Piano, guitar, and...tuba?

Music is an interesting continuum. On one end, you have classical music, which can be very technical and strictly defined. It's often called "serious" music. On the other end, you have jazz. Many songs rise from basic "charts" that really only provide a skeleton; the artists improvise most of what you hear. People don't usually go to school specifically to be jazz musicians.

But more than once, I have found that a continuum is better represented by a circle than a straight line. The apparent polar extremes can loop back on each other. For instance, to be a good jazz musician one must have great technical skill with one's instrument. Similarly, it is a sign of a virtuoso if an artist can improvise a cadenza in a famous concerto. Andre Previn and Wynton Marsalis are two examples of people who have bridged this gap with great success.

And this week I found a third. I was listening the "Real Jazz" station on XM Radio. I wasn't paying much attention, but suddenly I heard something "out of the corner of my ear." I recognized the strains of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," but smiled when I realized it was being played by a tuba! Sam Pilafian, one of the founding members of the Empire Brass, has also made several jazz recordings. Empire Brass is one of the top horn ensembles in the classical music world. But Mr. Pilafian was not content to be boxed into one genre. Once you get past the initial humor of hearing a tuba play jazz, you realize he's really good at it. This is not a gag recording, although it may stray into the realm of novelty. He launches into improvised solo as if a tuba were as natural to jazz as a piano or trumpet. It's a good reminder that music is not just entertainment, but art. A little creativity can cross boundaries and produce delightful results.