You can say more when you know more

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Last year, Timothy Blackmon and Tissa Khosla, joined by drum and bass players, brought the dizzying sounds reminiscent of the “Free Jazz” movement to the Summer Solstice’s Education Stage. Friday, the Michigan State graduates reunite under a new name and sound.

Blackmon, 29, and Khosla, 29, met each other in 2008 during a theory class at Florida State University. Khosla primarily played the saxophone growing up, while Blackmon picked up the trumpet in middle school after being introduced to the instrument by his neighbor. As soon as the two became acquainted in college, they immediately began performing together.

The duo’s passion for jazz was strengthened by their mentor at Florida State, Marcus Roberts, a jazz pianist from Jacksonville, Florida, profiled on the TV show “60 Minutes” during a segment entitled “The Virtuoso.” Marcus hired them to be in his band The Modern Jazz Generation while providing them guidance throughout their undergraduate years along with opportunities to meet other jazz musicians and begin mentoring young musicians of the future.

After receiving their undergraduate degrees, their connections with professors at Michigan State University pushed them to attend the university for their graduate studies. Rodney Whitaker, Michigan State’s jazz studies director, especially helped to shape their experiences, along with Diego Rivera, professor of jazz studies and saxophone improvisation, and Etienne Charles, professor of jazz trumpet.

Ornette Coleman, an American alto saxophonist and composer who pioneered the “Free Jazz” movement, inspired the MSU grads to form a quartet called The OC Collective for last year’s Solstice. The classic chordless quartet formation executed the unusual swing of Coleman, playing tunes such as “Jayne” and “When Will The Blues Leave?” off his 1958 debut record, “Something Else!!!!”

Friday, Blackmon and Khosla will perform as The Khosla-Blackmon Quartet, featuring Will Crandell on drums and Javier Enrique on bass. Although they would classify their music to be “based on blues with more of a modern sound,” the two intentionally leave room for experimentation.

“Just playing my instrument every day is my way of experimenting and finding new ways to conceptualize what I’m doing,” Khosla said.

Blackmon and Khosla said their set will focus on the key relationships between the trumpet and saxophone which are similarly demonstrated in duos such as Miles Davis and John Coltrane, James Moody and Dizzy Gillespie.

“We gravitate towards the relationship between two horn players with a rhythm section,” Blackmon said.

Also appearing at Solstice is bassist Brandon Rose, 21, a senior at MSU. Rose will perform Saturday on the Education Stage with his group, Brandon Rose and the Dozens, including Meg Brennan on saxophone, Carter Graham on piano and David Alvarez on drums.

Hailing from the metro Detroit area, Brandon developed a passion for music at age 5 when he was introduced to the bass guitar by a friend from his church.

Growing up, Rose pulled inspiration from jazz composer Marcus Miller so often that people called him “Little Marcus Miller.” As a young musician he also admired the work of Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and James Brown.

Rose got his start performing with his church’s band. By age 10, he auditioned to be on Marvin Wynans’ Survivor, a gospel variety show in Detroit. The audition led to him landing a slot during the intermission where he played, “Hold Up The Light” by Whitney Houston. Today, the recording has nearly 500,000 views on YouTube.

The experience encouraged Rose to seriously consider a career in music. Shortly after, he began recording covers of popular songs and uploading them to a personal YouTube channel. He had planned on going to school for computer engineering, but after talking to the jazz faculty at MSU, Rose decided to pursue an undergraduate degree in jazz studies.

The musician added that “you can say more when you know more,” referring to his musical style shift after beginning his college education.

“I used to be the imitator, but now I want to make more of an independent name for myself,” Rose said. “I have my own name, sound and message.”

For his set Saturday, Rose will play original compositions addressing social issues while drawing inspiration from gospel, R&B, soul and hip-hop music. He said he got the idea for his Solstice set from a “race and identities” class he took at MSU. His primary focus is advocating peace and flipping narratives to show common goals across humanity. For example, Rose created an original piece titled “American Paradise” to acknowledge the different directions people take to find their purpose.

“We are all in pursuit of our own ‘paradise’ or ‘American Dream,’” Rose said. “So ‘American Paradise’ is like that peace offering; let’s just do things in love and togetherness.”

Blackmon-Khosla Quartet

Friday, June 21, 6:20 p.m. – 7:20 p.m.

Brandon Rose and the Dozens

Saturday, June 22, 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Education Stage, Downtown East Lansing

www.eljazzfest.com

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