C-U soaks up Bridgewater's talent
The evening was not a performance in a typical or expected
sense. The event was more of a homecoming, class reunion and get-together in the
Bridgewaters' extended living room. Cecil, a trumpeter, composer and arranger,
and Dee Dee, a vocalist and actress, launched their careers here in the late
1960s and early 1970s' saxophonist and composer Ron remains on the UI faculty.
Cecil and Dee Dee exchanged a great deal of friendly repartee and affectionate
humor on stage, which led to almost as much talking as music in the two-hour,
15-song celebration. Ron communicated solely thought his saxophone, standing
frozen like s statue, stage right.
The evening stumbled to life with a rather jagged rendition
of Ron Bridgewater's tribute to Cannonball Adderley, "Cannon's Samba." The
band-orchestra, the sound technicians and the soloists all strove to come up to
speed, which they did by the spot-on ending. Dee Dee Bridgewater entered for the
second number a bundle of nerves, which took a while to calm. After a false
start on "Undecided," which she had recorded on her CD tribute to Ella
Fitzgerald, she started finding her bearings with some impressive scatting.
While Dee Dee may lack the richness and range of Fitzgerald's voiced, she
certainly possesses the smarts and substance.
The greatest moment of virtuosity occurred during Ron
Bridgewater's solos in the performance of his tribute to John Coltrane, "Dear
Trane." His spellbinding technique showed how he could emulate without
imitating, unleashing all the sonic abilities of his instrument.
Dee Dee returned after intermission relaxed and ready so show
why she is internationally famous. She wrapped herself around Cecil's
arrangement of George Gershwin's "Lady Be Good," which proved only a warm-up for
the piece by Kurt Weill and Ogden Nash, "Speak Low," From the show "One Touch of
Venus." Cecil warmed to the occasion with a triumphant trumpet solo and then
they engaged in a captivating trumpet and vocal duet, one of the high points of
the evening.
The couple performed several of Cecil's unique arrangements
of Kurt Weill's music from their "This I new" CD. While it is safe to say it is
far from the way Weill envisioned his music, if he heard Cecil's arrangements
and Dee Dee's vocals, he would probably appreciate them for their intelligence
and sizzle. Their version of "Alabama Song" as a blues number was especially
intriguing , added by the Ron and Cecil sax and trumpet solos and interplay.
The performance of "Love and Harmony," an early composition
to by Cecil which Dee Dee set words when they were in love (as Dee Dee
revealed), proved a particularly poignant moment. They revived the song for this
concert, and even thought it is a work of young artists, it was delight.
Ron dedicated his "Never Too Young To Dream" to his daughter,
and it documented the depth of his melodic abilities. This is the kind of work
that easily becomes a standard. The trumpet solo complemented the sweetness of
the tune.
The concluding piece, "In the Open," written by Ron, featured
a number of first-rate solos from the jazz band, including trombone and vies.
The beauty of Cecil's arrangement was the supercharged horn section that came in
after each solo.
After a standing ovation, the orchestra left the stage,
leaving Dee Dee, Cecil and the band to improvise "September Song" by Weill and
Bertolt Brecht. They had not rehearsed the piece, yet the results concluded the
festivities on a perfect note.
