SJO plans big finish, by George

As a suave finish to the season, the Spokane Jazz Orchestra will devote its entire performance Friday night at The Met to the songs of George Gershwin.

Each generation discovers for itself the simple magic of Gershwin songs – so perfectly shaped, so American, so universal, so timeless. Whether working with his brother, Ira, or other lyricists, Gershwin encapsulated the words in a memorable melody which fused them with emotional content.

Director Dan Keberle had originally booked one of the SJO’s favorite singers, Charlotte Carruthers, to sing a few of Gershwin’s winning melodies, and the band was going to fill in with instrumentals between her numbers. But as the program was shaping up, Keberle felt that so many of the songs slated for the band had such great words that the audience ought to hear them all.

Placing the burden of singing the entire show, nonstop, on Carruthers would be asking a lot. What to do? The solution: more singers.

So that is how the concert evolved into spotlighting the jazz divas of Spokane. Keberle did not have to race to either coast in his search for tonsil talent. There are a surprising number of accomplished, experienced and recorded jazz vocalists in our midst.

In addition to Carruthers’ major contribution, five singers will grace the stage, each crooning a couple of Gershwin hits. Most of the names should be familiar; here is your chance to see and hear them all on one ticket.

Ann Fennessy’s work has centered around American popular song, but has ranged from opera and classical appearances with symphony orchestras to computer games and movie soundtracks, including the locally produced “The Basket.”

Also a veteran of movie work, Jennifer Stott Madsen is a transplanted Californian who has recorded voiceovers for television shows, including CBS’ “Cold Case” and commercial jingles. She was cast in a speaking role in the locally filmed “Home of the Brave.”

Leslie Ann Grove, one of the founders of CenterStage and Ella’s Supper Club, has for years performed as a singer and on trumpet with many groups, including her own seven-piece variety band, Gateway.

Mardi Luppert, a past president of the Spokane Jazz Society, sang and played keyboard for 30 years at many hotels and clubs in Portland before coming to Spokane.

Kristina Ploeger, artistic director for the Spokane Area Children’s Chorus, is co-founder of the Eastern Washington University Jazz Dialogue Summer Camp and former director of EWU’s Vocal Jazz program. She is in demand as a clinician and performer for jazz and choral festivals.

All of this talent, backed up by all of the able instrumentalists of the SJO, will render a list of Gershwin tunes too numerous to mention. They include “S’Wonderful,” “Embraceable You,” “But Not for Me,” “Someone to Watch Over Me,” “A Foggy Day” and on and on with more that you will surely recognize.

And the orchestra will open with a rhythmically challenging big band version of “I Got Rhythm,” to show that rhythm is more than just a good word for playing hangman.