To celebrate his 70th birthday on June 19, President Vaclav Klaus of the Czech Republic hosted a jazz concert at the Prague Castle, the counterpart of the US White House. A respected economist, Klaus is a devoted and knowledgeable jazz listener who plays the piano. He has done much to bring attention to the contributions of Czech musicians. To the left, we see him in 2009 presenting the Golden Plaque of the President of the Republic to George Mraz, a Czech native living in the US who is one of the world’s most celebrated bassists.
Several years ago, Klaus initiated a regular series of jazz concerts at the Castle, with pianist Emil Viklický’s trio headlining. Viklický has played at several of the events since, mostly recently in May in one of the celebrations leading up to observance of the president’s birthday. It was a tribute to Miles Davis with Viklický, Czech baritone saxophonist Jaroslav Jakubovic, and three visiting Americans, trumpeter Jon Faddis, bassist Tom Barney and drummer Lenny White. They allude to the Gil Evans arrangement of “Summertime” for Davis’s Porgy and Bess album, with Jakubovic reprising the Evans orchestral obbligato behind Faddis and playing a solo that may have listeners wondering where he’s been hiding.
The nonagenarian pianist presented de Barros with every biographer’s hope, unrestricted access to his subject’s personal papers and nearly unrestricted access to her private thoughts. He made the most of it, turning exhaustive research and hundreds of hours of interviews into a true story with the sweep of a novel. From the early discovery of McPartland’s musical gift through her wartime service, her ecstatic and stormy marriage to Jimmy McPartland, her growth as a pianist, her deep affair with Joe Morello, and the radio show that made her a national figure, she has had a fascinating life. It makes a splendid read.
Mulligan’s Concert Jazz Band had three fewer musicians than most big jazz outfits. Its size permitted precision, flexibility and subtlety, yet the band had the power of sprung steel. In this concert from a half century ago, the CJB is as fresh as yesterday. Arrangements by Mulligan, Bob Brookmeyer, Al Cohn and Johnny Mandel set standards to which big band writers still aspire. Bassist Buddy Clark and drummer Mel Lewis inspired Mulligan, Brookmeyer, Conte Candoli, Gene Quill and Zoot Sims to some of the best soloing of their careers. This beautifully produced issue of the complete concert is a basic repertoire item.
Jimmy Rowles dubbed Mraz “Bounce.” Because he is a BAD Czech.