The new Music Performance Hall at Saint Xavier University came alive Sunday, March 1, as students honored two of jazz’s greatest legends, Miles Davis and John Coltrane. The first concert of the semester featured the 6-piece Jazz Cats Combo opening the performance, followed by the 17-member Jazz Ensemble, filling the hall with rhythm, energy, and a sense of history.
The Jazz Combo opened the performance, followed by the Jazz Ensemble, playing a collection of classic jazz compositions from Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Parker, and The Meters, Dr. Shawn Salmon, Director of Jazz, said. “It was exciting to hear our students interpret these timeless pieces.”
The concert also celebrated the birthdays of Davis and Coltrane, who Salmon called “icons in jazz, as performers, bandleaders, and composers. They were also bandmates from roughly 1955 to 1960 in what is known as the First Great Quintet, later Sextet with Cannonball Adderley.”
To honor their collaboration, the Jazz Cats Combo performed compositions that Davis and Coltrane played together on legendary albums, including Milestones, Someday My Prince Will Come, and ’Round Midnight.
“Bringing these historic tunes to life was really special,” Salmon said, as the full Jazz Ensemble followed, filling the hall with rich big-band harmonies and swinging rhythms. “The students poured their hearts into it, and the audience could feel the connection between the music and its history.”
The concert took place in Saint Xavier University’s new Music Performance Hall, located at 3700 W. 103rd St., Chicago. Tickets were $8 at the door, $5 for seniors and military veterans, and free for students, but the highlight of the evening was seeing a new generation breathe life into the music of two jazz legends, Salmon said.
