• DECONSTRUCTING DAD •

West Point Quintette 7 Band

I had a marvelous experience at the US Military Academy at West Point this past Sunday.  Attended a performance of Raymond Scott music by the Quintette 7, all members of the West Point Band–which is composed of full-time, professionally trained musicians of the highest caliber.  Members of the band became interested in Raymond Scott a while ago and have just completed a new CD of Scott’s music.  Here’s a link to their webpage: http://www.usma.edu/band/quintette7.htm.

CD cover

The quality of the performance was absolutely first rate–which really wasn’t a surprise as these  exceptionally talented musicians all attended prestigious academic institutions,  including Juilliard, Raymond Scott’s alma mater.

The band members were gracious hosts and invited me to give a brief talk and Q&A, and I showed the 3 minute trailer for the film.  It was just a great afternoon and a striking example to me of how eclectic Raymond Scott’s music can be–a year ago if I had been asked if I thought I’d ever hear my Dad’s music at the US Military Academy, the answer would have to have been “no way!”  So thanks again to Quintette 7 for inviting me and all their hard work in bringing my father’s music to life in this unique location.

Also, they’ll be performing Raymond Scott selections again at the full band’s holiday concert on December 5th in Eisenhower Hall at West Point.  This performance is free and open to the public–so if you’re located in the New York area you might want to attend–you’ll need to bring government issued ID to get on to the campus.  Here’s a link:  http://www.usma.edu/band/Performances/performanceindex.htm.  Hope to see you there!