Every Monday night I have the extraordinary pleasure of performing with the Cecil’s Jazz Orchestra at Cecil’s Jazz Club in West Orange, New Jersey. They even let me lead the band! My path to Big Band leadership was definitely a circuitous one. As a teenager and a young man I was fascinated with improvisation and any context that didn’t allow me to solo constantly was uninteresting to me. As such my ensemble playing suffered. Sight-reading music was not one of my strengths and I had no idea what it meant to follow a lead alto or trumpet player. But as a saxophonist the best opportunities to tour and perform were in a big band context. My first inkling of what a thrill playing in a section could be was when I stumbled into the Woody Herman Thundering Herd. There was such a sound around me – Mike Brignola on Bari, John Gunther on Tenor and Frank Tiberi on Tenor, that I was compelled to learn to blend, swing and let go of individuality for the sake of the the Sound. Not that I succeeded that well, and I suspect Mike Brignola would have liked to undo my hiring. But, as I understood it, he was only in charge of hiring and Frank who could only really hear me solo wasn’t inclined to do so.
Anyway I was glad for that opportunity and I took it seriously and improved tremendously as a section player. A few years later, after I had moved to New York, I found my way into the regular sub-position in the Village Vanguard Orchestra. Now I had more than an inkling of what a section could be. I hung on for dear life. I’d practice for hours a day learning to read music better and listening to recordings of big band. Playing in a section under Dick Oats was a thrill and intimidating. He was (and I’m sure still is!) a perfectionist and again I endeavored to master an art that I had under-prepared myself for. At the same time I was subbing frequently in The Vanguard Orchestra, Rick Margitza started calling me for Maria Schneider’s Orchestra which had a steady gig at a club called Visiones in the village. Here was another great section with Rich Perry, Tim Reis, Charlie Pillow and Scott Robinson. This band was a little less intimidating, except for the fact that Maria would stand directly in front of me conducting the band and would sing my part any time I wasn’t quite nailing it. However, there was something about the Vanguard Band’s history and how long the guys had been playing that music that made reaching their level seem to be an insurmountable task whereas Maria’s music was written for guys my age who had only been playing it a few years and I felt much more at ease there.
Fast forward a few years and I found myself playing in the Cecil’s Big Band under the direction of Joe Elephante. This was a very young band full of excellent musicians. I’d sub there almost every Monday and my former experiences made this endeavor more enjoyable. I started subbing on lead alto as well as tenor and that really opened up my eyes to what it meant to lead a section and what a lead player needs from section players. After Joe decided he’d run the band long enough, Cecil’s was dark for a few months. Then suddenly I was at the helm. The first few rehearsals were a trip because instead being the new guy in the band hoping people wouldn’t notice that I wasn’t playing half the notes, I had to take charge and listen to everything, rhythm section, brass, my lead alto player. It forced me to change the way I conceive of sitting in a section and sitting in a band.
I have to say that running this band has really opened me up to so many nuances about ensemble playing that are crucial in all musical situations, not just big-band. My band mates are really incredible. The personnel has changed quite a bit over the last year, but as a whole the ensemble keeps getting stronger and the spirit keeps rising. Craig Yaremko has taken over the lead alto chair and section is really coming into its own. Nathan Ecklund is a tremendous young trumpeter. He leads the brass with unusual authority for such a young musician. Andy Watson has been playing with us since last spring and it’s impossible to describe what he does for the band. He “makes” the band groove and swing so hard and yet it never feels like he’s doing anything – it feels like he’s just “letting” us swing. All the members of the band deserve special recognition for their dedication and musicianship.
