The Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz's 18th annual international competition was an invitation to jazz guitarists all over the world, an opportunity to prove their skills on a stage that has evolved into a generational testing ground for the likes of Joshua Redmond, Jane Monheit and Tierney Sutton, among many others. Diversity is always the key ingredient to ensure the talent pools for specified instruments remain fresh. And diverse the competitors were, hailing from Nebraska, Jerusalem and even Norway.
With actor and longtime supporter Billy Dee Williams as master of ceremonies, style and grace were in no short supply; but the afternoon belonged to the young and their dreams. Each competitor had only 15 minutes to prove a lifetime of experience. The 10 semi-finalists that assembled into the Baird Auditorium of the Smithsonian Institute of Natural History were nothing if not fresh faced. Their resumes ran deep but their enthusiasm had not been exhausted. A meticulously assembled quartet led by musical director and famed pianist Bob James accompanied the contsetants. Bassist James Gensus (of "Saturday Night Live"), drummer Terri Lynn Carrington and acclaimed saxophonist Chris Potter (also a former competitor) joined James in various forms during the competition, often shrinking to a trio depending on the arrangement.
Judging fell to an assortment of many of the greatest jazz guitarists alive: Bill Frisell, Stanley Jordan, Earl Kluge, Russell Malone, Pat Marantino and John Pizzarelli. Their collective styles range from west coast smooth to urban cool and smash mouth hard-bop. Given the eclecticism of the semi-finalists, such traits would gradually prove the judges' collective value.
The thick, blues-based style of contestant and Pennsylvania native Paul Vinton is "where I came from," Vinton said. "I feel the Blues is the center of Jazz. When I studied with Ritchie Hart, I got into the bluesier style of jazz in a big way."
Blues would not be the only style at the forefront of the competition. Seattle native Miles Okazaki would lay intricate and almost experimental riffs when covering the Monk Standard, "Four In One." It was hard to swallow once Okazaki got into a groove for fear of being distracted from a single beat. Seeing Potter look out into the audience, as if to say, "Check this guy out," served as the penultimate seal of approval.
New Hampshire native Chuck Stevens adopted a generous style with an almost studious approach. Alternating between six and four string guitars, he generously lent to the sidemen of the group, giving them breathing room to amp up his set during solos. His style was distinctly post bop, but was grounded in the spirituality of Grant Green.
At the end of the nearly three-hour competition, Thelonius Monk, Jr., retook the stage for the first time since welcoming the crowd to the Smithsonian earlier in the afternoon. "I go all across the country and the world," reflected the Monk, "And Jazz is extraordinarily healthy these days."
The proceeding round of applause would repeat during announcement of the three finalists who would go on the next evening to the Eisenhower Theater in the Kennedy Center. The winner there would receive a $20,000 scholarship, while the second and third place musicians would receive $10,000 and $5,000, respectively. "And that's good money," added Monk.
Okazaki made it to the finals, along with Lage Lund, the Norwegian phenom resembling a member of The Hives. His modernism didn't stop at fashion, though, and his well-received semi-final set was high on originality. It evoked a new style of play, going to extraordinarily high-pitched progression on the bridge of the Bill Evans standard, "Turn Out the Stars." He began his finalist performance with an exquisitely tasteful, mellow chord progression before the rest of the band joined him on a slow piece featuring great melodies.
Okazaki's performance was nothing short of stellar. His first number featured an atypical use of alternating bass lines that provided for some very interesting interval skips. His second piece was a beautifully slow ballad, accompanied only by Bob James on piano. Although they had never played together before, the way one filled in the holes left by the other made it sound like the two had played together for years.
Rounding out the finalist pool was David Mooney, unique in being the only semi-finalist to use a distortion pedal while laying down an intriguing blend of Latin funk and western swing in the background. His first song was a moderately paced number with a well-crafted melody, performed in a trio format. His second song was played at a faster tempo, brimming with energy. The song moved about quite nicely. His style was traditional, but his enthusiasm was apparent in the way that he practically danced about as he played.
After their deliberations, the judges gave third place to Mooney, second to Okazaki and the grand prize to Lund.
Lund won not only the monetary scholarship, but also an opportunity to perform at the Kennedy Center during the 2006-2007 season. The icing on the cake, however, was when he was asked to perform "How High the Moon" alongside George Benson.
In addition to the phenomenal performances by the competitors, the celebrity judges performed one or two at a time accompanied by the house band, with finals host Herbie Hancock sitting in on piano. Each guitar player brought his individual voice to the performances, with Stanley Jordan's double-hand technique being one of the standouts. Also noteworthy was John Pizzarelli's performance. Joined by flugelhorn legend Clark Terry and vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, this was one of two performances to feature vocals. Bridgewater's voice is astounding, and given Terry's age and frail state, he still has a voice perfectly suited for jazz. Pizzarelli even added some vocals and scat singing.
All in all, the competition was a testament to the power of jazz as a universal language, and a celebration of some of its finest performers. Only time will tell, however, if these three very talented guitar players will break through and become jazz legends themselves.
