Continued: Caesarea

The last day, we had the Jeff Barnhart's International All Stars: Heitger, Jim Fryer on trombone, Antti Sarpilla (from Finland) and Pieter Meijers (pronounced Meyers) on clarinet and soprano sax, Barnhart on piano, Bob Leary on guitar and banjo, and Danny Coots on drums. Israeli bassist Gilad Abru was a last-minute replacement for the Scots bassist Roy Percy, who could not make it because the airline did not allow him to bring his bass aboard. What a band!

Some band members are less well known than those in the other groups, but that is not justified and should be amended. Antti Sarpilla, a Bob Wilber disciple, is among the best clarinet players anywhere today, and Meijers is no slouch, either. Hearing Meijers' and Sarpilla's curved soprano duet and their clarinet/soprano interplay on "C'est Messieur Qui Parle" was absolutely exhilarating! So were their clarinet duets, with Meijers' playing the Albert system. Heitger was in even better form than the day before, especially his voice, which contributed to the success of the band. Bob Leary, whom I had never heard before, is not only a wonderful plucker, but also a great entertainer. His rolling rrrs in "If I Didn't Care" (curiously, he never rolled the one in "care.") were hilarious!

Speaking of entertaining, Sheridan introduced "Honeysuckle Rose" as "your favorite tune; I hope it will be mine, too." Perhaps it wasn't, as after a few bars it became "Sweet Georgia Brown." Jim Fryer's version of "Beale Street Blues" was among the best I've heard, and his vocal was followed by some fantastic blues trumpet. In general, that "Beale Street," with Fryer's plunger mute and Meijers' soprano, was among the evening's favorites, albeit singling out favorites at a concert of that quality seems to be an exercise in futility.

And then it was "Saints" time. The well deserved tumultuous applause brought about an encore -- "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans," with Heitger being visibly moved.

Another great festival came to an end. Kudos are due to the musical director, Ms. Nava Pasternak, for her excellent choice of musicians, to the organization, and to the sound people, who did a great job. On the first night, I was sitting at the very edge of row 26, opposite a menacing speaker, and I could still hear the music as if I were sitting in the center opposite the stage.

September 2008 issue | © 2008 The Mississippi Rag

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