About this piece:

“Pathways” was written for the West Central Missouri Music Educators Association and C. Grant Maledy, Jazz Vice President, to be performed by the 2015-16 All District Jazz Band. The title of the piece sheds some light on the creative genesis behind it: as musicians, students, and teachers, we’re all traveling on different journeys towards various life goals and objectives. Along these different “pathways” we encounter colleagues, friends, teachers and other mentors who help shape us into who we ultimately become. Most importantly, as we move along our own pathway we have great potential for positive impact on others around us who are on various stages of their own exploration. This piece is about reminding us to acknowledge those who we admire and to be that person for others around us — especially in a musical context.

Performance notes:

Probably the most peculiar thing about this piece is the style. It seems to me that there aren’t a lot of ~grade 3 published works with a straight 8th note feel that don’t fall directly into a Latin category. This piece features a style made popular in the 70s on recordings on the ECM record label. While it is somewhat related to Latin, it’s a more open, loose and spacey approach to straight 8th playing.

Wind players should work to smooth out the angular phrases and attack more aggressively when asked, but always remember the overall concept aims for space and color over rowdy big band playing.

Rhythm section players would do well to listen to examples of playing in this style, which will present a variety of options and possibilities. To make a painfully short list of players to listen to: John Abercrombie (guitar), Keith Jarrett (piano), Miroslav Vitous (bass), and Jack DeJohnette (drums). Once some general musical concepts are digested and experienced, these can be molded together to form a cohesive rhythm section for the ensemble performance.

I hope this piece presents a new set of musical sounds for high school players who are used to doing a swing, funk, ballad or Latin tune!