“Youngsters listen to jazz?” the taxi driver asked me incredulously. He was quite stunned that I was heading to Esplanade to watch the jazz maestro, Chris Botti, in concert. The 45-year-old taxi driver, Mr K.L. Lim, then launched into a spiel sharing that he feels “the Singaporean youth do not appreciate jazz as much as the older folks”.

The world-acclaimed trumpeter, Chris Botti, agrees that there is a lack of youths who are interested in jazz. At his concert at Esplanade on May 20, Botti said, “It is important that jazz keeps spreading. It gets easily to adults but we must ensure that there is a next generation of jazz musicians who are dedicated…Let’s get the youths off American Idol and the Internet and start them off young in jazz.”

Inspiring the Next Generation

UrbanWire spoke to some youths who attended Chris Botti’s concert. “My parents love jazz so we decided to go as a family”, shared Ben Toh, 18. “I was definitely inspired by Botti’s performance. It made me wish I had picked up an instrument in secondary school!”

Aspiring trumpeter, Sharon Gomez, 21, saved up a month’s worth of allowance to watch Chris Botti in concert. “I had to see Botti perform. I missed his previous performance so I simply had to catch this one.”

Botti’s concert on May 20 was his first time performing in Esplanade. It was his second time in Singapore as he performed at the Victoria Theatre previously on October 25, 2006.

The Concert Opening

The surrealistic mood of the concert began with echoes of melancholic vocals pulsating rhythmically throughout the hall like the swells of a heartbeat. Cooling blues lit the stage with a tinge of winter bleakness and serenity.

The crowd piled in within 10 minutes after the concert hall doors opened. The chatter hushed when Botti took the stage with a haunting solo of “Ave Maria” from his latest album Italia. The crisp bright tone of his trumpet, so rich and pure, left the audience silent in awe.

One could say that the poignant last note that stretched on before gently fading away was akin to the heartbroken cry of a romantic. While Botti held onto the lingering note, his band slowly took their places onstage.

Following Botti’s grand solo opening, the blue spotlights warmed to purple as the band kicked off a jazzy, up-tempo sound.

The Talented Band

As there was no intermission, Botti often went offstage for breaks. During these UrbanWire applauds Botti’s humility for sharing the limelight equally among the esteemed musicians in the band, namely, Billy Childs (piano), Billy Kilson (drums), Mark Whitfield (guitar), Bob Hurst (bass) and LaShanda Rena (vocals).

The band complemented Botti perfectly, matching his every move. The band itself was filled with personality and a passion for their music.

LaShanda Rena lent her sultry vocals to “The Look of Love” and “What I’ll Do”. The band members often played off each other’s energy but LaShanda looked out of place as she did not interact with the other band members who were laughing among themselves and having fun.

Botti’s Style

While playing, Chris Botti often leans back; his whole body arched beautifully as he was entirely absorbed in his music. In his soulful rendition of “When I Fall in Love”, the trills of his trumpet tugged at the audience’s heartstrings and enticed them into a romantic dance that he led gracefully with his music.

Botti often tells concert-goers the history of the song or shares anecdotes. It is common knowledge to Botti fans that Miles Davis, one of the godfathers of jazz, is his idol. At the concert, Botti praised Davis. “He’s certainly the best musician of all time.” This prompted a man from the audience to shout “Miles Davis is the best person ever!”

For the song “Flamenco Sketches” originally performed by Davis, Botti complimented Davis’ “fearlessness and lack of readiness” that created the “piece of art”. Botti then displayed great restraint when he played Davis’ “Flamenco Sketches”. He held the knowledge of his trumpet’s full capabilities, yet when he was about to reach the maximum, he would pull back ever so gently. He ended with a fermata on the last note before calmly walking off the stage.

The Highlight

The highlight of the night was “Hallelujah” which was originally written by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. You’d recall hearing John Cale’s cover of “Hallelujah” in the movie “Shrek” for the scene where Princess Fiona is sadly preparing for her pre-arranged wedding with Farquaad and Shrek is depressed because he thought he had lost his chance to marry Fiona.

Chris Botti played a haunting rendition of “Hallelujah”. Just imagine ice-skating on a bleak winter’s day close to dusk. The trumpet’s mellow tone juxtaposed with the blue-lit stage calmed the audience. It was the most soothing piece of the night.

A Touching Ending

With such stellar performance, it’s not a surprise that Botti received a standing ovation from all four-tiers of the Esplanade Concert Hall.

In addition to talent, Botti also has a charming personality. As he was thanking the band and the audience in his closing speech, he noticed that there was a pregnant lady in the front row. Botti immediately leaped off the stage and serenaded the delighted mother-to-be with the song “Cinema Paradiso”. He chose this song specifically as it was the song that had inspired him to make his latest album, Italia.

After the concert, UrbanWire caught up with the lucky lady, Marceline Suijs from Holland. Marceline and her husband started listening to Botti’s music when they bought his DVD in 2001. “We love jazz. We have all of Miles Davis’ CDs as well,” beamed the young couple. While Marceline’s husband finds “Ave Maria” the best song of the night, the mother-to-be thinks otherwise. “Now my favourite song is “Cinema Paradiso”, of course! The song Chris Botti played for my little one.”

Truly, Chris Botti captured many hearts in just one night in Singapore.

Chris Botti’s tour in America hits the road from June 7, 2008 onwards.

Photos courtesy of the Esplanade Co. Ltd.