The Los Medanos College jazz band performed at their semesterly concert on Wednesday, May 7, in the Pittsburg Campus Recital Hall. This theme was “Colors of Summer,” and they played a total of 12 songs, including an encore.
In between songs, Jazz Band Director and Music and Recording Arts Department Chair Kyle Chuah praised the band for their talents.
“It takes a certain amount of skill, a certain amount of musicianship to play the changes around the chords, the harmony, and all that,” Chuah said.
Chuah joined the band to play congas when they performed the song “Equinox” by John Coltrane.
While the band did not find a permanent drummer until almost halfway through the semester, former jazz student Eduardo Rosales joined their weekly rehearsals and performed at the concert.
“At first glance, there was pressure because it was actually my first time playing jazz/playing with [the] concert jazz band at school, so there were some jazz standards that I didn’t really know,” Rosales said about joining the band. “So I was playing catch-up, especially on the drums.”
Student Jin Christian Rimando, who played bassoon throughout the show, conducted the last song the band prepared, “We Are Confidence Man” by composer Hidehiro Kawai.
Rosales said this was the most difficult song for him to play, adding, “I was having a hard time at first, but I was able to make it my own version.”
Chuah emphasized how jazz is “quite an impactful form” in American art.
“Jazz is really an American art form,” Chuah said. “If you look at what is American music, there’s quite a lot, but jazz is definitely one of the more respected ones, and it definitely takes a lot of skill to perform.”
Tenor saxophonist Omar Cabada has played the instrument for eight years, but this is his first semester playing in the LMC jazz band, and he was satisfied with the turnout of the show.
“I felt like it turned out amazing, I felt like a lot of things went our way and we sounded really good, and I hope it sounded like that for the audience,” Cabada said. “We did rehearse a lot and we put in a lot of effort.”
To conclude the show, Chuah thanked various people, including Ricky Montejo, a recording arts student who was the lead engineer for the show’s live sound.
Montejo, who is graduating this semester, said that he has worked on over a dozen concerts at LMC.
“My job is to amplify [the band] a little bit more so that people in the far back can hear them,” Montejo said, explaining his role. “My job is also to balance them so they all sound good for when they’re doing their solos.”
He was glad to see everyone who came out to support the show. He hopes people will continue to support the music and recording arts departments.
“There’s a lot of great people here that need more love and that can show their skills,” Montejo said.
To play in the jazz band, students must enroll in the class MUSIC-074 Jazz Studio. If you want any more information regarding the music or recording arts departments, you can contact Music Laboratory Coordinator Aaron Nakaji at [email protected].
