The Forgotten Word - Jazz Fest 2011

Mark Murphy took the stage at the Harro East Ballroom in a broad shouldered black suit, blazing red shirt and tie, and the 2011 Rochester International Jazz Fest officially began. It encapsulated the festival experience. Little voyages into cultures and musical neighborhoods as the unfamiliar becomes revealed. Scatting the forgotten word.

Sketch by Scott Regan

Mark Murphy took the stage at the Harro East Ballroom in a broad shouldered black suit, blazing red shirt and tie, and the 2011 Rochester International Jazz Fest officially began. It encapsulated the festival experience. Little voyages into cultures and musical neighborhoods as the unfamiliar becomes revealed. Scatting the forgotten word.

Sitting in his tri-colored knit hat, Mr. Murphy eased into sounds and styles that have been skirting the edges of popular music since the middle of the last century. There was a great sense of present and past in his performance. I was brought back to experiences hearing Lambert, Hendricks and Ross on records in college. A dusty era existing only on a vinyl disc. Here it was on Friday night brought to life in the rich vocals of Mark Murphy. 

Reaching deep, stretching high, a great sense of risk and courage in his voice. 

A fitting beginning for the first show of the tenth anniversary of the Rochester International Jazz Fest.