Festival’s Jazz Series Heads For The Water
They’ll be making beautiful jazz Saturday morning on the waterfront at Swan’s Landing restaurant near Sandpoint.
It’s the final of three public concerts performed by the students and faculty of the jazz department at the Schweitzer Institute of Music.
There’s no admission charge for Saturday’s show, which begins at 11 a.m. Lunch is optional, either on the outdoors deck during the show or inside after the concert.
“It’s a waterfront restaurant, and we’re going to set it up for a casual concert atmosphere,” said Connie Berghan, director of the Festival at Sandpoint.
The earlier shows were held on the mountain at the Schweitzer Mountain Resort and at The Met in Spokane. Both featured exciting performances of traditional jazz pieces and new works by Schweitzer Institute students and instructors.
“Students” is a bit of a misnomer: A few of the musicians enrolled in this year’s workshop are seasoned professionals - “A couple of them are older than me,” noted Ed Schuller, the bass player who directs the jazz program - and even the nonprofessionals are extremely proficient.
“In the past, we’ve had to recruit,” Schuller said, “but this year, we had a crate full of applications. We had to make some very hard choices.”
The caliber of the music and the musicianship at the first two shows have been superb. The studentwritten pieces have been remarkable, and the instructors have chosen outstanding pieces for the students to sharpen their teeth on.
Three student ensembles work under a different instructor each week. This week, the format may be broadened a bit with the arrival of a third Schuller, drummer George Schuller, at the institute. He’s the leader of Orange Then Blue, a contemporary big band from Boston, and the other instructors say they may rely on his expertise to put together a larger group.
And Schweitzer jazz musician Joe Lovano said this week he’s toying with assembling a saxophone ensemble. It should be exciting.
xxxx Schweitzer Institute Jazz Concert Location and time: Swan’s Landing, Sandpoint, Saturday, 11 a.m. Tickets: Admission is free but there is a charge for lunch