Pepperdine's WIND and JAZZ ENSEMBLE at Smothers Theater in Malibu

 "If I ever go looking for my heart's desire, I won't go further than my own back yard." Famous last words spoken by Dorothy in the "Wizard of Oz," along with "There's no place like home." In other words, my Malibu neighbors, and perhaps New York City (NYC) transplants looking for some NYC razzlel dazzle, look no further than our backyard - right here in Malibu at Pepperdine University's Smother Theater for dance, music, theater and more. Tuesday night's musical program was a clever melding of both wind and jazz ensembles comprised of Pepperdine students under the directions of Theo Schmitt and Vince Trombetta.  Schmitt is a Swiss composer and conductor. He's a winner of the Fritz Bach Prize for excellence and winner of the Swiss Nat'l Conduction Competition ('19). Schmitt conducted Pepperdine's Wind Ensemble for the first half of the program which featured two world premieres. Both composers were in-house and brought on stage to speak about their compositions. I was amazed to see that both Kelly Moss and Carlos Duran were in their early 30s.  I was particularly taken with Moss' "Pursuit" which incorporated strings, percussion, wind instruments in a pleasing and complex aesthetic which also featured a harp solo. Both composers came on stage to talk about their works  Unfortunately, they were not miked and I was not able to decipher what they wanted to share with the audience. Schmitt also included two of his own compositions , "La Kialo de Estero" and Born to be Groovy." "Born to be Groovy" was the final piece played by the wind ensemble. It was a lively piece which had Schmitt aloft rollicking to his own melodies. Conductor and alto saxophonist Vince Trombetta led the jazz ensemble.  Trombetta has toured with Tony winner Ben Vereen and Grammy winners Steve Lawrence and Eddie Gore.  He's also worked on live TV shows; "Dancing with the Stars" and "American Idol."  The jazz program ranged from big band numbers, "Blue Skies by Berlin" and "Minor Swing" to bluesy "Georgia on My Mind" and Sonny Rollins' classic jazz piece, "St. Thomas."  The jazz band brought on stage Cecilia McCormick on piano and guitarists Zachary Gamble and Micah Kim. A special treat were provided by vocalists Cokie Daniel who sang "Blue Skies" in a retro-style to early radio days and Jamison Rosales' interpretation of "Old Devil Moon." So, no need to look over the rainbow or past our own backyards for entertainment and excitement. Come out and enjoy camaraderie right here in Malibu.  Get out and support young talent ed artists studying at Pepperdine University.  This program was free to the public. There's no charge for parking and need to make reservations in advanced for most performances.