A Conductor’s and Performer’s Guide to Steven Bryant’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone - Chester Jenkins

103 chops. Or what have is not really a love, there’s not a real interest. They’ve not been playing it since they were kids…which is not being critical of anyone else, it’s just taking advantage. Well, Steven came to understand Joe. My son, who will be 17 next week, is named after Duke Ellington LULLOFF: Jacob GOURWITZ: Jacob Ellington Gourwitz. So I love jazz. And I love watching Joe perform jazz. Play jazz whether it’s formally or informally, whatever. I could never ask, it’s not my responsibility. I’m just part of the team, right? I had no idea there would be so much jazz involvement, so much improvisation. Which to me, is like, the greatest. To see things that I actually have a real interest in, being represented in this piece, but I never discussed it with Steven. Right? It wouldn’t be appropriate. But Joe, and Steven, the more they go to know each other. Steven’s brilliant in a lots of ways, but he understood, if he was a painter, it would, OK here’s the pallet that I have. OK, well, here’s Joe. Joe can hear and play anything. I would think to the composer that would be, ‘Wow, I have a clean slate and I can go wherever I want. I can’t write only this style because that’s what this player can do. I can do what I as a composer want to do.’ So they took real advantage, I think, of that. And I think it’s great. And Joe’s had some of his students transcribe some of the pieces, so they can be played by someone who’s not as adept at jazz and it doesn’t leave out other great players who aren’t as comfortable and are just like, ‘Ah, I just don’t want to go there.’ LULLOFF: Well, I used it as a teaching tool. And I paid my students to do this. I contracted them outside of their work. Although I did use for one or two students it was an honors option, they wanted to pursue. But I felt that the work was put in was above the honors option. This doesn’t have to be published, but, it’s not against any rules at the University. But I just felt as a person, these kids don’t have any money. Right? They don’t JENKINS: Yeah LULLOFF: And so Grace Gelpi, from your home town. I don’t know if you know Grace, but she played on the masterclass with Debra Richtmeyer. And her father’s a professor at Ohio State in Math I think it is? They live down by the University there. Grace transcribed, her name is in the final score. You can take a picture of the signed, autographed copy, it’s in my satchel case. And Julian Velasco, who was in the competition here, great jazz player. And Joseph Herbst, who’s not here. He didn’t make the trip. He’s now a jazz studies major, but a very dear student of mine and finished up with saxophone. He did three years with me of saxophone, now he’s choosing to finish up with jazz. I needed people in the jazz area to transcribe the jazz. And then I proofed it all (the jazz parts here). I could have done the transcription myself, but for many reasons, one I was very busy and two I would start overthinking things. I wanted fresh ears. I also