Toitu Otago Settlers Museum
Saturday, December 10
Lively jazz filled the Transport and Technology Gallery of Toitu Otago Settlers Museum on Saturday afternoon and stopped many visitors, tourists and family groups in their tracks as they meandered through the museum.
The Dunedin City Jazz Orchestra, led expertly by saxophonist Nick Cornish, does have a captivating range of jazz numbers, delivered with charming informality.
It travelled through well-known numbers from well-known artists including Count Basie’s lively Flight of the Foo Bird to Arturo Sandovai’s Funky Cha Cha, from a bluesy swing rendition of Silent Night to an exceptionally funky rendition of God Bless You Merry Gentlemen.
And as more chairs were brought in for the growing numbers of head-bopping listeners, the orchestra proceeded through the bossa nova smoochy glide of Quiet Nights, Nat King Cole’s It’s Almost Like Being in Love, Eartha Kitt’s smokey Christmas wish list in Santa Baby and Dean Martin’s Silver Bells, all well sung by Jodi Benson.
As the audience showed their appreciation for a well put together, slightly impromptu varied programme, it became clear the Dunedin City Jazz Orchestra deserves a higher profile in the city events calendar.
The orchestra has a strong foundation in Calder Prescott and Trevor Coleman. It also shows through the solo performers it has attracted, who will continue to develop their musical talents, that its future is also strong.
Nick Cornish brings a wide variety of repertoire to the orchestra and an easy convivial leadership coupled with a sense that the fun is only just beginning.
Perhaps Dunedin’s jazz and symphonic orchestras could combine forces. This would entice Dunedin’s audiences to branch out into other genres and try something new, a venture which succeeded with Shane Carter and the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra and Roger Fox Big Band and the NZSO.
