buoyant and graceful “Dance of Inquiry.” “Certified Organic” is a playful, funky nod to the self-motivated aesthetic of Imboden and his bandmates, while also hinting at a sense of Midwest pride, a gentle assertion that you don’t have to leave flyover country to make a bold artistic statement. “We do have a lot of farms here, ” he allows. “You learn that if you put in the hard work, this thing will grow, whether it's a flower or a giant oak tree or a farm of soybeans – or a big band.” Expanding the intimate yearning of the classic “Someone To Watch Over Me, ” Imboden once again added a communal spin to write “Someone To Watch Over Us, ” a determinedly optimistic (or at the very least hopeful) response to our tumultuous political arena. The album concludes with the forward-looking “Portal Passage, ” a questing piece about the search to “be transported into the ideal world that you envision – or an attempt to create one for yourself.” Imboden has vividly realized his own ideal world on Communal Heart, one that invites listeners to become part of an inviting and rewarding musical community. |
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