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On Day 2 of the Rochester International Jazz Festival, the energy was ramping up as jazz fans and Rochesterians went downtown to see some world-class jazz musicianship.
With all the amazing paid Club Pass shows happening every day at the Jazz Fest, it’s easy to overlook the free shows. Each day kicks off with three high school/college jazz bands playing on the Jazz Street stage. There is no better way to support your community than supporting the arts at local schools, especially when Rochester schools have some of the best arts programs around.
The School of the Arts High School Jazz Band closed out the run of free high school jazz band shows on Day 2, which is a fantastic ensemble of young musicians. I was sad to learn that I probably wouldn’t be catching any vibraphone during my time at the Jazz Fest this year, but the SOTA Jazz Band had me covered. Seeing these kids take on jazz pieces and solos can be life-affirming. In high school jazz bands specifically, you often see the conductor step aside and let the students take the lead on the song, as if they were an actual small jazz ensemble. Music gives these students a voice and a creative outlet, especially jazz music, and the best part is that they are playing at a professional level. This band, in particular, competed earlier this year in New York City. They played some of the pieces they competed with on the stage.
The other great thing about high school jazz bands is that you get to hear classic pieces like “April in Paris” by Vernon Duke and made famous by Count Basie played right next to “The Jazz Police” by Gordon Goodwin, which is a song you’ll probably only find in the hands of students (with all due respect to this song—it is a fun one).
As someone who was in a jazz ensemble in middle and high school, I found those bands were so important to my musical development, and playing on the Jazz Fest stage is a memory seared into my brain. The least I can do is help make more of those memories for a new generation as I play my part as an audience member. “It’s high school, kids!” I heard someone in the crowd say in awe—yes, they really are that talented.
Bob James returned to the Jazz Fest this year with his trio after completely blowing me away back in 2021. The jazz fusion legend is known most for his song “Angela,” which was the opening theme to the TV show “Taxi.” He is also known for the song “Nautilus,” which has been sampled in hundreds of hip-hop songs. And that isn’t the only track of his to be sampled in the hip-hop world. His music has been scattered all over the genre’s history at this point, making him something of an unrecognized royalty figure to the scene. Hip-hop heads may not know him, but they’ve all heard him.
He has embraced this crossover from the start, and James’ love for the evolution of music and jazz as an ever-connected communicative force makes him one of the most versatile, humble, and joyful performers I have ever seen. In 2021, the explosive trio with bassist Michael Palazzolo and drummer James Adkins took Temple Theater for a magnificent show, and this year he played to a full Kodak Hall, bringing in Palazzolo again, and inviting Elton John Band’s very own John Mahon on drums.
Mahon completely changed the dynamic of the trio. Where Adkins made the group spontaneous and flashy, Mahon turned things more calculated and flexible. With a single change in the trio lineup, as well as a change in venue, they put on a completely different show than they did five years ago. It is a testament to James’ willingness to step back and let his band members shine, one of his best qualities as a band leader.
This even led to a mid-set detour with a cover of the song “Take Me to the Alley” by Gregory Porter, which was sung by Mahon while he grooved along to the song on the drums. I’m not sure many other band leaders would let their drummer sing during the set, but James really doesn’t need the spotlight. It is always more about the other members of the trio and how they work with him, which allows for a high level of respect among the three of them.
It was delightful to see Palazzolo return, and his bass playing is as breathtaking as ever. Every time he solos, he leans into the strings, letting them whisper to him as his hands pluck, slap, strum, and slide all over. Visually, his hands become a blur, but every sound from his bass is purposeful and emotive. Palazzolo truly feels every note he plays, and you can tell from his facial expressions that he lives for this. After his solos are done, he beams proudly and gets right back to stabilizing the song.
Mahon’s throne sat behind a truly enormous kit with every type of cymbal you would ever need, as well as some auxiliary percussion like the guiro, wind chimes, and some sort of pitched whistle … what you’d expect from a guy who has been touring with Elton John for years. An instrument for every situation. He fits in with this group easily, and the versatility he brings as a jazz musician, along with his experience as a pop/rock/R&B drummer, fully supports the fusion side of James’ compositions. It also underscores the connection these tunes have to the world of hip hop and R&B, as his grooves constantly drew on musical ideas from that world throughout the set.
Mahon might not be as flashy as Adkins was, but he has the same level of attention to texture. Each song demanded a different sound profile of percussion and a different level of rhythmic complexity. Even though I missed Adkins’s charismatic presence, Mahon’s synergy with James and Palazzolo was just as good.
Of course, the highlight of the set was “Nautilus,” which brought the energy up all the way as the three of them rapidly exchanged solo passages that got shorter and shorter until they were practically playing over each other. James’ master piano riffing felt natural over the track’s slick grooves, and he never let up on the keys, even as he took time to direct dynamics and musical entrances with his left hand. The dramatic finish led to a deserved standing ovation before he led to the final song of his set, the theme from “Taxi.” Serving as somewhat of an encore, “Angela” was a more laid-back ending to the show, with smooth, touching, and familiar melodies. At least familiar to the audience members who were around for the 1980s. This closer also achieved standing applause.
To end the day, I headed over to Kilbourn Hall to see the Alexa Tarantino Quartet featuring Steven Feifke (piano), Philip Norris (bass), Mark Whitfield, Jr. (drums), and Alexa Tarantino (alto and soprano saxophone). Tarantino returned to the halls of the Eastman School of Music, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in jazz saxophone performance. Since then, she has earned her master’s degree from Juilliard, been named a “Top 5 alto saxophonist” by JazzTimes, played as a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, and released four albums.
Tarantino’s quartet is one of the smoothest groups I have seen at the Jazz Fest. The four of them can practically predict each other’s every move as they move through post-bop tunes with extensive fast-paced solos and some beautiful saxophone lines.
Tarantino’s compositional abilities were on full display with her new songs like the high-stakes “Provoking Luck” and the sentimental and sweet “Portrait of a Shadow,” starting off the set with class and energy. As Tarantino would later reveal, all four members of the quartet have been traveling on different tours, and it has been a while since they had all played together, which I’m sure no one would have guessed from how naturally they played.
“All Along” was a smooth-jazz break for the group, and I’m usually not inclined towards slower, more intimate jazz, but this song really struck me. The melodies were satisfying and gorgeous, and the four of them melded together as the push and pull of the tune culminated in an extended solo that was passed between Tarantino and Feifke. One of the prettiest songs I’ve heard played in Kilbourn, and that is high praise.
The quartet ended with “Inside Looking Out,” a frantic and ever-changing song that experiments with tone as much as it does structure. The groove was hypnotic, and it created the perfect atmosphere for the four of them to turn their improvisation into its most playful form.
There are still a number of days to go at the Rochester International Jazz Festival, so the music is just getting started. If you haven’t made it down to check out any of the acts or just hang around and wander the food trucks, there is still plenty of time to do so.
For the Beacon’s Jazz Fest coverage, click here.
Jess Williams is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer and former intern.
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