Last week we introduced you to the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s Music of Wayne Shorter and indicated that we’d cover more releases from their label. This installment is a suite of seven movements composed and conducted by the JLCO’s lead alto saxophonist, Sherman Irby, Inferno was performed live in 2012 and captured on this recording. It’s Irby’s interpretation of Dante’s epic 14th-century poem of the same name, which follows the author on his imagined, harrowing journey through the nine circles of Hell. To say it’s incendiary (pardon the reference) completely understates the passion of these performances.
At the heart of the piece is the horn who plays the central character, the late baritone saxophonist that Irby recalls fondly, “I wrote this act for Joe Temperley,” Irby remarks. “He was the band’s elder statesman and musical guide for almost 30 years. It was my honor to feature his beautiful, passionate sound as the voice of the central character, Dante.” This is not an unusual gesture as bandmate, trombonist Chris Crenshaw says, “Sherman cares for his brethren, and he cares about this music, and that goes a long way.” Besides, featuring his bandmates liberally in solos, (Movement V has six of them for example), this music is intelligent, unique, moody and ultimately swings crazily.
There may be some parallels to our divisive times too. When Dante completed The Divine Comedy (of which Inferno was part one of three) in 1320, it was during a time of great political upheaval and 18 years after he was exiled from his hometown. He seems to have written many of his enemies into the work as a way of getting back at them. You can hear the anger in the horns barking at each other. You pick up along the way some very bluesy spots too, whether it’s the opening trombone cry in “Overture” or the consecutive solos of Irby, Elliott Mason (trombone) or Wynton Marsalis (trumpet) in “Movement III: Beware the Wolf and the Serpent,” as just one of countless examples.
Despite numerous suites that have been written by composers like Duke Ellington, this may be a first of its kind – a big band interpreting an epic poem. Yet, you don’t have to have any knowledge of Dante’s work to appreciate the compositional brilliance or these performances. It could easily stand on its own under some different name. Joe Alterman’s liner notes provide the background and detailed information on each movement. Thus, we excerpt and/or paraphrase as needed.
”Movement 1: House of Unbelievers” depicts the first circle of hell whose inhabitants are the souls who did not believe in God (but have not sinned). This category includes poets, scientists, philosophers, unbaptized infants, and kings of non-Christian lands. Solos come from Ted Nash (flute), Victor Goines (clarinet) and Crenshaw (trombone). In depicting this circle, Irby envisioned a cocktail party. “The guests,” he says, “are greeted with brass fanfares and people entertained by a big band. The solos reflect those guests at the party.” As such, this is one of the most playful pieces.
”Movement II: Insatiable Hunger” highlights circles two and three, both of which, in Irby’s words, “contains souls who were lustful and consumed and destroyed others and those whose gluttonies destroyed themselves.” Irby says he created it by “grouping the band in pairs, representing people doing their own thing inside of a big room; if an observer takes a step back, they will see the many turn into a single, pulsating organism.” Soloists are Walter Blanding on tenor and soprano and Vincent Gardner on trombone. Irby’s goal for “Movement III: “Beware The Wolf and The Serpent,” (which depicts circles four and five, home to the avaricious and wrathful) was to capture a feeling of “senseless fighting.” As Irby says, he accomplished this by “dividing the orchestra in half, while keeping the trombones interacting with both. I even have the soloists interrupting each other. Total disrespect to each other and to themselves. The human condition…”
”Movement IV: City of Dis” depicts circle six and the heretics now condemned to spend all of eternity burning in their graves. It’s named for the land on the other side of the River Styx that contains the final four circles of Hell. After the choir of drumrolls and playfully dissonant harmonies take listeners ashore, they find themselves on new, exotic ground. ”I wanted to get the flavor of Iranian ‘belly dancing’ music, while maintaining a bit of the swing groove,” Irby says. Blanding solos on soprano and flute with Ted Nash also soloing on flute to create the feeling.
”Movement V: “The Three-Headed Serpent,” is the “must hear” piece as the ensemble and soloists soar, scream, and seemingly fight one another, appropriate for circle seven, home to those who have committed violence against others, themselves, or God. According to Irby the band goes to war with furious soloing and duels between Al Jackson (drums), Victor Goines (tenor), Ted Nash (alto), Kenny Rampton (trumpet), Marcus Printup (trumpet) and Dan Nimmer (piano).
Movement VI: The Great Deceiver” portrays circles eight (for those who victimized others) and nine (for those, like Cain and Judas Iscariot, who victimized others with whom they shared a special bond). Irby’s goal here was “to create the imagined sound of a violent, frozen Hell.” To accomplish this, he “used the upper woodwinds and trombones in their highest ranges. It is supposed to sound like it hurts, with the trumpets to give a short bit of relief before the pain starts again (probably the cruelest form of torture). It segues into the sweeping finale, “The Shores of Mount Purgatory,” marking Dante’s arrival at the foot of Mount Purgatory. As Irby remarks, “It’s difficult to write a large work for the jazz orchestra without paying an homage to its greatest composer, Duke Ellington. I waited to do this for the finale because I wanted Joe (Temperley), who was once a member of Ellington’s orchestra, to be the last voice of the story.” He follows solos from bassist Carlos Henriquez and pianist NImmer.
This is a brilliant piece of music, which, in the final analysis, like much of the best jazz, is surprisingly uplifting, especially considering a journey through nine circles of hell.
Note: For additional information on the JLCO’s, revisit last week’s review of The Music of Wayne Shorter.
