A confident quintet of teenage jazz musicians from Edmonds-Woodway High School visited the KNKX studios for a session of jazz standards, and an original song by one of their own. The school’s band has a hunger to play and tons of talent.
Joined by their mentor, professional jazz trombonist and educator Conner Eisenmenger, the EWHS ensemble tackled an ambitious set. They swung through Jimmy Heath’s “The Thumper,” and displayed tight teamwork with assured solos while playing saxophonist Logan Ignatenko’s arrangement of “Invitation.”
At last, "Another Day," the original song from EWHS trumpeter Gavin Bunbury, proved these young players are something special. The soulful rhythm section vamp supported the horn players' catchy and complex melody and harmony lines.
Bunbury also gave a dazzling solo on "Another Day," inspiring improvisational runs from the backing trio of pianist Oren Kaushansky, bassist Jonathan Badier and drummer Max Fenwick.
When asked about the inspiration for his composition, Bunbury said the song was inspired by a school assignment to write a contrafact, a type of musical composition that uses the harmonic structure from an existing piece but features a new melody.
While working on the assignment, Bunbury’s procrastination almost got the best of him.
“It was the night before [the project was due], and I didn’t have anything written. So, I remember staying up all night just trying to figure something out, and I named it 'Another Day' because I needed another day to write this," Bunbury said.
Bunbury and the rest of the band impressed Eisenmenger. He said mentoring them felt more like collaborating with bandmates than showing them the ropes.
“I’m not directing traffic,” he said with a laugh. “They’re coming in with self-directed questions. They’re asking me, ‘What if we did this?’ They’re not asking, ‘Can I do this?’ or ‘How do we do this?’ What a pleasure it is to learn alongside them.”
Jake Bergevin, who's directed the jazz band at Edmonds-Woodway for the past quarter century, gushed over his talented students. Band practice begins before school starts, but Bergevin said their enthusiasm jumpstarts the day and brings them together.
“I think they’re really fired up for school after they’ve got a good dose of jazz in their blood," Bergevin said.
Get yourself fired up with these accomplished and passionate musicians from Edmonds-Woodway High School.
Musicians:
- Logan Ignatenko - tenor sax
- Gavin Bunbury - trumpet
- Oren Kaushansky - piano
- Jonathan Badier - bass
- Max Fenwick - drums
- Conner Eisenmenger (mentor) - trombone
Songs:
- "The Thumper" (Jimmy Heath)
- "Invitation" (Bronislaw Kaper)
- "Another Day" (Gavin Bunbury)
