Essentially Ellington | Singer-pianist Pocock shines in Newport's Ellington set; Garfield, Roosevelt up today

NEW YORK CITY — Bellevue's Newport High School was the first local school to perform in the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival on Saturday, part of the first and largest group to compete.

The judges heard seven bands in three hours, including Newport and Agoura High School from Agoura Hills, Calif., considered one of the strongest bands in the field. Both Newport band director Matt Eisenhauer and Garfield band director Clarence Acox singled out Agoura for its performance. Acox said the band was in a "class of its own."

Garfield performs in the second round Sunday morning; Roosevelt performs in the third round Sunday afternoon.

All 15 bands must choose three songs from a list of 15 scores by Duke Ellington and Benny Carter. Each band gets 40 minutes to warm up before they perform.

"I was a little worried," Eisenhauer said, "because everyone was totally up, snapping, kind of like a sports team. I want them to be exuberant, but I also want them to play with their mind. I got them to do breathing exercises and tried to help get them calm before they went on."

Newport opened with Ellington's "Moon Over Cuba." Its second song, "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," served as a showcase for the band's sophomore pianist and singer, sophomore Ariel Pocock, who played solo to open the number. She showed a true facility for stride, playing with a strong left hand. She also sang verse and chorus with the band backing her up.

A strength of the band, she also had a solo in the band's third song, "Symphony in Riffs," by Carter.

"She really came through for us," said lead alto sax player Kyle Mark, a senior. "I think we did our best. We did a good job of keeping time, not making the same mistake twice."

Mark went on, "We tried to stay calm before we played by dancing a little bit, singing, making beats in our heads."

The judging for the competition is thorough. All performances are taped, and judges have the ability to listen not only to the band but individual instruments if need be. If two bands are close, the difference might be the trueness of the pitch of one horn, or the time-keeping of a single drummer.

"No one can say it's not fair," Eisenhauer said.

Jazz at Lincoln Center's artistic director Wynton Marsalis is one of four judges. The others: bandleader, composer and Ellington expert David Berger; pianist Reggie Thomas, a professor of music at Southern Illinois University; and trumpeter Gerald Wilson.

The top three bands will be announced Sunday afternoon. All three will perform with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Sunday night at Avery Fisher Hall.

Hugo Kugiya: hkugiya@yahoo.com