On a
cool Friday evening, I was taken to the sounds of the Nick Scott Quintet, which
had more of a chamber jazz feel since the band did not have a drummer and most
of the tunes are melodic, pensive, and meditative.
The
quintet was made up of guitarist/composer Nick Scott, pianist/keyboardist Tom
Richards, Jeff LaRochelle on tenor sax, Ryan Brouwer on trumpet, and Jim Sexton
on bass.
The
material consisted of original repertoire that was featured on Nick Scott’s
debut CD called “Vestiges”, and chamber-like arrangements of standard
repertoire. The opening number, Cinco Sol, had the immediate feel of an ECM performance, with its spacy, straight
timing and the quintet performing tight like a chamber unit with intricate
arrangements. The next three of Nick
Scott’s pieces, Memory Woken, Requiem, and Coalesence, follow in that same
vein, while at the same time giving an opportunity to let the soloists shine on
the material and express themselves outside of the chamber like context.
The
last two pieces are standards, starting with the Wayne Shorter classic “Infant
Eyes”, which has the pianist stating the melody while the horns play harmony in
the opening passage. It was one of the
most expressive and emotional performances of the evening, with great solo
turns by Richards, Brouwer, LaRochelle and Scott. Closing the night was a reading of the old
standard “If I Should Lose You”, which gives the ensemble a chance to cook and
swing on a good tune, showing that they can pull off a tight swinging groove
without the need of drums or percussion.
A
word individually about the musicians:
Nick
Scott’s compositions and guitar playing puts him in the company of the great
guitarists that went before him, such as John Abercrombie, Jim Hall, John
Scofield and even Pat Metheny. He is a
local talent that is definitely to look out for and watch in the years to come.
Jeff
LaRochelle shows how he is capable and able to adapt to new configurations and
challenges when it presents himself. He
is a very expressive and fine musician that brings out the best in music and
puts his own soul into each piece of work.
Ryan
Brouwer plays a very effective role by providing harmonic, melodic and tonal
accompaniment through his trumpet in addition to making it a solo
instrument. This shows trememdous
ability and growth as a musician to take on different hats and roles in a
musical context. I would love to hear
more from this musician in the near future as well, and this performance served
for me as a great introduction to an up and coming talent.
Tom
Richards is one that not only is a great keyboardist and composer, but is also
known as a trombonist. Here, he plays
really effective keys and provides great accompaniment and tonal colours to the
music of Nick Scott.
Jim
Sexton is a great and capable bassist and improviser that provided steady time
keeping and rhythm for an ensemble that didn’t have a drummer present. He is also an effective soloist and
improviser, taking moving solos whenever needed and playing with such soul and
fire. Overall, he was a great anchor
to the chamber like quality of the quintet.
It
was a great evening of soothing, soulful, and melodic jazz music put together
by great young jazz musicians who seem like they were working together for
years. Look out for Nick Scott and the
rest of these musicians in Toronto whenever they play a show next.
OFFICIAL
NICK SCOTT WEB SITE
(FROM LEFT: TOM RICHARDS, JIM SEXTON, JEFF LAROCHELLE, NICK SCOTT, RYAN BROUWER)
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