ITG 2001 Conference - Ingrid Jensen

Jensen opened with one of her own compositions, Neu, very much in the post bop modern idiom. She plays with a marvelous warm tone and her melodic and improvisational lines are even and fluid. Her sense of time on the fast selections is sure and her dialogue with the other players sensitive. She exploits a wide dynamic range from an intimate whisper to brutally loud and intimidating. The harmonic content of her solos is fresh and invigorating. All of these elements together make her one of the most exciting young jazz trumpet players currently working. Jensen’s formidable trumpet skills and harmonic understanding toward emotional expression treated the audience to a wide variety of experiences during the performance.

Her next piece, R Hour, a lyrical tune played on flugelhorn, was co-written by fax and e-mail cross country by Jensen and a former boyfriend. During this second piece she slipped out of her shoes and played the rest of the performance in bare feet. As she ascended into the higher register throughout the afternoon, she would frequently rise up on her toes, giving visual life to her efforts to reach the higher notes. She placed the bell of her trumpet tight into the recording microphone throughout the performance, rarely moving from that position, except to stretch up when ascending above high C. Occasionally, however, she would drop into a quick knee bend and return immediately to her prior spot.

She also played Katrina Ballerina by Woody Shaw, a Kenny Wheeler tune, and a long version of the title piece of her most recent recording, Higher Ground. Jensen’s playing demonstrated a wide variety of tonal colors. Her lower register is full and dark, but her higher register can be very narrow and piercing showing her ability to exercise a great deal of control over the colors of her tone depending on her goal.

The concert concluded with Jensen inviting Pat Harbison and Eddie Severn (on flugelhorn) to the stage to play a fast paced Freddie Hubbard composition. All three trumpets played exceedingly well and they each fed off the others’ excitement. They concluded the piece and the concert trading eights, fours, and twos, each building on the solo that preceded it. The display left the audience breathless. The performers were rewarded with a sincere ovation.