NEC Jazz Composers' Workshop Orchestra

Fred Hersch (arr. Seulah Noh) | Heartsong

soloists:
Joseph Dies, trombone
Eleanor Pruneau, piano
guest: Will Fredendall, flute

Annalise Stalls | Harmelody for Big Band

soloists:
Nick Biagini, bass clarinet
Lemuel Marc, trumpet
Joseph Dies, trombone
Eleanor Pruneau, piano

Program note

Ornette Coleman’s music is a powerfully energizing source of inspiration for me, and for years I have been trying to understand what harmolodics is, and how to play and compose harmolodically. 
        For harmolodic improvisors, it is important to internalize and be inspired by melodic shapes rather than to think about playing changes or scales. Melodic shapes interact and create harmelody. This can involve pantonality and moving fluidly through various key centers while the players aren’t necessarily in the same key area at the same time.             
– Annalise Stalls

J. Edward Britton | Moonlight Star

soloist:
Dan Hirsch, trumpet

Program note

I've been writing for big band for eight years now but this is my first ever ballad. It's inspired by my favorite ballad To You by Thad Jones, and the forms are quite similar. While it can never be as good as what Thad wrote, I still hope you feel something when listening to it. Enjoy!                          

Hunter McKay | The Escapist

soloists:
Garrett Frees, tenor saxophone                              
Simone Trovato, trumpet
Michael Gerace, trombone     

Program note

This year I learned a lot about what it means to be inspired.  I have been dealing with pain from a herniated disc for over a year now, and with that comes a desire to escape that pain.  In early March, I had a doctor's appointment where I found out I would be getting surgery.  While this would hopefully provide long term relief, it also introduced new fears and anxieties.   I got home from that appointment on a Monday and went to the piano subconsciously in need of an escape. That's when I wrote the first initial sketch for this composition.  By the following Sunday, we played a complete first draft.  
        It often takes me months to reach this point, so at the time, I attributed this expeditiousness to the idea that "inspiration strikes in mysterious ways." But in retrospect I've realized that the way I let this chart absorb the majority of my time and headspace was my attempt to escape the pain and stress in the weeks leading up to my surgery.  While I don't feel the need to escape so much now that I am on the other side of my surgery, I hope this piece and its title will serve to remind me of the strange and fickle nature of inspiration.
        I would like to dedicate this piece to all my friends and teachers who have offered their support; and especially my parents, Julie and Daryl; siblings, Ginny and Toby; and my girlfriend, Emily; without whom I could never have gotten through the past year.                                                                                          
– Hunter McKay

Domenico Botelho | Overseas

soloist:
Joseph Dies, trombone     

Program note

This piece represents my attempt to connect Jazz with Samba, which is one of the greatest symbols of my homeland culture. My main goal is to bring American and Brazilian cultures closer to each other.                                             
– Domenico Botelho

Joseph Borsellino III (collab. Justus Ross) | ‘Round Her Finger

soloists:
Daniel Hirsch, trumpet
Joseph Borsellino III, vocoder

Program note

This is something I've always wanted to write and perform. Stylistically, this piece is an homage to just about everything I grew up listening to, especially Herbie Hancock.
        The first verse is sung from the perspective of my late teens and early twenties: anxiously falling in love, past the point of return, and pleading your love interest to do right by you. 
      The second is more current: finding confidence within, breaking free from emotional dependencies, no longer seeking validation or placing your happiness in the hands of others; holding yourself accountable for your own fulfillment... mantras like that.  Which of these messages do you feel are given more value in our culture, relationships, (especially) music, and art? This is my "Live, Laugh, Love" song. *lol*  This is a song about celebrating young love and the excitement that follows.  Love can be beautiful, empowering, even necessary, but as a dear friend once encouraged me, "let's end the 'better half' rhetoric." This is a song about creating a better whole.
– Joseph Borsellino

 "Girl you got me wrapped around your finger like I'm already yours
I don't mind as long as you just promise not to walk out that door
Sticks and stones may break my bones but love can make you lose all control
Can't you see if you should leave it's up to me to make this heart whole?"

CJ Schrieber | Don’t Talk To Me Please

soloists:
Annalise Stalls, alto saxophone
Michael Gerace, trombone     

Harrison Pershing | Grackle Snack

soloists:
Nick Biagini, baritone saxophone
CJ Schrieber, drums       

Program note

A piece about a bird who really wanted to eat a sugar packet and almost did! you’ll get it next time!                                                                                      
– Harrison Pershing

Radiohead (arr. Carles Pereira) | Ful Stop

soloists:
Hunter McKay, tenor saxophone
Ryan O’Connell, trumpet

Program note

A big band take on one of Radiohead's most complex compositions, consisting of an interesting balance between identicalness and originality...                      
– Carles Pereira

Personnel

Jazz Composers’ Workshop Orchestra

Woodwinds
Harry Pershing, alto saxophone, soprano saxophone
Annalise Stalls, alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute
Joseph Borsellino III, tenor saxophone, flute
Garrett Frees, tenor saxophone, clarinet
Nick Biagini, baritone saxophone, bass clarinet

Trumpets and Flugelhorns
Ryan O’Connell
Daniel Hirsch
Simone Trovato
Lemuel Marc

Trombones
Joseph Dies
Michael Gerace
Aiden Coleman
Quinn McGillis

Thatcher Harrison, guitar
Eleanor Pruneau, piano
Misha Bjerken, bass
Carles Pereira, drums