MOJO, the Missouri Jazz Orchestra, competes with many musical groups for the title of best-kept secret in town, even as it packs Marty's Sports Bar every first and third Tuesday.
The music is simply astonishing, for these reasons:
The music is simply astonishing, for these reasons:
- A professional crew comprised of great players with long resumés and huge talent.
- Commitment to the mid- to late-Basie bands and the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis institution that sprung from them.
- Most noticeably, great soloists, such as the galvanic tenorist Brent Vaughan and Scott Harris on trumpet in the embedded video above.
- Most distinctively, original writing and arranging by Vaughan and Harris. The video embedded above is Harris' "Waiting for Spring."
I hear this saying a lot: "Support local bands — they're often just as good as the national acts you follow." It definitely applies to MOJO. Plus it's a great kick in the pants to walk into a sports bar and get a 16-piece blast of sound.
1 comment:
Thanks so much for your support of MOJO and live Jazz in Springfield, Ed!
Brent Vaughan
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