Jazz Concert On Tuesday, March 20, 2012, I walked into the Paul Harris Theater in the Alta Ham Fine Arts Building at the University of Las Vegas. Tonight was a master recital, delivered by students in fulfillment of a Master of Music in Performance Degree. Because the recital was students performing, I did not know what to expect. Soon, I would be surprised at the quality of playing that I heard on the stage. The recital consisted of a group of five musicians. On guitar was Josh Williams. On vibraphone was Daniel Alameda. On bass was Jeff Davis. On piano was Otto Ehling, and the headline musician was Stephen Shapiro on drums. Reading the program for the evening, I noticed that Shapiro composed one of the songs being performed that night. I was already impressed even before the lights dimmed.

When the lights dimmed, there was no fanfare. The band immediately went into their rendition of Matt Dennis's "Angel Eyes." The song starts...

The steady bass line keeps the listener interested in the song. Using brushes on the drums, the musicians create a mellow song but one in which all the instruments are featured. At times, the song languishes, but the band played it with enough skill and energy to keep the audience engaged.
Second, we heard Stephen Shapiro's original composition called "Forever Falling." This was of course a way to showcase the composer's drum skills. However, the piece did also incorporate other instruments including parts for piano and bass. The other musicians added accents without distracting from the drumming. After Shapiro's song, the band played Duke Ellington's "In a Sentimental Mood." This was a slow song, and I did not think it was the best choice because of that. However, many people in the audience seemed familiar with it. It was a piano-focused song and had brush drums and…