A Night of Melody, Musicianship and a Full House

Tonight (Saturday June 19), The Buttonwood Tree was packed to overflowing for 2 sets of jazz....yes, jazz. I know The Buttonwood only seats around 50 but Anne-Marie had to turn people away.

The large crowd showed for several reasons.  1) - Noah Baerman, Middletown resident and Jazz Ensemble Director at Wesleyan was on the bill.  2) - Owen McNally of The Hartford Courant wrote a laudatory essay about the headliner, Icelandic pianist/composer Sunna Gunnlaugs and her Quartet, and that caused Hartford-area jazz fans to sit up and notice. 

Instead of a review, let me get to the high points.  I've heard Noah play numerous times over the past 12 or 13 years but rarely better.  He's been dealing with the effects of Ehler-Danlos Syndrome for the better part of 2 decades - it's a connective tissue disorder that could, potentially, permanently end his ability to play piano.  Well, he must be feeling stronger because his playing tonight was full of fire, shading, powerful long lines that covered the keyboard.  The Buttonwood piano sounds great these days and so does Noah.

He played with Ms. Gunnlaugs' rhythm section, bassist Dan Fabricatore and her husband, drummer Scott McLemore. The bassist, a substitute for Eivind Opsvik, had a lovely, full, tone and played in a very melodic style - many bassists are time-keepers but Fabricatore, a friend of Noah's since their undergraduate years at Rutgers, does much more than that. All the tunes they played were ones that Baerman had composed in his sophomore year and had played some of them (in those days) with the bassist. I heard plenty of drummers in the Buttonwood but none played the room as well as McLemore.  It's easy for percussionists to be too loud in the intimate performance space yet McLemore, at times, was whisper-soft. Not content to just keep the beat, he created percussive backdrops, played melodic figures, used brushes many times hroughout the evening.

Ms. Gunnlaugs is also a fine musicians, with influences ranging from Icelandic folk tunes to Bill Evans to Keith Jarrett's European Quartet (of the 1970s and 80s.) Her melodies and harmonic sensibilities make the listener pay attention - she creates unique worlds within her songs.  The other lead voice in the Quartet is alto saxophonist Loren Stillman who digs deeply into the material and weaves solos of rapid-fire notes blended with keening sounds and, often, a light touch. The music was quite involved but never heavy-handed. 

Full house, fine music, good company - a large part of the success of this performance is that one can interact with the musicians, especially during the break or after the show.  They appreciate it, knowing that people are willing to take the time to attend the show and to talk with them.

In the midst of a crazy week, tonight's show at The Buttonwood was a wonderful diversion.  Go to www.buttonwood.org, check the schedule and take part in the arts in Middletown.