Yuma jazz concert Wednesday

The Yuma High Jazz Band has had a long tradition of striving for excellence, and the latest director, Amanda Dallabetta, does her best to make sure her students remain at the peak of their game.

"This is the best jazz band in town," Dallabetta said. "They are rocking. The kids are having a great time, and they really know how to play their horns."

The Yuma High Jazz Band will be teaming up with the Arizona Western College Jazz 1 Ensemble to perform a jazz concert at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Snider Auditorium at the Yuma High School campus, 400 S. 6th Ave.

Community members, AWC students and YHS students will be participating and will be featured as soloists. The concert will have jazz music from different styles and eras.

The concert is free to the public. For more information, call 344-7573.

The YHS Jazz Band has been working hard to perfect their music in time for the big concert. Baritone saxophone player Pablo Bonilla is one of those students.

"I  have a few songs I solo in particularly, but pretty much my favorite song is going to be 'One Note Samba,'" Bonilla said.

"I love sambas. There are a lot of chromatic scales and it's pretty fun. Whenever I hear ... the low brass sound from the trombones, it just gets me really into it. One of the students here, Jenkin Williams, his trombone solo just gets me, and I just want to listen to him play even more. I tried playing it and soloing it and it came out pretty good."

Williams ended up playing trombone by the luck of the draw.

"I originally wanted to play french horn. But (Milano Music) didn’t have any, so I picked the trombone. When I looked at it, it was a beast ... so I played it. I love my trombone, it's awesome. I can play jazz and with french horn you can't play jazz; well, you can, but trombone is better."

Williams has two trombone solos during the performance, and when asked how well he had them down, he said, "I don’t know about perfect, but I’ve been practicing."

Williams likes jazz because it is a free flowing and very personal art for the performers.

"It's an expressive art form, and you can play what is on your mind. It sounds cool, too. It is an expression of myself and how I feel," Williams said, adding he loves to perform improv.

"Sometimes (the solos) are written out and I'll use some ideas from it, but I'll improv most of the time. Basically it is my original solo, as long as I stay in the right key range."

Bonilla said he loves playing in a large jazz group.

"It is great. To be honest, back in junior high this is the only reason I came to Yuma High because I wanted to be in the jazz band. A few years back I was like, 'You know what, Mrs. D, save me a spot in that jazz band, I want a spot,' and she said I was going to have to earn it."

Bonilla said with hard work and dedication, he achieved his goal.

"Luckily, freshman year I did really good, and now I am a sophomore and I'm in jazz band, so it's pretty cool. I am actually supposed to be going to Cibola, but I was like why would I go to Cibola when I can go to Yuma High for the jazz band? Come on, that's the greatest thing ever right there."

Dallabetta was thrilled to find out Bonilla came to YHS just to be in the music program.

"That makes me feel great," she said. "So much of the work that's done in this program has to do with the kids, they put their heart and soul into it."

Bonilla is excited about the concert.

"Of course I am, I'm really looking forward to all my buddies here soloing their hearts out, and I am pretty sure that the community is going to have a great time, and I hope they enjoy it as much as we do."

Dallabetta said her band is ready.

"Heck yeah, they are going to rock the house! There is a great funk chart called 'The Chicken.' ... There will be lots and lots of great music."