Court's in Session | Summertime
One of the things I find fascinating about Jazz is the inherent freedom to put your personal and collective "stamp" on a song. There is anticipation around crafting new interpretations and moods in songs that have been performed across the decades. As Jazz musicians, we have our unique way of playing our instruments/voices. In some regards, it's more about the way a song is played vs. what song is being played.
Summertime, composed by George Gershwin for the 1935 opera “Porgy and Bess,” has been covered by countless musicians. My approach to this time-honored ballad is a great example of several core tenets of Jazz – improvisation, spontaneity, active listening, and teamwork. We start at a slow tempo but with a different “feel” than a ballad, tempo change in the middle, and ending in a nod to the original score.
Here is our version of a Court’s In Session fan-favorite – Summertime.
“Jazz is beautiful, democratic music. It encourages musicians with very strong, and many times, very different points of view to work together as a team while, at the same time, giving them the space to express their individuality. It’s a very important art form and can be used as a model for different cultures to work together.”