A night of jazz music commenced when sharply-dressed musicians walked on stage, eagerly awaited by parents and other audience members. With the first note, the audience was already captivated and would be for the next hour and a half.

The Music Collective held their spring concerts on April 6 and 7 in the Roberts-Dubbs Auditorium. Performing around 14 songs, including those by legends like Dave Brubeck, Wayne Shorter, Charles Mingus and Lou Reed, the Music Collective showed off their extensive repertoire.

The concert began with the piece Stroke, originally composed by Roy Hargrove, but arranged by Sammy Davies. Their rendition of the number held a perfect tempo and included a seamless piano solo.

Nick Anmahian arranged a medley of Take Five by Dave Brubeck and the Mission Impossible theme composed by Lalo Schifrin. Anmahian explained that the rare 5/4 time signature inspired the strange pairing. Beginning with the strings section’s Mission Impossible, the medley soon built up and proved to be perfectly blended with Take Five.

One of the highlights of the concert was the performance by the Music Collective “junior.” Bassist Reuben Ramos stole the show with his incredible solos that garnered a wave of applause from the audience. With ease, Ramos slid up and down the fingerboard of the bass and awed the crowd.

The Aerosmith tune Last Child was subject to a funky transformation by the Collective, with the horn section dominating. Their performance was the epitome of rock and roll and yet they were somehow able to incorporate jazz as well.

Both Collectives joined in for Adam’s Apple originally composed by Wayne Shorter, and arranged by band director Carolyn Castellano. The addition of congas to the number added a Latin jazz vibe, which made it differ somewhat from the original piece.

In an unexpected twist, the night ended with the Supertramp hit Goodbye Stranger.  Musicians offstage began dancing to the finale, perfectly ending the evening with a joyous celebration of the late ‘70s hit.
Another interesting aspect of the event was that the less experienced Music Collective “junior” were also given the opportunity to perform, and they proved talented. Each musician was given the opportunity to express themselves artistically in the Music Collective, while also adding the overall group’s performance. Throughout each piece, there were small conversations between instruments, that is to say that the musicians built off of each other. This group of talented musicians really illustrated the power of jazz music and the bonds that music helps one form.