Saying that big bands are a bit passe is an understatement. They basically never recovered from the recording ban of WWII, and without revivalists such as Wynton Marsalis and Harry Connick, or jazz festivals that keep classic groups (Basie, Kenton, etc.) in the public eye, big band would be little more than an historical footnote. This album, Renolds Jazz Orchestra: Three Penny Opera - Live In Aarau, features a band collected for this performance. Repertoire bands really are things of the past, but a special occasion like this has the potential to accrue huge amounts of talent. A few names within the group that you should recognize include Randy Brecker, Bobby Watson, Shelley Carrol, Victor Lewis, and Miroslav Vitous. It's a 15-piece band altogether, that manages to produce a big sound during this performance of Three Penny Opera. Pianist Christian Jacob arranged all but one of the 25 numbers included here, and turns in strong solos and fine comping behind other soloists. The band's namesake, Fritz Renold, performs on saxophone. The record captures this group's performance of Weill's music, with instrumental segments standing in for the voiced arias, in case you were wondering why we haven't mentioned any vocalists. There are none, but the spirit of Three Penny Opera is still very much intact.
Notable performances are littered throughout the two-CD collection, but a major frustration is the lack of documentation for who played what, and where... You'll just have to guess which of the two tenor players turned in a particular solo, or which of the three trumpet players. The rhythm section is simple, and there is at least one nice interlude for Victor Lewis to stretch out. The arrangement of "Mack the Knife," probably the most well-known song from this opera, goes through many moods while avoiding obvious cliches. The alto solo that we suspect is turned in here by Bobby Watson is extraordinary. Almost every song features one musician, much as the original built upon the vocal performers among its cast. Jazz fans will be pleased, even with no knowledge of the original. Fans of Weill's original will be pleased, at least to find the harmonic threads that connect Jacob's arrangements with the source material. Musical numbers like "Love Song," "What Keeps A Man Alive?" and "Cannon Song" are just a few that stood out to us, but repeated listens turn up all kinds of gems in other parts of the album.
The only downside to Renolds Jazz Orchestra: Three Penny Opera - Live In Aarau is that it is a performance for a special event that was likely rehearsed a few times before this recording. This will be mostly transparent to casual listeners, but musicians will hear some missed or hesitant cues and some numbers that get away from the group. The fact that things hold together at all owes to the overall strong musicianship among the group and the fact that many of these players could likely sight-read their way through a score better than we could play with a few months to rehearse. One possible culprit for some of the missed cues might be the sound system. This entire performance is from a 2-track, which makes Three Penny Opera - Live In Aarau sound more like a high-school recording than a professional band. If the monitors on stage were done with a similar budget, there's a good chance the group had some challenges hearing the proceedings. Aside from no attribution for the many great solos here, and the relatively poor recording quality, Renolds Jazz Orchestra: Three Penny Opera - Live In Aarau manages to be an awesome record. It's good enough to make you forget the sad fact that big-band jazz is largely a defunct art form. Kudos to Christian Jacob for his arrangement and the entire Renolds Jazz Orchestra for their impressive rendition of Three Penny Opera.
