The December 10th Rutman’s hit is quickly approaching for the Olson Pingrey Quartet! Kathy, Mark, and I had a lovely rehearsal last night and I thought I’d post a sample of one of the new tunes we’re going to play. It’s called Stone Age Rhumba. Here are the first two minutes:
Kathy Olson – bari sax
Randy Pingrey – trombone
Mark Zaleski – bass
Recorded on December 8th, 2009
(by the way – the piece features an extensive drum part – which you’ll have to come to the gig to hear!)
My intention for Stone Age Rhumba was to write a tribute to the great trombonist Bill Harris while continuing the vibe of other pieces I had written for this ensemble (this piece shares a few motivic ideas with my piece Low Contrast, which you can listen to here). Harris was the featured trombone soloist of the Woody Herman Big Band starting in the 40’s. His technique, imagination, and sense of humor were totally unique and second to none, and his playing has been a recent source of inspiration for me.
Harris’ most famous feature in the Herman big band was the tune Bijou by Ralph Burns. It was once described by Woody Herman as a “stone age rhumba”, which is where the title of the piece comes from.
And as one final reminder – the Olson Pingrey Quartet plays on December 10th at Rutman’s Violins in Boston, MA. We’ll start at 8PM and play until 9:15 or so. There’s a $10 suggested donation, and we would really love for everyone to come out. Thank you!
P.S. The gig has happened, and you can listen to the whole thing, including the full version of Stone Age Rhumba right here.
Randy Pingrey: trombonist-at-large 