Recording Artist Don Baldini conducts KSC Jazz Ensemble performance
Dylan Morrill
Equinox Staff
Don Baldini has led an interesting life. He has been a professional musician in L.A., toured with Frank Sinatra, appeared for 13 years with The Tonight Show orchestra, and recorded music for major motion pictures such as “The Little Mermaid,” “St. Elsewhere,” and for the entertainment venues of Epcot and Disneyworld.
He now can be seen conducting the Jazz Ensemble at Keene State College as an artist in residence.
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Baldini conducted an impressive Keene State Jazz Ensemble in a biannual recital, which occurred in the main theatre of the Redfern Arts Center on Thursday night.
The Keene State College Jazz Ensemble is mostly comprised of students, with a few professors. They performed a total of 16 songs in a two-hour show with a brief intermission.
When the curtain rose, the packed house of around 500 people erupted into applause, as Baldini immediately led the two dozen or so members of the Keene State Jazz Ensemble in a classic rendition of “Sister Saddie.”
The tune started off with the impressive and energetic saxophone section which eventually went on to carry the entire tune.
Interestingly, the saxophone section is made up of almost entirely freshmen.
At the end of “Sister Saddie,” the ensemble went right into the next song in the set, a rendition of “Sweet Georgia Brown.”
The rendition had an upbeat energy, similar to “Sister Saddie,” which excited the theatre and got the crowd ready for the third song, “Honeysuckle Rose.”
This song was one of the many highlights. The vocal solo in “Honeysuckle Rose,” performed by Amy St. Louis, blew everyone away.
Her voice had a distinctly jazz feel to it, which accompanied the ensemble’s rendition perfectly.
A few audience members stood up in applause after the song.
Thirteen songs then followed, each with its own individual feel.
The most interesting part of the recital was the stories that Baldini would tell in-between songs.
When a song reminded him of an event in his past, he would break out into short, unbelievable stories of his past which involved some of the most prolific people in the music industry.
Before the ensemble performed a rendition of Don Sebesky’s “Big Mama Cass,” Baldini told a wildly entertaining story of how Big Mama Cass (Cass Elliot), of the Mamas and the Papas, needed a place to stay for a few nights early in her career when she was touring with a folk group called the Big Three.
As an offer of kindness, Baldini said he let the Big Three stay at a large house he was “house sitting” for a friend who was out of town.
During the brief time the Big Three was staying at the house, a neighbor knocked on the door during one particularly sunny afternoon and said, “There is large woman on your roof and it looks like she is rubbing oil on herself.”
Big Mama Cass was sunbathing on Baldini’s roof.
Another story involved a musician in Frank Sinatra’s ensemble who kept giving Baldini musical instruments as perpetual collateral for $500 Baldini loaned him.
Baldini never got the $500 back, but he got a Brazilian guitar and another instrument to boot.
Judging by the way Baldini told the stories, they were not out of the ordinary for him. It seemed as if the sheer awesomeness of his stories did not affect him, as if his entire life is this astonishing.
However, Baldini kept the stories very short. He knew that the true stars were the members of the ensemble.
All the songs performed during the two-hour show were well-known jazz hits in days past. Peter Lique-Naitove, whose son is a freshman at Keene State College, said he was impressed with the song selection.
“These songs were all really popular in the ‘60s.They’re all recognizable tunes that you can tap your feet to.”
That was the goal; according to the Keene State College website the concert was all about “songs that have been associated with jazz arrangers through the years.”
Tunes like “Georgia,” “Mack the Knife,” “Hello Dolly,” “Maria,” and “Filthy McNasty” to name a few.
The recital also included a love song called “Ellyn,” which was written by Baldini about his wife. He said it was the only song that he had ever written.
Some of the most memorable moments were two remarkable trumpet performances by Donald Clough, two amazing vocal solos by Amy St. Louis, a near identical cover of Frank Sinatra’s “Goody Goody” by David Parker, and tons of individual solos which consisted of a band member sneakily rising to his or her feet and playing sensational solo performances.
The ensemble closed the show with an enthusiastic performance of “Gonna Fly Now (Theme from Rocky).”
The packed audience clapped along, and when the last note was played the audience gave the ensemble a loud standing ovation.
When asked what his goal was for the concert, Baldini said he “wanted the students to have a good time” and to play “music that was within their grasp but still challenging.”
He succeeded in doing this, as well as giving this reporter, and probably many other audience members, a new appreciation for jazz.
Dylan Morris can be contacted at dmorrill1@ksc.mailcruiser.com