Information about the New England Jazz Ensemble (a April 2007 review of the band’s last live recording by the venerable jazz critic, Owen McNally, The Hartford Courant)
The New England Jazz Ensemble, an invaluable cultural asset deserving far wider recognition, has taken another significant step in its distinguished career with the release of its first live recording.
With its trademark mix of swing and sophistication, the Hartford-based regional band displays its musical depth and expressive range on a new disc recorded live Oct. 15, 2005, at the Pittsfield CityJazz Festival at Berkshire Music Hall, Pittsfield, Mass.
Distributed by Sea Breeze Jazz Records, “New England Jazz Ensemble Live at the Pittsfield CityJazz Festival” is a fine sampler of NEJE’s vitality and versatility. The project was made possible by a grant from the Aaron. …more
So why, you may ask, is Bowers reviewing a Christmas album in February? That’s a perceptive question, the answer to which is really quite simple: big band albums as impressive as this one by the superb New England Jazz Ensemble should be listened to and applauded not only during the holiday season but every day of the year.
The first half of the enterprise is devoted to well-known if not wholly traditional Christmas fare, the second to selections from Duke Ellington/Billy Strayhorn’s swing-centered adaptation of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Ballet (transcribed by David Berger), and music director Walt Gwardyak’s ensemble is completely at ease in either mode. The opening theme, “We Wish You a Cookin’ Christmas,” is a potpourri of seasonal favorites (including “Good King Wenceslas,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Carol of the Bells”) arranged by trumpeter Jeff Holmes. Holmes also arranged “Jolly Ole St. Nick,” which embodies fragments of …more