Big band, bigger sound

Most jazz composers would love to have the opportunity to write for the ensemble that saxophonist Kim Richmond brought to the Jazz Bakery on Monday. The 22-piece group, filled with some of the Southland’s most versatile musicians, augmented the usual big band instrumentation (four trumpets, four trombones, five saxophones and rhythm) with an additional pair of French horns, tuba, a percussionist and a mallet player.

Add to that the fact that the saxophone section doubled on a wide range of woodwind instruments, and the potential combination of musical timbres was enough to make any composer green with envy.

Richmond’s program, a mix of originals and orchestrations of standards, (“Stella by Starlight,” “My Funny Valentine”) took advantage of the instrumentation to produce an extraordinarily colorful array of sounds. The music’s transitioning timbres, constantly shifting and overlapping, were delicately woven with the subtle seamlessness of a Persian tapestry.

Their impact was enhanced by bright swatches of solo improvising, notably from trumpeter Steve Huffsteter, trombonist Joey Sellers, pianist Rich Eames and Richmond’s alto saxophone, arcing across the lush collectives of sound.

Impressive as the music was aurally, however, its rhythmic heartbeat lacked energy and drive. Too often the emphasis on textures tended to diminish any inner sense of forward propulsion. When both elements came together, as they did on the original, “Franz,” the effects were magical. Richmond would do well to match his mastery of tonal manipulation with a similarly focused emphasis on the drive that can bring his orchestra to full-blooded life.