Tuesday, May 29th - 10:00 pm

The Blue Wall Café was a buzz with excitement as the first jazz sounds of another conference were about to be heard. Greg Gisbert, trumpet, was joined by Jeff Holmes on piano, bassist Chip Jackson, and Steve Johns on drums for a stellar night of jazz. The large crowd and club-like atmosphere made for the perfect atmosphere to catch late night jazz; everyone enjoyed good food and brew along with the music.

The Berklee-trained, Denver native now calls New York home where he is a frequent performer with of many of the top bands and recording artists in the industry. He has three recordings as a leader on the Criss Cross label which included such notable sidemen as Billy Drummond, Chris Potter, and Gregory Hutchinson.

The session began with an up-tempo tune, One Finger Snap by Herbie Hancock showing off each member’s incredible talents in solo spots in addition to the soaring trumpeting of Gisbert. Joy Spring, the Clifford Brown classic, had a solid groove with Holmes on organ giving the piece a sound one doesn’t normally hear. A masterful display of trading fours with the drummer closed out the tune. A smoking treatment of Coltrane’s Lazybird allowed all to hear Gisbert truly in his element—an element that involved covering the entire range of the horn. A medley of two related tunes featured Horace Silver’s Peace with Blue Mitchell’s Blue Silver a bebop tune written to the same changes as Peace. Gisbert’s ballad playing was as impressive as his swinging style; we were also treated to some very nice solo space by pianist Holmes.

Jazz great, Carl Saunders then joined the group in another Clifford Brown piece, Sandu.We were doubly treated to a lesson in modern jazz by these two capping it all off by trading fours. Not to end this short set with only one piece, they also played Miles Davis’ Milestones. Energetic, virtuosic playing flew out of the trumpets on this fast, driving tune. It was a treat to witness these two complement each other so effortlessly.

Wayne Shorter’s Footprints demonstrated Gisbert’s fine jazz playing along with an equally impressive high range. A Night in Tunisia closed out the set with a display of tight rhythms, great solos from the entire group, phenomenal energy, and high-flying trumpet work. This was a great way to cap the first night of the ITG conference!