Marsalis Brasilianos
In my past life, I played the saxophone. (My hair is like that in the picture because it was the day after homecoming. Gotta love the spiral curls and french roll, but there is no excuse for the big glasses lol).
I did not start playing the sax until the ninth grade, but I practiced (by my own decision) at least two hours every day and took private lessons to get me up to par with the other players. After a year or so, I was right on point with the others, even sitting second chair. It was at this time that I was first introduced to, and fell in love with, Branford Marsalis.
Branford Marsalis (saxophone) is the eldest of the musical Marsalis family, which includes father Ellis (piano), and brothers Wynton (trumpet), Delfeayo (trombone), and Jason (percussion).
The first recording that I ever heard of was Branford Marsalis’ was “Romances for Saxophone,” which was my first taste of professional, classical saxophone. While it is not the absolute best classical album ever, it is a great album and was a pick me up album for me for many years. One of my favorite tracks from the album is Ravel’s “Vocalise,” which I think is just a beautiful song period. Marsalis’ performance of Debussy’s “Arabesques (2) for piano, L. 66 Arabesque No.1″ is still on my “Happy Album” playlist.
Arabesque No. 1 (Debussy)
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
So, Branford Marsalis was in the “D” for the second year in a row playing classical music! This is big since classical saxophone is sparse and Marsalis is primarily a jazz musician. Last year, I was able to see him perform with the DSO at the Classical Roots concert. This time, Marsalis performed with the Philarmonia Brasileira, honoring the music of Heitor Villa-Lobos. I am guessing that ticket sales were not going too well because they sent out cards offering two-for-one tickets. I took advantage of that deal and my father went, too.
You can see the set list from the Marsalis Brasilianos Program. They played two encores in addition to the tracks listed in the program. By far, as was the case with the Classical Roots Concert last year, the most enjoyable track to hear Marsalis play was Scaramouche Suite, Op. 165c: I. Vif. This is a fast track, hence vif, that you can hear below.
Scaramouche Suite, Op. 165c: I. Vif (Milhaud)
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
So, now that you have heard it, image seeing a person play this live. I takes skill and talent, and Marsalis nailed it. My only complaint is that when playing this movement, he stood off to the left side of the sage next to the piano. I was sitting on the left side, so I could barely see him. Even people sitting on the other side had to have had trouble seeing him. That was disappointing since this was the track that I was looking forward to seeing him play the most. What matters most, though, is the sound, I guess, and my ears were pleased as they have been at all of Marsalis’ performances that I have attended over the years. I look forward to his next visit!
Comments