Baltimore Rowhouse for 5-Horn Jazz Ensemble

[Roger Aldridge]

The third score in a series of pieces for mid-size jazz ensemble is finished. This is an extended piece that goes through a series of moods and settings. Guitar is featured along with a soloist on an unspecified instrument.

This music has a great deal of freedom and is dependent upon the soloists and ensemble to bring it to life. I like to extend a soloist's freedom to the rest of the band in my scores. This is done in ways that are integral to the compositional framework. With this approach, both musicians and audiences can experience the music in fresh and different ways each time it's performed. This concept has its roots in early jazz. It enables ensemble musicians, not just the soloists, to go beyond written parts to add their vision and voice to the musical whole.

The score was originally conceived for woodwind quintet (with alto flute) and rhythm section. Alternate parts for woodwinds and brass are provided for each of the five horn lines. With this flexible approach to instrumentation, just about any configuration of wind instruments can be used for a horn section -- such as a conventional jazz horn section, sax section, brass section, woodwind quintet, clarinet ensemble, or a wild mix of tone colors. In a similar way, the instrumentation for the rhythm section is flexible. At a minimum, piano and/or guitar, bass, and drums are needed.

I'll attach the score so folks can get a preview of the piece. Interested bands can contact me for a complete set of parts and score.

 

[Roger Aldridge]

A demo recording of the sextet version of Baltimore Rowhouse can be heard on my Reverbnation page. Here's a link -- http://www.reverbnation.com/rogeraldridge At Reverbnation, click on "See all 31 songs" and scroll down the tune list. Baltimore Rowhouse is #8 in the playlist.

There are some minor differences between the recording and my ensemble score. I decided to omit the recording's introduction in the score as a way to have more forward momentum. Also, please keep in mind the recording was intended to be a demo and is not a full-length performance. For a performance, I envision the free-time improv for the guitar and soloist to be much longer and developed. This section is free for experimentation. If you'd like to add more instruments to the improv it's perfectly fine with me.

The musicians on the recording Leonard, violin; Jason Shapiro, alto saxophone; Jeff Knoettner, keyboards; E. Shawn Qaissaunee, guitar; Peter McCarthy, bass; Skip Rohrich, drums.

A leadsheet for Baltimore Rowhouse is available at my composer's page on the American Music Center online library. Use the link below in my signature. There's no charge for downloading the music.