Rite of Summer Music Festival (8/20/22)

The Westerlies – Riley Mulherkar, Trumpet; Chloe Rowlands, Trumpet; Andy Clausen, Trombone; Willem de Koch, Trombone 

Andy Clausen: Robert Henry; Duke Ellington: Echoes of Harlem; Duke Ellington: Where’s the Music; Charles Ives: In The Mornin’; William Walker: Louisiana; Woody Guthrie: Two Good Men; John Prine: Way Back Then; Judie Sill: The Kiss; (Traditional, Arr. Golden Gate Quartet): Do Unto Others; (Traditional, Arr. Sam Amidon): Saro

Since there is a major scarcity of music for two trumpets and two trombones, a lot of the pieces were either arrangements of existing music or written specifically for the Westerlies. It made for a varied, interesting, and enjoyable concert. 

The first work was composed by one of the quartet members, Andy Clausen. It was jazzy but with a modern vibe. A second section was very modern but with a jazzy vibe. At one point I thought I heard a child crying. It was a trumpet. It seems the piece was written with Andy’s two-year-old nephew in mind, and the players were urged to improvise on a two-year-old’s reaction. It really worked well. The second piece had a stately opening, laying out the tune nicely, at times sounding like a chorale that gets sassy every once in a while. 

A pair of Duke Ellington pieces followed. Echoes of Harlem was definitely Harlem-tinged jazz with a trumpet soaring and almost wailing. Where’s the Music was in a slower tempo, chorale like and a bit bluesy. It was a nice change of pace. The Woody Guthrie was not a tune that I recognized, though I did get a sense of the folk era. 

Way Back Then was arranged for the Westerlies as a tribute to John Prine (a composer whose name I did not know) who died during the pandemic. It also had a bit of that folk era feel, and was mostly laid back and mellow. Indeed, a lovely tribute. The next piece, Louisiana, was based on shape note singing, a term I'm only vaguely familiar with. It was to be played in a walking tempo, but the group said they would (and did) play it more like a New York walking tempo. It was lively and upbeat, rather simplistic by nature, yet also enjoyable. 

The Kiss, by Judie Sill, began rather moodily, then went into a slightly more energetic and fuller section, before returning to moody. My notes for the piece that followed included that it was brisk, featuring trumpets—a jazzy spiritual? The happy birthday tune even made an appearance. After it was done, it was announced as Do Unto Others, a gospel tune. My guess of a jazzy spiritual was pretty darn close. 

The concert ended with an arrangement of Saro, an Old English folk ballad. It opened with a serene trumpet duet, staying serene even when all four players were in the mix. A middle section added some verve and drive before the piece wound down and faded out. 

This year’s Rite of Summer Music Festival concludes on Sept. 10, with a concert at 1pm, to be repeated at 3pm. It’s a lot of fun hearing music in an outdoor setting like Governors Island.

ConcertMeister