Photo courtesy of Jason Willis
Orchestra performances, even jazz orchestra performances, perhaps don’t immediately bring to mind loosened ties, dancing, drinking and jamming out in hotel lobbies.But with the Columbus Jazz Orchestra, not only do audiences get to hear a more structured and rehearsed onstage performance, as expected, they also get a chance to dance and jam with the players after the show.
Looking for a way to extend the evening and keep the party going after its Friday night performances, the orchestra started putting on Friday night after-show jam sessions as a way to loosen up and play out the night with the audience.
“It’s just a wonderful opportunity for the audience members to see the musicians of the jazz orchestra in a different setting,” says Kimberlee Goodman, event planner and orchestra and production manager. “A lot of the guys (in the orchestra) really dress down; they’ll take of their suits or ties, or be in street clothes. … It’s a very different environment.”
Not only are the performers more casual during the jam sessions, the set they perform is much more low-key as well. While the formal performance onstage is structured and set in stone, at the after-party, the music is completely improvised.
Photo courtesy of Jason Willis
“(The performers) are able to share their individual personalities a little bit more,” Goodman says. “That way, every single musician is featured at some point as opposed to being … an entire orchestra as an entity.”
These post-performance jam sessions take place in the lobby of the Westin Hotel, which adjoins the Southern Theatre. The hotel keeps its bar and restaurant open late, so attendees can enjoy some food and drink as they watch the performers jam out.
“Very often, the guest artist will come in. So you’ve got these world-famous musicians that people have just seen on the formal stage, and then they go to the lobby and they could be three feet from them,” Goodman says. “They can take pictures, ask a question, and that’s the other big appeal.”
Jam sessions follow the Friday night performances of every show in the orchestra’s Swingin’ with the CJO concert series.
2018 Jam Sessions
- 100 Years of Buddy Rich & Dizzy Gillespie: Feb. 16
- New Orleans One Mo’ Time: March 16
- Legends of Rhythm & Blues: From Sam Cooke to Stevie Wonder & Beyond: April 27
Emily Real is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
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