by Kevin McLaughlin

According to Ben Chen’s program notes for the North Coast Winds concert on April 7 at West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church, the jazz age, which began in the 1920s,  coincided with the emergence of the woodwind quintet as a standard chamber ensemble. This made an appealing premise for the ensemble’s programming. But if jazz as a musical style and aesthetic was hard to detect that evening, it mattered little.

What did matter was the quality of the music performed and the playing of the ensemble, which was refined and persuasive. [Read more…]