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Horizons Jazz Orchestra: Plays the Music of Lee Harris: The Brite Side
BySince its inception the band has leaned on playing Harris compositions and arrangements, so it was only natural that the debut album be dedicated to the late leader Harris, which is why the title indicates that the HJO "plays the music of Lee Harris."
The band comprises top-list players from the south Florida area and, for this recording, includes among the cast of players Jonathan Joseph, a drummer from the Billy Cobham school of fusion drumming, and west coast trumpeter Carl Saunders, one of the finest horn men in the business. These two "outsiders," along with local talent and an original member of the Superband, stalwart saxophonist Billy Ross, add an additional sparkle to the musical shine this group already produced.
The album opens with the first original, "Red Apple Sweet," featuring producer and trombonist Michael Balogh, keyboardist Gary Mayone and Joseph pounding the drums into submission. Offering a new creative arrangement from Harris, the classic "Pure Imagination," with Saunders on flugelhorn, sounds majestic. On the stunning "The Runner," the brass section comes alive in displaying what the big band sound should sound like.
On the expansive, direction-changing title-track, the band sheds its Kenton-like style for a more progressive big-band sound, on what turns out to be the most ambitious Harris chart of the set at almost ten-minutes in length and containing a bit of fusion and funk.
The unforgettable Gershwin tune "Summertime," in a superb Harris arrangement which features saxophonist Scott Klarman on a brilliant soprano solo, provides a new version and memorable highlight of the album.
Leonard Bernstein's immortal "Maria" undergoes another Harris re-write, giving this all-time favorite some new life. Noday takes the spotlight with his high-pitched trumpet as tenor saxophonist Joe Mileti delivers a tender accompaniment.
The Billy Strayhorn composition "A Train Bossa" caps off an exciting session of music, with Ross on the tenor and Saunders's trumpet voice bringing the music to a close. What a delicious plate of big band music, as The Brite Side truly succeeds in serving quite a dish of powerful and memorable swinging big band music, deeply-rooted in the Kenton tradition, a plus for any ensemble.
Track Listing
Red Apple Sweet; Pure Imagination; After You’ve Gone, Finally; The Runner; Fourth Dimension; The Brite Side; The Sound; Summertime; Maria; ‘A’ Train Bossa.
Personnel
Horizons Jazz Orchestra
band / ensemble / orchestraLee Harris
composer / conductorMichael Balogh
tromboneDennis Noday
trumpetRyan Chapman
trumpetJack Wengrosky
flugelhornFernando Ferrarone
trumpetChaim Rubinov
trumpetCarl Saunders
trumpetScott Klarman
saxophone, tenorMike Brignola
saxophone, baritoneBilly Ross
saxophone, tenorJoe Mileti
saxophone, tenorRandy Emerick
saxophone, baritoneJason Pyle
tromboneTom Lacy
tromboneSteven Mayer
tromboneLuke Williams
guitarGary Mayone
keyboardsRanses Colon
bassJonathan Joseph
drumsGeorge Mazzeo
drumsAdditional Instrumentation
Jonathan Joseph, George Mazzeo: drums
Album information
Title: Plays the Music of Lee Harris: The Brite Side | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Self Produced
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About Horizons Jazz Orchestra
Instrument: Band / ensemble / orchestra
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