In Sunday’s (7/19) Star Tribune (Minneapolis), Britt Robson writes, “Composer and trumpeter Irvin Mayfield has fashioned his career through a series of bold, ambitious endeavors. … So it is noteworthy when Mayfield says, ‘I wish I could tell you exactly how this will sound, but I don’t know. It is the furthest out on a limb I’ve gone compositionally thus far.’ He is referring to ‘The Art of Passion,’ his 45-minute opus for orchestra and jazz quintet that will receive its world premiere Thursday at Orchestra Hall. Its performance marks Mayfield’s inaugural year as artistic director of the Jazz at Orchestra Hall series for the Minnesota Orchestra, which commissioned the work. ‘It’s hard for classical and jazz music to function in the same space, because the priorities are different,’ Mayfield said, adding that while classical musicians place a premium on immaculate execution and fidelity to the composition (‘they need to sound as one’), jazz players are trained to interpret the intent of the music. ‘I am trying to have everyone occupy the same space and not have to sacrifice’ either execution or intention.”
Posted July 24, 2009
