The Re(w)rite of Spring innova 824 Composed by Igor Stravinsky Arranged and orchestrated for big band by Darryl Brenzel Part One Adoration of the Earth 1 Introduction (4:17) Pat Shook, tenor sax 2 Dances of the Young Girls (6:04) Steve Lesche, guitar; Jeff Adams, trombone 3 Ritual of Abduction (5:00) Michael Johnston, flugelhorn 4 Spring Rounds (6:44) Andrew Layton, soprano sax 5 Ritual of the Rival Tribes (6:31) Paul White, bari sax 6 Procession of the Sage (4:05) Timothy Young, piano 7 The Sage (3:00) Jeff Lopez, bass 8 Dance of the Earth (3:56) Brad Danho, tenor sax Part Two The Sacrifice 9 Introduction (4:22) Michael Johnston, flugelhorn 10 Mystic Circle of the Young Girls (5:43) Steve Lesche, guitar 11 Glorification of the Chosen One (5:30) Josh Fox, alto sax 12 Michael Bravin, trombone 13 Evocation of the Ancestors (3:53) Pat Shook, tenor sax 14 Ritual Action of the Ancestors (7:53) Michael Johnston, flugelhorn 15 Sacrificial Dance (The Chosen One) (7:56) Darryl Brenzel, alto sax Total Time (1:14:54) Recorded live at Metro Gallery • Baltimore, Maryland World Premiere, May 12, 2010 May 12, 2010, Baltimore’s Metro Gallery, approximately 8:50 p.m. We are near the end of the premiere performance of The Re-(w)rite of Spring and there isn’t a riot to be seen anywhere. No signs of upheaval. Not the slightest bit of discontent. No yelling. No cat calls. No angry or disappointed faces. As a matter of fact, listeners are leaning forward on their seats paying rapt attention to the music, giving more of their focus to the music than jazz musicians are generally accustomed to in such a setting. Surely this cannot be a good sign. I mean, good old Igor had quite the melee on his hands when he premiered the original “Rite of Spring” and I haven’t even raised an eyebrow. Perhaps there is consolation in the fact that there was a severely violent storm that came through during the hours leading up to the show. Maybe I have at least upset the so-called “gods”. But the listeners, not so much. Let’s backtrack just a bit to the fall of 2008. Brian Sacawa, the curator of Baltimore’s Mobtown Modern music series approached me about an idea he had. He wanted to know if I would be interested in doing a jazz version of Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”. It is one of his favorite works and he thought it would translate well into jazz. Of course, being the glutton for punishment that I am, I said yes immediately. Hey, it sounded like a good idea to me. We spoke briefly about instrumentation and how large of an ensemble to use and he pretty much left that up to me. So, having written a large number of compositions and arrangements for big band/jazz orchestra and being a big fan of the possibilities of that medium, I decided to set about writing for that traditional jazz ensemble that continues to evolve and create new and exciting jazz music. Now to go home and pull Rite off my shelves of CDs and take a listen. My first thought? Uh-oh, I’m in big trouble. How in the world am I going to figure this all out and turn it into a work for big band. Especially if I both want it to sound true to the original and sound like jazz? This is going to be much harder than I imagined it would. But I comforted myself with the thought that once I go and get the score it will all make sense and fall into place. No problem. So, out I go around December that year to get the score. My next thought? I’m still in big trouble. I’m looking at this score and can’t even figure out what some of these instruments are. And the first time I try to listen and follow along I get lost. Perhaps I should have at least purchased a score that had the instruments listed in English. Anyway, this thing looks impossibly complicated. Look at these rhythms and time changes. How am I going to make this swing? And chords. Where are the chord symbols. Oh yeah, this isn’t jazz. But as I look at a “voicing” top to bottom I can’t begin to figure out how I might express this as a chord symbol for a piano player or guitarist. Time to go stick my head in the sand. Fast forward to March of 2009. I see Brian Sacawa at a gathering during that month. Of course we talk about the project, forcing me to now take my head out of the sand for a bit. I mentioned, through the grit in my teeth, that I had the score and had been listening and had ideas floating around in my head. He said it was on the schedule for the 2009-10 season. Sure, no problem. Now, where is that sand again? It’s now May and I take a look a look at the Mobtown Modern website. Sure enough, there it is, listed as a concert entitled The Rite Of Swing. I didn’t like the use of the word swing that much. A little too much baggage. It may lead people to expect a Basie style rendering. Or even cornier, a Glenn Miller style approach. But those thoughts are just side-stepping the issue at hand. I haven’t committed a single note to paper yet. I had better get my butt in gear and start writing. July 2009. The pen finally begins to go to paper. Well, actually, I begin inputting notes into the computer. And for the next nine months I write and write and write. Some parts come together relatively easily. Others are more complicated and take more time and effort to re-orchestrate and mold into big band jazz. My score that I purchased is now covered with yellow high lighter marks, cryptic notes of all kinds and many new bar lines drawn in to re-organize the music. During that time I also have many other projects to complete, teaching to do at a university, lessons to give, gigs to play, etc… That’s also the winter of Snowmageddon here on the east coast. Maybe that’s the “gods” again. Anyway, in April of 2010 I finally come forth from my man cave with the finished product. One month before it is to premiere. Cutting it a little close, aren’t we? So, with the help of some of the most fabulous musicians in the Baltimore/DC area (who are also very good friends) I get some rehearsals in and do some serious praying. The rest, as they say, is history. What you have in your hand is a live recording of the premiere performance of The Re-(w)rite of Spring. No multiple retakes. No massive editing or overdubs. Simply what the musicians put forth that night. Perhaps this won’t be remembered as being as earth shattering as the original, but I’m pretty darned pleased with it and am confident that you will be, too. CREDITS Producer: Darryl Brenzel Co-producer: Mack McLaughlin Live recording engineer: Mack McLaughlin (mackaudio.biz) Mix engineer: Mack McLaughlin Mastering: Bill Wolf, Wolf Productions (wolfproductionsinc.com) CD Layout and design: Scott C. Vincent Live Performance Photos: Robert McIver (robmciverphoto.com) Innova Director: Philip Blackburn Operations Manager: Chris Campbell Innova is supported by an endowment from the McKnight Foundation THANKS Mobtown Modern (mobtownmodern.com), Brian Sacawa, Mack McLaughlin, Bill Wolf, The US Army Jazz Ambassadors, Towson University, Metro Gallery, Meet The Composer, Jenny Brenzel, Jesus Christ MOBTOWN MODERN BIG BAND Darryl Brenzel: director and arranger Saxes: Andrew Layton;lead alto sax, soprano sax, clarinet, flute Josh Fox; alto sax, clarinet, flute Pat Shook; tenor sax, clarinet, flute Brad Danho; tenor sax, clarinet, flute Paul White; bari sax, bass clarinet, flute Trumpet & Flugelhorn Paul Stephens Paul Armstrong Jack Wengrosky Michael Johnston Trombones Michael Bravin Jeff Adams Michael Buckley Brian Keegan; bass bone Rhythm Section Steve Lesche; guitar Timothy Young; piano Jeff Lopez; acoustic bass, electric bass Todd Harrison; drums innova is the label of the American Composers Forum © Darryl Brenzel, 2012. All Rights Reserved. innova Recordings 332 Minnesota Street E-145 • St. Paul MN 55101 USA www.innova.mu www.darrylbrenzel.com