My second concert report will be about my time attending a jazz performance by the Shasta College Day Band, Shasta College Knight Band, and Vocal Jazz Ensemble. The concert happened on May 2nd and lasted about two hours, including intermission. They performed a variety of works ranging from Miles Davis to Dan Menza, that included improvisation, bombastic melodies, and vocal accompaniment. This was a fairly casual event, with many concert goers wearing their usual day wear. Also, I was surprised to see that the ushers let those who arrived late into the theater, even well into the sets. However casual this concert may seem, it was reminiscent of the times that I was performing at a school concert in high school, which only made the concert experience more genuine and from the community. This concert left me with feelings of pride for my school, and furthered my inspiration for performing music regardless of …show more content…
Ash Ortiz, the special guest singer for I Got Rhythm, brought the focus from the band to herself through the use of her vocal artistry and stage presence. Because the singer is at the forefront for this song, I couldn't help but identify some similarities that this performance shares with those from the Italian opera units from this course. Just as Bel Canto style operas utilize the orchestra combined the singers, so did the Knight Band in their accompaniment of Ms. Ortiz. Although there were times where the band took over and there was no singing, the band figuratively moved out of the way for the singer to be the star of the performance. This also shares similarities with Italian operas because of the priorities placed on the prima donna during, and after, production. Her comfortability on the stage could be seen through her body language and command of the stage, which was received very well by the audience and other members of the