O.C. JAZZ REVIEW : Festival Spotlights All That Jazz of Today, Tomorrow

Where do jazz musicians come from? The question was answered Saturday at the daylong Orange County Art and Jazz Festival. Held on two stages on the grounds of the American Way Cultural Center, the festival--the first in what’s hoped to be a yearly series--presented a baker’s dozen ensembles from area high schools and colleges as well as a pair of professional bands and an all-star sextet that included saxophonist Eric Marienthal, trombonist Mike Fahn and trumpeter Jeff Bunnell.

But it was sometime during fluegelhornist-composer Tony Guerrero’s appearance with an ensemble from his alma mater, Cal State Fullerton, that the answer to what it takes to make a jazz musician became apparent.

Guerrero, an Orange County resident whose recordings have ranked well on contemporary jazz charts while arrangements of his music have been popular with high school and college bands, studied at Fullerton under its current jazz director, Brian Bettger, fewer than 10 years ago. His performance with the school’s current ensemble underscored the importance of music education. Look what it has done for him.

The 18-piece Fullerton ensemble, as did all of the school groups that appeared, added weight to that lesson with ambitious musicianship and attentive ensemble play. The group, without Guerrero, opened with Dizzy Gillespie’s “Things to Come,” an appropriate theme for festival of musicians in training, then followed with a smooth reading of Jerome Kern’s “Yesterdays,” which featured a well-crafted tenor solo from saxophonist Bill Martinez, a senior majoring in education.

A sprightly rendition of Joe Henderson’s “Isotope” gathered strength on the keyboard work of 17-year-old Linda Martinez. Martinez, a high school student who works with the ensemble, made a strong impression with a well-developed solo that, at times, recalled the angular, rhythmic approach of a young Herbie Hancock. The ensemble also performed a well-orchestrated arrangement of “Harlem Nocturne” that found the brass maneuvering with precision and strength.

With Guerrero, the ensemble covered a range of styles from soft jazz fusion to New Orleans stomp. The fluegelhornist showed some chops on his own “Secret Love,” then switched to trumpet and plunger mute for a tough, growling rendition of “St. Louis Blues,” done as a homage to Louis Armstrong. Singer Kelly Rae Alcott joined Guerrero and the ensemble for a sweet “Makin’ Whoopee.”

Trombonist Mike Fahn, the L.A.-based, Maynard Ferguson veteran who attended high school in Huntington Beach and spent time at both Orange Coast and Golden West colleges, appeared with the Fullerton College Big Band directed by James Linahon in a program that featured arrangements from Orange County resident Tom Kubis.

Fahn opened Kubis’ arrangement of “I Thought About You” on slide trombone, then switched to his usual ax, valve trombone, for his improvisation. He showed an especially fluid side on “Make Your Dreams Come True,” then, in the company of guest trumpeter Bunnell, swung hard on “No Greater Be-Bop,” Kubis’ rewrite of “There Is No Greater Love.”

Session trumpeter Andrew Carney was a guest with the Cypress College Jazz Ensemble directed by George Beyer. He worked quick, light lines on “Run Down,” before blowing an extended series of revolving statements that drew a wild ovation from the crowd. His unaccompanied introduction to his own “See Ya!” gave him a chance to show a more sensitive side, as did his warm fluegel work on Benny Golson’s “I Remember Clifford.” Ensemble member Everett Carroll added his confident alto stylings to “Run Down” and finely tuned flute work to Bill Holman’s “Told You So.”

Earlier in the day, performance from a number of high school bands proved jazz music has a future. The Hemet High School Big Band, which a week before had won first place in the “Heavy” division (college and high school) at the Western States Jazz Festival in Upland, worked without its director, Jeff Tower. His absence didn’t seem to matter. The youngsters showed why they were contest winners with a well-executed program that included a Rob McConnell arrangement of “Just Friends.”

The best-received combo of the day was a trio from the Los Angeles County High School of the Arts featuring electric violinist Anand Bennett. Anand capitalized on the trimmed-down format (the group is usually a quartet with a keyboardist) to rifle through a decidedly modern program that included tunes from John Patitucci, Chick Corea and John Coltrane. Bennett showed a surprising amount to technical skill, without being showy or relying on electronic effects to get his point across.

Earlier, a hard-bop inspired combo from the same school featured a surprisingly mature front line with alto saxophonists James King and Gyasi Williams and tenor player Joshua Shapiro in a set of material from Wayne Shorter and Joe Henderson.

Also making appearances over the nine-hour event were combos from Los Altos High School and Chapman University and big bands from Poway High School, El Dorado High School and Villa Park High School, which, under the direction of Richard Polley, gave a determined reading of Lennie Niehaus’ “Hangin’ Loose,” that, though far from perfect, was admirable for its spunk.

Saxophonist Dan St. Marseille’s quintet, with fluegelhornist-singer Larry Gillespie and pianist Cecilia Coleman, and Latin-fusion band Latinum brought some professionalism to the event.

By the time the festival all-stars--saxophonist Marienthal, Bunnell, Fahn, pianist Tom McMorran, bassist Dave Carpenter and drummer David Hocker--took the stage, it was clear that musicians aren’t born; they’re educated. Marienthal, who attended high school in Costa Mesa and spent time at Orange Coast College, turned in stunning performances on Freddie Hubbard’s “Bird-Like,” a trio of Horace Silver tunes and the standard, “My One and Only Love.” Fahn crisp trombone work on “Bird-Like” was a standout and Bunnell burned up the stage with his solo on Silver’s “Nutville.” Many of the student musicians were still in the audience. No doubt, some of them were hearing the future.