Chris Botti is a trumpeter
who fuses jazz and pop and entertains by drawing the audience in with
his crisp sound and his personality; not to mention that he was named one of "People" magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People of 2004! It was a romantic evening in
February 2015 when I last saw Chris Botti
with the POPS (see Day 104). In 2015, he played
several ballads from his CD,
“When I Fall in Love” and it was a romantic
“dreamy” night. I was excited for a
repeat experience.
Reflection
With Pittsburgh Symphony POPS you can experience various artists with the fusion and augmentation of the symphony (see 2016-17 season). The smooth sound of Botti’s
trumpet and the full sound of the
orchestra is a powerful combination. In Emmanuel you get a breath taking duet of Botti’s trumpet and Lucia Micarelli’s violin, combined with the symphony (listen here).
This year his show was a totally different experience than the one in 2015. It felt more like a
party, relaxed, and was more jazz weighted. He invited young musicians to move
to the front empty seats, he played in the audience, and even had a little girl from the audience join his jazz
band on the drums.
He always tours with a fantastic group of musicians and
guest vocalists (who in their own right
could have a solo show with the POPS). The audience was brought to their feet when vocalist Sy Smith sang “Look of Love” which had a crescendo jazz scat with Botti’s trumpet. The audience was up again when Lucia Micarelli “rocked it out” on her violin with Botti’s band and the symphony (listen here). The beauty of Botti’s skillful sound was displayed
in his rendition of Hallelujah with its stand alone trumpet and guitar
performance.
Chris Botti is a POPS favorite and he sure is worth a view anytime that he is in town or on tour. I
overheard the gentlemen next to me say, “boy that guy sure puts on a show and knows how to
work the crowd"!
(There are three more
POPS shows in the 2016-17 season: Neil Sadaka, Ella and Louis: All That Jazz and the
Music of John Williams and an interesting
line up for the 2017-2018 season. )
Other Sources
(SY Smith) Look of Love in Pgh 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8I6P02iZQA
Halleluiah https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-DrFjhRUoc
Lucia Micarelli Violin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgnSEc_WVrg
POPS 2016-17 season https://pittsburghsymphony.org/pso_home/web/subscribe-pops-16-17
POPS 2017-2018 season https://pittsburghsymphony.org/pso_home/web/subscribe-pops-17-18