Almost There

(In memory of Paul Shaghoian) Part one of ' There'. (Commissioned in honor of Gil Evans by IAJE and the Herb Aplert Foundation and premiered by soloist Tim Ries with the Fresno Jazz Composers Orchestra at the 2005 IAJE Conference in Long Beach, CA.) After an ethereal opening over a pedal G. Be prepared to move through fast straight-8 and swing grooves in mixed meters with extended solo space for soprano saxophone, electric bass, and guitar. The piece climaxes with a heavy distorted electric guitar solo over a funky weather report/tribal tech inspired groove and closes with a richly orchestrated recap of the opeining over an angular harmonic ostinato in the bass. Woodwind doubles includes 2nd alto/flute, 1st tenor/soprano, 2nd tenor/clarinet, and bari sax/bass clarinet. Guitar part is written for both acoustic and electric, the percussion part features extensive passages for vibraphone. Difficult.