Bathed in the red light that has become BAR’s signature in the past few years, Chris Brubeck took the mic, pausing with a half-smile as he leaned in and began to address the crowd.
“I’m going to play a tune my dad wrote. It’s called ‘Blue Rondo à la Turk.’”
The crowd cheered. Then he was off, grinning broadly as several familiar notes of the now-beloved standard tumbled forward, filling the warm, pizza-scented back room.
Lucy Gellman Photo
Friday night’s festivities at BAR — free and open to the community — marked the kickoff of Brubeck’s residency with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, an endeavor supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, New Music USA, and the Fromm Music Foundation. Like the Symphony’s first residency in 2013, featuring internationally recognized voodoo hip-hop violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain, this one will follow a thematic thread, focusing on the legacy of jazz and great American music. In an initial press release on the residency, NHSO Marketing Director Katie Bonner Russo estimated that Brubeck will serve over 10,000 students and 2,500 adults during his time in Connecticut.
Here’s how that’s going to play out. From now through May 2015, Brubeck will perform 12 concerts in 6 cities, appear at several of the NHSO’s Young People’s Concerts, instruct in several New Haven, Guilford, and Middletown schools, coach a jazz combo from Guilford High School, premiere new works at a March 12 concert on the Shubert Theater stage, discuss American photographer Ansel Adams with a curator from the Yale University Art Gallery, and more.
“I am personally and professionally so excited to welcome Chris Brubeck to this artist residency with the NHSO … Chris has been a delight to work with in planning this residency, and we’re so excited to be at this kick-off party tonight. Chris is just an all-around genius … he’s an educator, a composer, a musician. You’ll see him tonight play two instruments in a twenty-minute set … he’s just incredible and he brings with him so much energy and innovation that the symphony is so thrilled to be partnering on this education project with him.” said Laura Adam (pictured above), NHSO education director.
“I’ll tell you, the community work with these young students … as a jazz musician and as a classical musician, it’s really an investment in our kids right now for them to enjoy music, to feel encouraged, to play, and to enrich their lives. It’s also a good investment for us … we need to have people with ears who understand jazz and classical music to go to concerts like the Shubert in the future. I look forward to getting to know you better,” added Brubeck.
Audiences young and old have good reason to be excited. In his performances on the piano and the trombone, Brubeck was sheer ebullience, drawing from his fingertips hot Louisiana jazz and blues that mingled tenderly with the wide, panoramic images of Ansel Adams and his — and the audience’s — memories of his father. With upcoming performances of Leonard Bernstein, Duke Ellington, and the double-Brubeck Ansel Adams: America (Chris composed it with his father), the residency promises not only educational opportunities for music students, but a chance for audiences to familiarize themselves with the evolution of a twentieth-century lyric tradition.
“The name Brubeck is synonymous with jazz. As a teenager I remember listening to Dave Brubeck in England, where he was extremely popular…. Setting up this residency has been a particular pleasure. We started talking about it two years ago … and we wanted it to consist of educational things, concerts, a new work, and all sorts of exciting elements. A huge welcome to him and this extraordinary residency.” said NHSO’s Music Director William Boughton as the evening wore on.
“New Haven is a very small city, but it’s packed with talent. The New Haven Symphony Orchestra is a very big part of that, and we are very happy to support the organization,” added Dan Brodoff, a manager at BAR.
Behind him, Brubeck took his place at the piano once again, promising a final number that would encourage audience participation. At the bar, laughter bubbled up from a crowd of NHSO performers who had gathered to listen. Another four pizzas came sizzling from the kitchen. The audience clapped a joyous rhythm in unison, sending one great vibration through the room.
For a full roundup of residency events, visit the NHSO’s website.