Puccini and All That Jazz

I once had the opportunity to interview the late pianist George Shearing about the mixing of classical music and jazz. He told me that, "Many jazz musicians feel classical music is just a bunch of scales that are easily understood. And classical musicians and audiences think jazz is nothing but noise. All of these misconceptions," he added, "are born of ignorance." Shearing said the best way to educate people about the virtues of both types of music is to mix up classical and jazz to draw from both sides and reach a maximum audience.

Music lovers in West Orange and surrounding communities will have an opportunity to do just that on Sunday, March 9, when pianist Eric Olsen and alto saxophonist Lou Caimano present a concert called Dyad Plays Puccini as part of the Music in the Moonlight jazz series at Luna Stage. The concept was born when operatic soprano Pamela Olsen confided to her husband Eric that Caimano's alto playing reminded her of an opera singer. This suggestion became the inspiration for a CD, released by Ringwood Records, that re-imagines Puccini's most beautiful classical compositions as contemporary jazz arrangements

Dyad Plays Puccini has been a hit with jazz reviewers. Jersey Jazz's Joseph Lang, pointing out that "Olsen and Caimano are comfortable playing both classical music and jazz," added: "The results are simply wonderful." And the Seattle Post-Intelligencer's Jack Goodstein wrote that Caimano and Olsen "make Puccini's music glow."

Olsen is director of music and organist at the Union Congregational Church in Montclair and ann adjunct faculty member at both Montclair State University and Caldwell College. Caimano has appeared in the orchestras of such Broadway musicals as A Chorus Line, CATS and Dancin'. He is also director of the Ridgewood Conservatory in Paramus. The concert will be held at 7 p.m., and tickets can be ordered by logging onto www.lunastage.org or calling (973) 395-5551.