L ft ES UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE OUR ONE HUNDREDAND MNETEENTH PROGRAM THE CLARINET FAMILY SUMMIT DICK JOHNSON& IOHN LAPORTA SPONSOREDBY THE DEPARTMENTOF MUSIC ANDTHENEWHAMPSHIRE LIBRARY OF TRADITIONAL IAZZ sPMMONDAY MAy 5,1997 STRAFFORDROOM MEMORIAL UNION BIIILDING DURHAM,NH THE ARTISTS CLARINET FAMILY SUMMIT - Dickfohnson & |ohn LaPorta having It is in the nature of the i:rzz idiom that along with the accomPlishmentsof ensembles stable personnel and renewable formats theie are these unique combinationsof compatible indivi&als assembledfor a singular time and place,lefting the extemPoraneouslusical.chips fall where they may. Audieices are thus ihe beneficiaries of interactions which, if not " necessarilyin the oncein a lifetime" cate8ory,arc at least vibrant examplesof the incandescent collective'spontaneity that has been fundimental to iazz excitementsince the very beginning. And when'two of the artists eachcan draw on more than five decadesof broadly basf,d9n exDerienceon the sameinstmment, the possibility for a truly memorableevent, unprecedented ani unpredictable,increases monumentally. Summits are "in" nowadays, as ar€ concePtsof family, so this is a Politicaly correct undertaking. Likewise, there is no questionthat Johnand Dick are fullyactredited summiteers. the .,famif, designationis more complex,involving a liberal mixture of personaf professional' and Traditional Jizz Seriesfamilies. The details: Gary is Dick's son; Gray is his son-inlaw; Marshall and Gray, despite their relative youth, have been Plalng together for almost two decades- on this seriesls early as 1982and many times subsequently;Tom goesback_ to the secondconcert of this series(Dec. 3, 1979),was a colleagueof ,ohn:s at Berkleefor severalyears, and has been a prime force in keeping the northem New England iazz lamily l"4thtty functional as wal recently recognizedby none other than Gov. Shaheen;fohnls and Dck's family relationshipscomes through their lovechild, the clarinet (no, they didn't Procreateit, but their playing makesit sound that way!) Dick Johnsonwas bom in Brockton,Mass. in 1925(and still lives there), played piano before moving on to clarinet and alto, and studied at the New England Conservatoryfor two years. He wai with Charlie Spivak and Buddy Morrow in the early 50s, then' based back in New England,he worked and recordedwith a number of grouPs,most notably s€veralcollaborations wiih Dave McKenna (another member of our extended family, having given the very first concert in this series); a bit later his own group, the Sriing Shift. becamehighly regarded' He also shares with John contactswith woody Herman and another member of our extended family, Herb Pomeroy. (we also must proudly note that he recorded with the UNH JazzBand in 19i6!) In 1983the iompletenessof Dick's musicianshipresulted in the onceconEoversialand voluble patriarch of the clarinet, the redoubtableArtie Shaw, selectinghim to lead his revived orchestra,with is imaginativerepertoire so silent sinc€the 195Os,a position he still holds. John LaPorta is without question one of the most accomplished and respected performer/composer/educatorsin the entire jazz world. A Philadelphianbom in 192Ohis full list of "crediB" would require a multi-page supplement. Here is a capsulzedversion; two degees from Manhattan Schoolof Music; Private study with classicalcomPosers Ernest Toch and Alexei Haieff, and lazz artist Lennie Tristano; performancesunder mnductors hoPold T T l\ (ft'R I OIfr,{IAP ORTA - clarinet DICKIOHNSON- clarinet GARY/OI{NSON - ilrums GRAYS;{RGENT - guitar MARSHALLWOOD-bass TOM GALLANT - piano Stokowski, Leonard Bemstein, and Gunther Schuller; recordings with Woody Herman (induding Shavinsky's Ebony Concerto),Charlie Parker,Lester Young Charlie Mingus, Dizry Gillespie,Buddy Rich, etc., etc., etc.; 30+years on the Berkleefaculty, and 25+vtdth the National Stageband Camps(Stan Kenton); author of numerouseducatioml texts. Johnis secondto none in his passionate advocacy of combining traditional musical discipline with creative imagination,always with integrity. This serieshas been blessedwith an abundanceof superbclarinetists of varying persuasions- for example,Bob Wilber (another Tristanopupil, if of a differ€nt orientation),Peanuts Hucko, Kenny Davem, Billy Noviclg Jerry Fuller, and Lee Childs (with whom Gary performed here). And by somestrange twist of fate (otherwis€known as scheduling)the final concertsof our last two seasonsfeatured Ken Peplowski in 1995 and Buddy DeFrancoin 1996. Now, two independentgiants on the sameprogram; come to think of it, this will be a "oncein a lifttime" event, Taperecottlzrs atd camens arc not ?ennitted dlt ,o contrucrualanugemetts. Your coopnt;on is reqyesteil. THE SERIES The UNH Traditional Jazz Series began in 1979. It promotes the eni)yment and understanding of the art tlEough concertsfeaturing musiciansof regional, national, and international prominence. The program representsa unique endeavorto expand interest and honor outstandingtalent and achievement. Musicians wishing to do so are encouragedto offer their recordingsfor sale or mail order durint intermission;a brief announcementmay be made. The sponrcrshave no financial interest in such salesbeyond offering a courtesyservice to the artistsand the public. ProgramNotes - PaulVerrefte Production - David Seiler TI{E SCHEDULE September16 FrankWess Octet with CarolSioane fohnson Theatre,Paul CreativeArts Center) October21 BennyWaters with Howard Alden and the Tom GallantTrio December2 BillyNovick's Shadesof Swing (note change) (JohnsonTheatre, Paul CreativeArts Center) February10 Classicfaz" Epochs:jelly Roll andW.C. fim Fryer and feff Barnhart Marchlo ;:ffiJ"Ht#flic,"",iu"a,tscenter) April 14 Bucky Pizzarelli Trio May 5 Clarinet Family Summit ]ohn LaPortaand Dick |ohnson (Concerti in Strafford Roon of the Memorial Union Buildin6 exception noted).