Arts & Entertainment
Get Jazzed!
Three Jewish musicians bring their talents
to 29th annual Detroit International Jazz Festival.
Michael Bromberg
Suzanne Chessler
Special to the Jewish News
T
here's a Borscht Belt joke about
a Jewish woman who takes her
grandson to the beach. When a
big wave carries him off, she immediately
prays for the boy's safe return, promising
any personal sacrifice. As soon as the next
wave deposits the youngster on the sand,
the woman says, "He had a hat!"
That statement became the title for
keyboardist Jeff Lorber's recent Grammy-
nominated album, and tracks from He
Had a Hat could find a performance spot
during one of his Labor Day weekend
shows. He will be in town for the 29th
annual Detroit International Jazz Festival.
"When I was co-writing and produc-
ing the CD with Bobby Colomby (Blood,
Sweat and Tears), our shared Jewish sense
of humor came up, and it just seemed like
a catchy title that could put a fun spin on
the recording:' Lorber, 55, explains.
"The album actually can be pretty
eclectic and even serious. One track,
`Anthem for a New America; has an almost
classical, Aaron Copland-esque approach?'
Lorber, who grew up in Philadelphia,
fits right in with this year's festival theme:
"A Love Supreme: The Philly/Detroit
Summit." To be held Friday-Monday, Aug.
29-Sept. 1, along the Detroit riverfront, the
event has grown into the largest free jazz
festival in North America with more than
750,000 people attending concerts and
educational sessions.
Lorber appears 8:45-10 p.m. Sunday
with bassist Brian Bromberg and trum-
peter Randy Brecker and 8:15-9:45 p.m.
Monday with flutist Alexander Zonjic and
Jeff Lorber
Randy Brecker
the Philly-Detroit Smooth Connection,
both on the Chase Main Stage.
"I worked with Brian on his last album,
which was a live jam session in his studio;'
says Lorber, a California resident. "We
did jazz standards from the 1960s, such
as 'Cantaloupe Island' and 'Mercy, Mercy,
Mercy.' There's a lot of freedom when we
play because we go for the improvisations.
"I've worked with Alexander Zonjic on
many occasions, so he knows a lot of my
material. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to
do some new stuff and some of our old
favorites?'
With a long career of performing,
composing and producing, Lorber often
appears in Michigan. He soon will be tour-
ing to promote a new album, Heard That, a
September release with original blues and
R&B selections recorded during studio
jamming. His work also will be part of a
new CD made by Jewish saxophone player
Dave Koz.
of guys getting together and playing their
hearts out. The improvisation is straight-
ahead jazz like bebop, but the feel is much
more funky and groovy."
Because of scheduling conflicts,
Bromberg's Detroit concert could not
include all the musicians who were on the
recording, a high point in his career. The
bassist, who has worked with many great
artists, from Stan Getz to Michael Buble,
also can be heard on movie soundtracks.
"The others in the Detroit concert have
played with me a lot in the past couple of
years," says Bromberg, finishing a CD to be
released in Japan and starting work on his
next American recording.
"Everybody knows the music and gets
along. The personal element is extremely
important to me. When we have a good
time together as people, we bring that to
the stage for performances that become all
that much better!"
Playing With Bromberg
"Philadelphia International Records has
been a hit factory similar to Motown, but
it never was quite as big as Motown," says
Lorber, whose keyboard talents are part
of Downright Upright, the recording that
brought bassist Brian Bromberg his first
Grammy nomination and is at the core of
the Sunday concert.
"Downright Upright has some clas-
sic jazz songs that are done with lots of
energy and spirit:' explains the 53-year-
old Bromberg, who has enjoyed the spirit
of musical synagogue services near his
California home.
"It's half classic songs that jazz fans
really know with originals of mine that fit
into that genre. The recording was a bunch
Meet Randy Brecker
Brecker, who has toured with Bromberg
but was not on the recording, also will
be joining the Philly-Detroit Summit
3:45-4:45 p.m. Saturday on the Absopure
Waterfront Stage, where he will appear
with Christian McBride, Karriem Riggins,
Perry Hughes, Bootsie Barnes and Geri
Allen.
The trumpet player will discuss his
Philadelphia roots during a meet-the-art-
ist session at 1 p.m. Sunday in the Jazz
Talk Tent, where he also will recall the
work of his late brother, sax player Michael
Brecker.
"Both Detroit and Philadelphia have
spawned great jazz musicians," says
Grammy-winner Brecker, 63, who is
about to release a new recording, Randy
in Brazil, with south-of-the-border beats.
"The summit will be the first time this
aggregation as a whole will have gotten
together, so it will be a real spontaneous
jam session?'
Brecker, anchored in New York and also
associated with the work of legendary
music stars, has performed many times
in Israel and soon will be featured at the
Red Sea Jazz Festival. He recently had a
very moving experience in Poland, where
members of his family had been killed in
the Holocaust.
A Polish composer wrote and arranged
for a recording of "Tycocin," which recalls
the place where his ancestors lived.
Brecker was filmed walking around the
area that has a famous synagogue rebuilt
after World War II.
Less serious recent projects also have
taken Brecker out of the country. He's
mixing live recordings done in France
and Japan, where his music was played by
instrumentalists based in those countries.
"I've appeared at the Detroit festival two
or three times:' Brecker says. "It's a real
melting pot of different styles of music,
cultures and ethnicities, and I really like to
see that."
❑
For a roundup of more Labor Day weekend
festivals, see page B11
The free Detroit International Jazz
Festival runs Friday-Monday, Aug.
29-Sept. 1, along the riverfront in
downtown Detroit. For more informa-
tion and a complete schedule, call
(313) 447-1248 or go to
www.detroitjazzfest.com .
August 28 • 2008
B9