“To Whom It May Concern” is one of those titles that leaves something to the imagination. When you compose a letter like that, you might not know exactly who you’re writing to, but you’re aiming for somebody who’s gonna get something done. I like to use that lead when I’m signaling some less-than-satisfactory action—I might have a pretty good idea of who’s dragging their heels, and I can spook them a bit by spreading the blame around…
This tune is a jazz waltz I composed specifically as a bass feature. It’s not common in big bands for the bass to display the melody, but I’m following a path innovated by Duke Ellington’s “Jack the Bear” and Oscar Pettiford’s “Tricotism.” The melody comes across as almost aggressive, given the way the notes cluster, but it’s expressive as well. I think it means business, as the title suggests.
I had fun with the trading sequence. Normally, soloists or sections trade fours or eights, but in this tune, I threw that out the window and went for unpredictable patterns. A two-measure orchestra soli is followed by four measures of drum solo; the orchestra’s four-measure soli is answered by a six-measure unit from the drums. It kept us all a bit off-balance. I figure when you send out a letter addressed like this, you can never quite predict the response. I was playing with that thought.
Visit the album website at:
StillIRiseAlbum.com
from
Still I Rise,
track released July 10, 2020
Soloists: Luke Sellick (Bass), Joel Green (Trombone), Ken Gold (Baritone Saxophone)
Saxophones:
1st Alto-Mark Gross
2nd Alto-Greg Gatien
1st Tenor-Rob Dixon
2nd Tenor-Tristen Martinuson
Bari-Ken Gold
Trumpets:
1st- Bijon Watson
2nd-Jeff Johnson
3rd-Curtis Taylor
4th-Andrew Littleford
Trombones:
1st-Vincent Gardner
2nd-Joel Green
3rd-Anthony Bryson
4th-Bill Green
Rhythm Section:
Piano-Zen Zadravec
Bass-Luke Sellick
Drums-Curtis Nowosad
Guitar- Kasey Kurtz