Legendary trumpeter Terell Stafford led the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia in a stunning holiday performance of The Harlem Nutcracker Dec. 3. Philadelphia saxophone tenor legends Bootsie Barnes, Larry McKenna and Jimmy Heath headlined the show.
JOP performed in the Perelman Theatre at the Kimmel Center. The first set of the show was the full Duke Ellington-Billy Strayhorn's The Harlem Nutcracker, a jazz classic of a theme and variation from Pyotr llyich Tchaikovsky's ballet score "Nutcracker Suite,” first recorded in 1960. The Harlem Nutcracker hails from New York, where the full version was first performed in 1996.
“It’s not done too often because it is such a challenging piece. The group that mainly does it is Lincoln Center, and they do it all the way in New York,” says Stafford.
The Huffington Post says JOP “completely cracks this nut completely open. 'Sugar Rum Cherry,' for instance, was more soused via a scorching, muted trumpets line and Sean Bailey's punch-drunk clarinet on 'Arabesque Cookie,' got us all intoxicated.”
The second set brought on the three tenors on Heath's composition "Our Town" in its debut performance. It was another example of Heath as a seasoned but vibrant big-band composer.
The emotional highlight came as Heath introduced his own composition "Mona," dedicated to his wife of 55 years, and at 88, Heath's clarity of tone and finish on his solo lines are a sight to hear. The tune itself is a atmospheric ballad that does not rest on a musical hook, but has a free flowing musicality indelible to Health's virtuosity.
The concert finale, chosen by Heath, was Charlie Parker's "Steeplechase," which not only showcased the three tenors who are so distinctive in their styles, but was handed off down the JOP sax line, representative of four generations of Philly musicians.
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