Review: Chicago Jazz Philharmonic's ‘Ellingtonia' a lively tribute to Duke

Chicago Tribune

10-02-2025

Partway through the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic's midday Saturday set, artistic director Orbert Davis made a sheepish admission. The band had just gotten back from the Havana International Jazz Festival in Cuba, and they'd meant to practice for this program abroad, he swears. Instead, they were too busy having fun.
Sure enough, some slapdash elements came through in 'Ellingtonia,' the Philharmonic's two-hour-long Duke tribute. (Davis and the Philharmonic have made portrait concerts like these a signature staple over the years.) Some Ellington originals ran raggeder than others, while several others had to be cut for time.
But having fun is something this band has down pat. The collective joie de vivre and virtuosity of the seven-piece ensemble, drawn from the fuller ranks of the Philharmonic, was more than enough to carry a lively — and nearly sold-out — matinee at Austin's Kehrein Center for the Arts.
The band had hardly taken the stage before leaping into 'Jubilee Stomp,' its wiggly sax theme played in eye-popping unison by Davis, saxophonist Steve Eisen and violinist Zara Zaharieva. In 'Amad,' Davis pointed to both guitarist John Moulder and pianist Leandro López Várady to cue them for a double solo. Both musicians simultaneously played a nearly identical turn of phrase, then doubled over laughing at the realization.
The first half of the program ended with a downtempo, almost psychedelic account of 'Caravan.' Moulder, also the arranger, streaked the orchestration with vibey electric guitar, including in his long solo at the tune's middle. Later, Davis's trumpet, Eisen's tenor, and Zaharieva's violin bobbed against each other in lapping close dissonances.
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The Chicago Jazz Philharmonic performs 'Ellingtonia,' a suite about jazz great Duke Ellington, during a performance at Kehrein Center for the Arts in Chicago's Austin neighborhood on Feb. 8, 2025. (Talia Sprague/for the Chicago Tribune)
'Ellingtonia's' many 'medleys' weren't so much medleys as songs grouped thematically on the program — like selections from Ellington's 'Far East Suite,' or his recorded Sacred Concerts from the 1960s. 'Mount Harissa' erupted with a breathtakingly brilliant tenor solo by Eisen, while Davis transplanted the alto melody in Billy Strayhorn's 'Isfahan' to a mournful flugelhorn.
The band was joined by two singers on opposite sides of their careers: Bernard 'B. Lilly' Jr., an up-and-coming singer from Chicago's West Side, and Bobbi Wilsyn, a veteran of the Chicago Jazz Ensemble and other city groups. Lilly joined the group for the relaxed swing of 'I'm Just A Lucky So-and-So' and 'I'm Beginning to See the Light,' his voice sugary and easily floating. Wilsyn took on the more austere selections from Ellington's Sacred Concerts, taking over from Zaharieva's atmosphere opening solo in 'Praise God' and ending 'Tell Me It's the Truth' in gospel-inspired pyrotechnics.
A ballad 'medley' was curtailed for time, ending after Wilsyn's adroit, almost operatic rendition of 'Sophisticated Lady.' 'Let's end with something that'll get you really clapping,' Davis told the audience, then crowed the distinctive opening lick of 'Take the A Train' on his horn. The band joined in jauntily, ending with solo signoffs from every member.
The concert's digital program book, accessible by QR code, included one page titled 'Artistic Statement.' On it was a portrait of Ellington, and a quotation, signed by Davis: 'America's greatest composer!'
The Philharmonic more than made the argument.