Description
From the “Howard Johnson Tuba Jazz Series edited by Velvet Brown”:
“Way Back Home is the Jazz Crusader’s Anthem and although we recently lost Wilton Felder, we shall not forget his major contributions as a composer.”
The Jazz Crusaders were signed by Pacific Jazz Records around 1960. Wilton Felder, composer/tenor saxophonist, and Wayne Henderson, trombone, fronted the group. The Jazz Crusaders style had a very heavy emphasis on the rhythm and blues genre as well as gospel and soul.
Howard Johnson’s jazz tuba ensemble is envisioned as a tuba choir- with tubas in F, E flat, CC, and BB flat- that encourages tuba players to learn to play in the upper register. His charts were originally written for his tuba jazz ensemble, Gravity, formed in 1968 with Howard Johnson as solo lead tuba. The charts can in fact be performed with euphoniums; but he formed his group, made his arrangements and developed this specific instrumentation 50 years ago as a statement about tubas and prefers to hear his arrangements played in this configuration, encouraging tuba players to develop the range required. His most important advice is that whatever instrumentation is used, make it fun and find the best jazz rhythm section!
Score and parts included: solo tuba, tuba 1-5, piano, bass, drum set
