Symphony Hall, Springfield, MA
February 1, 2025
by Daniel Monte
On a blustery winter evening, the Springfield Symphony Orchestra delivered a delightful concert of jazz standards from the Great American Songbook to warm the hearts of audience members at Symphony Hall. Performer and conductor Byron Stripling led the orchestra, played trumpet, and sang several numbers as well. He made for a very humorous host, asking at one point for composer George Gershwin to stand up and be recognized.
Grammy award winner Carmen Bradford filled in on short notice for Sydney McSweeney as lead vocalist. Bradford is known for her years of work with the Count Basie Orchestra. As one would imagine, she is completely at home in the Great American Songbook and sang such standards as Gershwin's "I've Got Rhythm," "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Our Love is Here to Stay," and Berlin's "Tea for Two."
Bradford's energy and joy were palpable as she delivered her renditions of these classic tunes. On "I've Got Rhythm," her voice echoed a very Ella Fitzgerald inspired scat solo. A scat solo, for those not versed in jazz speak, is when a vocalist improvises using syllables or parts of words imitating another instrument. Ella Fitzgerald is considered one of the greatest scat singers in history. And, Bradford's talents were obvious.
After one of the songs, the conductor asked Bradford if she ever met Ella Fitzgerald. Sure enough, she had, multiple times. On one occasion, when she had been the opening act for Fitzgerald, they met backstage. A bit of a backstory is that Bradford found her pacing nervously back and forth before the show. When she asked if she was okay, or if she needed anything, Fitzgerald said, "I just hope they like me." The younger singer was amazed to find that one of her idols, an icon like Ella Fitzgerald, still got nervous before going onstage.
Another highlight of the evening was the spectacular pianist, Bobby Floyd. On Gershwin's "Lady Be Good," his piano solo seemed to encompass just about every musical genre. At one point the audience began to hoot and holler and then started clapping along. His solo piano arrangement of Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag" was completely fresh and a true delight.
Floyd's background as a gospel pianist was well on display when he and the vocalist "took it to church," so to speak, delivering a soulful rendition of the classic, "He looked Beyond My Faults." In 1984, Floyd was the organist for Ray Charles. Jim Rupp, who has toured with Woody Herman and Glenn Miller, played drum set. The SSO was in top form as well providing lush arrangements to accompany. This was a wonderful concert performed by some true jazz greats.
