Some people may not know that some of their favorite rock or rap songs may have their roots in jazz music.
For about four years now, the West Texas Jazz Society has aimed to teach that to students in the Permian Basin while also entertaining them with a performance including some of the top musicians in the country.
On Wednesday afternoon, the West Texas Jazz Society put on its annual “From Bebop to Hip Hop” concert at the Permian High School Auditorium.
“We think just because we’re out here in West Texas, it doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t have access to the world’s greatest musicians,” West Texas Jazz Society President Eric Baker said. “So the West Texas Jazz society partners with the Arts Council of Midland and Beal Foundation and we pull resources together to bring top recording artists from Los Angeles to our students. We bring them right here to their schools.”
The concert consisted of performances from original pieces such as “Taildragger Blues” to “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” to “Be Alright” to “Remember Me” from the Disney Pixar film “Coco.”
Wednesday, the West Texas Jazz Society was at Permian. Today, they’ll be doing a concert at Legacy High School in Midland.
They’ll also be doing a free concert Friday at 7 p.m. at the Wagner Noël Performing Arts Center.
“What we’re trying to do is connect the popular style of music that they listen to today and connect that to the rich traditions of jazz music,” Baker said. “We play a mixture of all styles of music and try to connect those themes together for the young people.”
The list of guest musicians who performed this week include Andy Martin, Gary Meek, Dan Fornero, Steve Gregory, Jarrett Johnson, David Zarlenga, Ernest Tibbs, Wally Minko, Aaron Janik and Billy King.
The quality of the musicians includes hundreds of albums between them. Some of which have performed with such artists as Elton John, Michael Buble and Celine Dion.
“I have a doctorate in music and I used to be a performer and travel all over and get to do all these things,” West Texas Jazz Society Board Member and UTPB Music Coordinator Dan Keast said. “I know from my own experience what a gift it is to travel and perform and meet these people. I couldn’t travel and do that anymore. I want my kids to experience this. I want other people’s kids to get to meet other musicians and hear the incredible talent in their own schools.”
Johnson is a Grammy Award nominated vocalist/arranger/songwriter.
His expansive skill set has been featured with world-renowned music acts and he has appeared on numerous studio recordings.
Some of his highlights include singing and backing vocals on The Grammy Awards, NBC’s “The Voice,” ABC’s “Good Morning America” and “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”
This isn’t Johnson’s first time performing in Odessa.
“This is always a wonderful time,” Johnson said. “This is my second year doing this and being a part of this tradition is great in any capacity. Playing with some of the best musicians in the country and being able to give back and take the opportunity to show the students what they have an opportunity to be a part of, if they so desire. The arts are so important to us and the future of the young people coming out of schools. To be a part of this is great.”
The Permian students were entertained, singing along with some of the pieces during the performance.
“It means so much to have these people be excited about us playing because it makes us think that we’re doing the right thing,” Johnson said. “The best part of my job is the instant gratification. I get to know immediately what I’m doing if it’s affecting people in a positive way. That’s the most fun for any of us as performers. Their energy was feeding us as well so it was great.”
