Lehde’s Night performs for Black Studies classes

Lehde’s Night, Ladue’s Jazz Ensemble, performed for Black Studies classes Dec. 1. 

Lehde’s Night played “Bags’ Groove” by Miles Davis, a jazz piece that featured solos from the trumpet, trombone, bass guitar, upright bass and percussion instruments. 

“In jazz, I’m able to express myself clearly, especially during a solo when I have complete control over what I’m doing,” senior trombone player Kian Howe said. 

Typically, in jazz pieces, soloists do not read music off of paper. Instead, they improvise, combining typical jazz patterns — often referred to as licks — with their own flair. 

“I go into some kind of flow state where my mind is blank and I am just listening to the people I’m playing with, reacting and expressing,” senior trumpet player Jake Hinz said. 

Black Studies classes are currently exploring the history and origins of jazz. Students completed a virtual New Orleans jazz tour and learned the different elements of jazz, as well as how jazz impacted the community of the enslaved. As a culmination project, each student is completing a piece of artwork inspired by the music they have listened to. 

“The performance was quite lovely,” junior Saba Fajors said. “It made me feel rhythmic, I was really feeling the beat. It was uber fun to make my super jazzy jazz art. It made me feel artistic, really bringing out my inner artist.”