SKY DANCE [CENTRAL CITY SKETCHES #6]

In 1987, Benny Carter was invited to give a concert of his music with the American Jazz Orchestra. The concert would be a career retrospective: classic music he wrote in the 1930s and '40s, compositions from the '60s, including themes he'd written for motion pictures, and a suite composed specifically for the concert. This suite, Central City Sketches, and the resulting studio-recorded CD released by Musicmasters, were praised by critics who were thrilled that Carter was still creating beautiful, swinging music at the age of eighty. Jeffrey Sultanof was present at that concert, and can attest that the audience went wild when they heard this new music that often recalled Kansas City and the swing era. The sources for these publications are the original parts, which were heavily marked up with changes and corrections that were made prior to the premiere. In one case (People Time) a score that was engraved by Phil Woods was consulted. Movement 6 - Sky Dance: Sky Dance is an attractive jazz-waltz that should not be played too fast. Once again, flutes and muted trumpets should sound as if they are played by two people so that the ensemble color is clear.