Drenched In Local Color: Teo Macero's Jamboree

To my knowledge, an American city had never commissioned a ballet before Jamboree, and I'm sure that no city has done so since. But the Texas city of San Antonio felt they had something to dance about, and they were right! The piece was commissioned in 1984 and was presented June 20 of that year by The Joffrey Ballet, with choreography by Gerald Arpino and music by Teo Macero.

Macero is one of the fearless musical innovators of our time. He came to notice in the 1950s as a jazz musician and composer, a colleague of Charles Mingus, Thelonius Monk, Teddy Charles, and legends of that caliber. He is one of the experimenting pioneers who developed what became known as "Third Stream Music," and he has been an important contributor to the progressive jazz movement.

But Macero is a composer of many intriguing facets. He has written highly tonal symphonies, operas, and concerti, as well as ballets. He's known to the general public as a prolific composer of film scores and scores for television movies. A rather recent example was the highly successful TV film "Young Ted Kennedy."

Written to celebrate San Antonio's Amero-Mexican heritage, Jamboree consists of six sections, each of which represents a different aspect of that city's rich cultural history. The full-company classic ballet incorporates fragments of popular, folk, and square dances indigenous to the San Antonio area. You'll find "Cotton-Eyed Joe," "Rose of San Antone," "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," and other familiar themes. There's a heel-kicking

hoedown and a real "swing-yer-partner" square dance as well as a sweeping, romantic tango and a meditative prayer born of a Mexican passion play.

Jamboree is scored for orchestra, and includes harmonica, banjo, country fiddle, guitar, marimba, and maracas among the instruments utilized. Macero is most accurate in his representation of authentic harmonies, rhythms, and dance forms. Talk about a splash of local color: Jamboree will drench you with it!

To my knowledge, an American city had never commissioned a ballet before Jamboree, and I'm sure that no city has done so since. But the Texas city of San Antonio felt they had something to dance about, and they were right! The piece was commissioned in 1984 and was presented June 20 of that year by The Joffrey Ballet, with choreography by Gerald Arpino and music by Teo Macero.

Macero is one of the fearless musical innovators of our time. He came to notice in the 1950s as a jazz musician and composer, a colleague of Charles Mingus, Thelonius Monk, Teddy Charles, and legends of that caliber. He is one of the experimenting pioneers who developed what became known as "Third Stream Music," and he has been an important contributor to the progressive jazz movement.

But Macero is a composer of many intriguing facets. He has written highly tonal symphonies, operas, and concerti, as well as ballets. He's known to the general public as a prolific composer of film scores and scores for television movies. A rather recent example was the highly successful TV film "Young Ted Kennedy."

Written to celebrate San Antonio's Amero-Mexican heritage, Jamboree consists of six sections, each of which represents a different aspect of that city's rich cultural history. The full-company classic ballet incorporates fragments of popular, folk, and square dances indigenous to the San Antonio area. You'll find "Cotton-Eyed Joe," "Rose of San Antone," "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," and other familiar themes. There's a heel-kicking

hoedown and a real "swing-yer-partner" square dance as well as a sweeping, romantic tango and a meditative prayer born of a Mexican passion play.

Jamboree is scored for orchestra, and includes harmonica, banjo, country fiddle, guitar, marimba, and maracas among the instruments utilized. Macero is most accurate in his representation of authentic harmonies, rhythms, and dance forms. Talk about a splash of local color: Jamboree will drench you with it!