Jazz set with orchestra
By Dan Mac Alpine / Melrose@Cnc.Com
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Normally, Lello Molinari takes a rather anonymous position with the Melrose Symphony Orchestra as the orchestra's principal bass player.
But for this spring's MSO pops and light classical concert, Molinari will take center stage with his jazz trio and play five American jazz standards he arranged specifically for a full orchestra and a jazz combo.
"To my knowledge, this is the first time any of these compositions will be done with full strings in an orchestral setting," said Molinari, who usually composes and arranges for smaller jazz trios and combos.
Molinari said he welcomed the challenge to expand is composing skills to include a full orchestra.
"That's part of why I wanted to do this," he said. "This was the first time for me to write for an orchestra and I wrote some things in a very unorthodox manner, but the orchestra and Yoichi (Udagawa, MSO conductor and musical director) were very flexible and amicable."
Musically, Molinari's challenge was to highlight the jazz trio, yet place in it in the context of an orchestra. "The idea of playing with a bow vs. jazz and swing is very different," said Molinari. "You can't write parts for an orchestra that won't work. Also, being a community orchestra, the extra challenge was to write something everyone can play and make it interesting and sound good."
Ultimately, the biggest challenge, Molinari only half joked, was to meet his deadline.
"I finished the last arrangement at 4 a.m. of the day I had to turn it in," he said.
The Molinari jazz trio
Lello Molinari, bass
Frank Carlberg, piano
Marcllo Pellitteri, drums
Guests
Christine Correa, vocals
Greg Hopkins, trumpet
Molinari's jazz combo will be playing:
Caravan by Duke Ellington
Stardust by Hogey Carmichael
The Man I Love by George Gershwin
Memories of You by Eubie Blake
Better Git in Your Soul by Charlie Mingus
