Newspaper Page Text
December 7, 1978
Atlanta Jazzes Up
by George Espy
The Maroon Tiger
Page 11
QUIET HOUR
by David Morrow
On Friday’s at 6:00 p.m. there is a place you can
go and listen to excellent organ playing and reflect
on the week that has just ended. That place is Spel-
man’s Sister’s Chapel and the program is called
Quiet Hour.
The program was started in 1968, shortly after
the installation of Holtkemp organ in Sister’s
Chapel, by Dr. Joyce Johnson. Dr. Johnson is a
Professor of Music at Spelman College, teaching
piano theory and organ. As the college’s organist
she is known for her organ playing both as a soloist
and as an accompanist for the college’s many pub
lic functions.
Quiet Hour was initiated for several reasons.
First, it provides students the opportunity to hear
the organ after its installation. Secondly, it enables
students to become acquainted with organ litera
ture of great masters. Lastly, it provides what could
be a type of religious experience—the opportunity
to reflect, meditate and pray.
Each week Dr. Johnson programs music of con
cert reperatoire and music that lends itself to medi
tation. Periodically she will include her own
improvisations on spirituals, hymns and folk tunes.
She accepts requests from students and repeats
works that they especially enjoy. The program is
always concluded with the hymn “Now the Day Is
Over.”
Students from all colleges are invited to attend.
So, after the end of a hard week, take time out and
relax, meditate, and enjoy the excellent organ play
ing of Dr. Joyce Johnson at Quiet Hour. It is a
beautiful experience you don’t want to miss.
It was Friday, September 22,
and the night of that supposed
cool, but positively expensive
event called the Fly Affair. Since I
and my pocket did not feel cool
enough to afford the three or four
dollars the Que Dogs of Omega
were asking to attend their fabu
lous bash, the Jazz Powerhouse II
Session of Atlanta’s first free Jazz
Festival, began that precious wee
kend I had longed for.
The Festival was presented from
September 21 through the 24 at the
Atlanta Civic Center, with no
charge to the public. Powerhouse
II, the Friday evening performance
featured Lifeforce, Raul De Souza,
Bobby Lyle, Gary Bartz and Cal
dera. When I arrived, Raul De
Souza had taken the stage, so I had
to use my imagination with
Lifeforce.
Raul De Souza is a Latin-jazz
trombonist, whose disco oriented
rhythms smashed a top 40 hit
called “Sweet Lucy.” Although
most of the numbers he performed
were unknown to all but the Raul
De Souza disciples, he won the
hearts of the audience, which was a
little small for a free concert.
Most of the numbers he per
formed were the slow romantic
type, mellowed down with soft
trombone and keyboard solos.
Occasionally though De Souza
would rip into one of his blazing
heavy percussion salsas. These
included the explosive beat of
drums and congas as well as a solid
line of support from the bass and
lead guitar. The two highlights of
De Souza’s performance were his
live rendition of “Sweet Lucy” and
an instrumental version of the
Emotion’s “Don’t Ask My
Neighbor.”
Next was Bobby Lyle, an excit
ing, but relatively unknown jazz
fussion key board player. The most
noticeable thing about his perfor
mance was his versatility. Begin
ning with a basic mixture of
watered-down jazz and disco, Lyle
moved through jazz and ragtime,
finally touching base with the
blues. He sang during one of the
blues numbers and in so doing, dis
played a deeper, more soulful
Bobby Lyle than I have ever heard
before. I must admit, that despite
the lesser popularity of his musical
format, Bobby Lyle played one of
the two ore technically refined sets
of the evening.
After Lyle was Gary Bartz, the
saxophone player who blew to a
Civic Center half snoring fans. It
was not really his fault, completely.
It was just that Bobby Lyle’s rag
time and blues had a lullaby beat to
the ears of the audience present at
the Civic Center that night and
Gary Bartz’s band just does not
include an alarm clock. He played
several cuts from his albums “Love
Affair” and a few from previous
albums. They were of the increas
ing popular progressive jazz style,
with all the top 40 rhythm and half
jazz variations. I am sure that the
audience would have really
enjoyed them had they been
awake.
There was one very interesting
number that Bartz performed. This
is his version of John Coltrane’s
“Giant Steps”, showed that despite
the basic content of his latest music
and live performances, Gary Bartz
is a true jazz saxophonist. “Giant
Steps” was played in the basic jazz
style, with double bass rhythm,
loads of cymbals and Mr. Bartz’s
saxophone leading the way. I
might add that this Gary Bartz’s set
was indeed a pleasurable awaken
ing for all the true, but slummering
jazz lovers in the audience that
evening.
And then came...Caldera, the
group everyone had been waiting
for. Well, everyone except the
nine-tenths of the audience that
had grown tied of waiting for Cal
dera and left during the break after
the Gary Bartz’s set. There is a well
known old saying, “Good things
come to those who wait.” I and
about 100 other Caldera fans
waited and were rewarded with a
very good thing, the thrill of watch
ing and hearing and feeling our
heroes, Caldera wind-up and
exploded with an earful of Latin-
jazz energy and magic.
They began appropriately
enough with “the Arousing,” an
exciting cut from their latest album
“Time and Chance,” that crescen
does a quiet timid synthesizer intro
into a hot frenzy of lead guitar
solos and buring percussion. Pro
ceeding quickly with the eyes and
ears of the audience locked in their
grasp, Caldera blasted an album or
so of very serious live music.
Most of their numbers had the
same style as “The Arousing”, a
quick, crashing, percussion driven
sound, full of subtle crescendoes
and surprise passages. Somehow
though they did not all sound the
same. For instance “Carnivalito,”
a number from Caldera’s “Sky
Islands” album was carried by a
native Latin flute and percussion
sound combined with rock guitar,
while “Passages” another one of
the several pieces done form their
latest album was powered by the
bass guitar, with rapid flashes of
Latin percussion, saxophone and
synthesizer.
It would be difficult to distin
guish one specific point in Calde
ra’s set as the climax since their
entire performance seemed to be
one massive climax. If pressed to
however, I would consider a two or
three cat medley near the end of
their appearance during which the
lead guitarist Jorge Struaz, per
haps the most prominent musician
of the group and saxophonist
Steve Travaglione rose high above
the scene with two extraordinarily
clear and beautiful solos. Almost
simultaneous chants of “Sky
Islands, Sky Islands,” the little cut
of Caldera’s second album rang
out from all areas of the audience.
Unfortunately, these chants were
not responded to with a live rendi
tion of “Sky Islands.” I am sure
however, that any Caldera fan still
present in the Civic Center at that
point was more than satisfied. I
also have a hunch that when Fly
Affair and free Jazz Festival time
rolls around next fall, a lot more
people will fly to the real jam.
Volunteer,
Georgia
1-800-181-4900
ft oM faqoti with a pk&M, caM.
We support
the youth culture.
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