By Adam Alonzo
Mark Lomax II made an important career move at 2 years old when he began
playing drums. During his childhood, he was nourished on many different musical
styles. Now a resident of Columbus, he plays drums in his own ensembles and as
a sideman in bands led by others. He has written jazz and gospel pieces and
also composed classical works for orchestra.
The Mark Lomax Trio will perform in the Shaw Gothic Cloister of the
Dayton Art Institute on Thursday starting at 5:30 p.m. “The audience can expect
a high-energy mix of jazz standards and originals,” Lomax said.
The trio also includes Edwin Bayard on tenor saxophone and Dean Hulett
on bass. This same group released “The State of Black America” in 2010, an
ingenious recording that is more of a five-movement suite than a typical jazz
album.
Though the trio is small, their improvisations can reach the point of
frenzy, as Lomax detonates like the finale of a fireworks show and Bayard
explores the edges of harmony, bending his body for low grunts and rising for
rapid trills. Hulett punctuates the proceedings with lively bass as an
accompanist or soloist.
Lomax can make the drums whisper or shout, a refreshingly unpredictable
blend of tempos and textures. During lengthy solos, his shimmering cymbals and
chattering drums sound as if two percussionists were collaborating.
Lomax lists Maurice Ravel and Bela Bartok alongside Duke Ellington and
Thelonious Monk as his favorite composers. He was recently in Prague for a
concert in which the Czech National Orchestra performed several of his scores.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment