Classical Concert Review Essay

Prior to this, I have never attended a classical concert. I actually had no clue as to what to expect because I could not find a review for UH concerts. The Jazz Orchestra performed in the Moores Opera House on a stage setting similar to that of my middle school band. The band instruments were tiered on the risers while the other performers were simply beside the risers. There were a few noticeable differences such as, the microphones set in the center for soloists, and a marker hanging from above to mark the center of the stage. The instruments used in the jazz concert were primarily those from the brass and woodwind family—4 trumpets (brass), 5 trombones (brass), and 5 saxophones (woodwind)—along with members from the string family (Double Bass and Electric Guitar) and percussion family (Piano and 7-piece Drums). The conductor only walked into the center of the stage to signal the major changes in the movement, i.e. the crescendos and decrescendos, when to abruptly cut off, etc. From offstage, I could see that the main form of communication between the conductor and the performers were the conductor’s nods (for soloists) and hand gestures for volume, speed, and pauses. The conductor would also

He was one of the leading musicians during the 1950’s jazz transitional period where he played with Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Bud Powell, Art Tatum, and Duke Ellington. Mingus performed during the Civil Rights Movement for desegregation and as a result, many of his songs reflect his anger and repulsion towards racism. For example, the song “Fables of Faubus”, was written in response to when the Governor or Arkansas (Orval Faubus) ordered the National Guard to prevent the integration of nine African-American teenagers into Little Rock Central High School in 1957—a result of Eisenhower’s slow enforcement of the Supreme Court’s decision from Brown vs Board of