Hope for Children: Jack DeJohnette with Berklee Students

Last week, the legendary jazz drummer Jack DeJohnette graced the stage of the Berklee Performance Center to present a program charting the past and future directions of his music. The show was divided into two sets—the first, DeJohnette's jazzier, earlier work and the second a glimpse at his current projects, which combine the harmonic ideas of modal jazz with those from North Africa and Spain.

During both sets, DeJohnette was accompanied by Berklee students. Though they were a far cry from DeJohnette's usual colleagues—he has played with everyone from Miles Davis to David Murray—the students more than held their own on the stage, at some points dazzling the audience with their chops. Pianist Christian Li, in particular, had a deft hand behind the keyboard. His first solo, during the "Zoot Suite," sounded to this reviewer like something utterly new—a gentle, tinkering set of rolls on the high notes that DeJohnette adorned with cymbal crashes. Li and DeJohnette had some of the tightest interplay of the night, and, if Li continues his career in jazz, rather than pop or classical, the music has a bright future.

DeJohnette's music during the second set was beguiling. Completely engrossing here and broad and hokey there. The lyrics of his final piece, "Fifth World Anthem," sounded like they came from the theme song for a mid-90s television show about diversity. "Tango African," by contrast, featured a sticky, funky bassline, wonderful melodica harmonies, and a passage of refreshing zither-and-trombone interplay. DeJohnette is a fantastic melodica player who brings out the full richness of tone in this frequently overblown instrument.

It almost goes without saying that DeJohnette was stellar behind the kit. He played drums with a relaxed virtuosity—the few mistakes he made in the two hours that he played were met with a wry smile—and he drove the music forward with a light hand. Impressive, too, was guitarist David Fiuczynski, the Berklee faculty member who brought the concert together. As a bandleader, he was impeccable. As a guitarist, he was mind-blowing. The jazz students of Berklee remain in good hands.