Category: Music

I was first introduced to the haunting melody of the organ through the film Interstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan. Not only did I fall in love with the film itself, but with the resounding brilliance of the organ that shone throughout the soundtrack. If you haven’t seen the film, I would highly recommend it; the soundtrack is very moving.

The organ is a fascinating instrument and a very difficult one to master as it requires great precision, technique, and coordination. There are multiple keyboards or “manuals” stacked on top of one another that an organists hands must move gracefully and deftly between. And at the same time, the organists feet are dancing along an array of foot pedals at the bottom of the instrument. I can imagine that playing the organ can be quite a work out. Jeremy David Tarrant, however, made it seem as though playing the organ was as simple as breathing. Of course, I’d expect no less. Tarrant’s resume is an impressive one. He is a Lecturer in Organ at the University of Michigan as well as an active concert organist. Tarrant has performed across the United States as well as abroad and has been featured on several records. It was an absolute joy to watch him perform. I knew the organ was a versatile instrument, but the way that Tarrant played opened my eyes to the countless ways organs can produce sound. There would be moments in the performance when the pipes would breathe so softly over the audience, only to explode in a thunderous wave that vibrated the seats. There would be moments  of whining sound that came close to hurting my ears as well as velvety tones that could put a baby to sleep. The sound was so much more than just loud and quiet, soft or hard. There were even moments where it seemed as though the music was coming from somewhere far beyond the confines of the stage as if in another room. The concert was an amazing experience and the music was superb. But what was also superb was the skills of the page turner that assisted Tarrant as he played. You can see the gentleman in question featured in the picture to the left. I found that he was creating his own performance alongside Tarrant. The gentlemen would wait patiently at Tarrant’s side; a single hand creeping up when he saw his moment approaching and then, with a swift flick of the wrist, the page would be turned, allowing Tarrant to continue his performance unfettered by the constraints of paper. I noticed that the rate of enthusiasm with which the page was turned was equal to the mood of the performance at that time. For example, if the page needed to be turned in the middle of a fast moving, sound swollen section, the gentleman’s whole arm would be involved in the turn of the page. It was a fast, sharp, extended motion. And when the page needed to be turned during a more soft spoken section, his actions would be soft spoken as well. It was a part of the performance that I found unexpectedly fascinating and very appreciative. I admire your talent unnamed page turner gentleman.

What a night.

I can safely say that I’ve never enjoyed jazz music. The few times I’d been exposed to the genre, having stumbled across a jazz tune on Spotify or a video on Youtube, only served to cement my views on the subject: jazz was longwinded, jumbled, and didn’t make much sense. Let me now say that my past self was unequivocally wrong about jazz.

Stepping into the Blue Llama Jazz Club on a Saturday evening was like stepping into an alternate realm. The dark interior was dimly washed in hues of blue and orange light, highlighting the stage. Tiny pinpricks, akin to stars dotted the ceiling and each table had a single candle flickering in a bronze cocoon, beckoning us to our seats…And then the food began.

Right now you’re probably thinking to yourself: “Food? Isn’t this blog  post supposed to be about the jazz show??”

Yes, it is about the jazz show, but that will come in good time, because this show came with a meal, and by meal, I mean a seven course tasting menu sent from heaven. I, having the palette of a five year old child, had never imagined food could have so many flavors or textures. There wasn’t a single dish that wasn’t impeccably plated and served to perfection. As soon as we finished one dish, another would magically appear in front of us. I couldn’t understand half the words the server used to describe the delectable foodstuffs, but I was too focused on trying to keep from salivating to care much. I’ve attached some pictures of the meal for your enjoyment. The frozen grapes featured on the charcuterie board were a particular favorite of mine. We consumed a total of five tasting courses before the show began. At this point, I’d been enjoying the food so much that I couldn’t have believed that the night could become any more magical.

But then the band began to play. And Kurt Elling opened his mouth. And it was beautiful. And it was Jazz. There was this energy that was so potent at times that you could feel it raising the hair on the back of your neck. It wove its way through the crowd and up onto the stage, bouncing off each performer as they gifted their souls away to the river of sound powering into the room. I could feel the beat of the drum in my chest and the whine of the sax shivering down my spine.  You could see that they weren’t performing for us. Yes they were up on stage, yes we’d paid to see them, but they weren’t performing so much as giving in to the passion of the music.

I have never liked jazz music.

But, what a night. How could I not love Jazz music?