Van Hemert "As the Willow Tree Grows" - Jeremy Wilson & David Rodgers

Jordan Van Hemert's soaring, lyrical, and jazz-inspired "As the Willow Tree Grows" is one of my favorite pieces that I've ever had the chance to premiere and record. Jordan is an amazing saxophonist, yet he totally nailed what the trombone is capable of. And David Rodgers' vast experience in the jazz idiom made his piano stylings the exact right fit for the piece. Learn more and get the sheet music at jordanvanhemert.com Jordan says about the piece: “As The Willow Tree Grows for tenor trombone and piano is loosely inspired by the lyrics to a Korean song from the early 1930's called 타향살이, loosely translated as "Living in a Foreign Country." In the lyrics, the speaker talks about how they have been living away from home for ten years and how things have changed since they have been gone. The song expresses the sorrow of losing one's country and being forced to mobilize (palpably felt by Koreans during the Japanese occupation in this time). Whether forcibly or by choice, when we leave our hometowns, things that are familiar are no longer, and cycles of life continue; time marches on. As I think about the many global conflicts of our time, I think about those who are displaced from their homes. This piece is a reflection of the diasporic movement of people around the world, and how far from home, people are forced to create new homes and new lives, yet it is possible that we all feel a yearning and nostalgia for what we once knew and loved. This piece was commissioned in 2022 by Jeremy Wilson. In composing this piece, I wanted to capture some of my favorite elements of Jeremy's playing--his lyrical upper register and the compassion in the way he phrases a musical line. In addition, I wanted to evoke a more tender, singing lyricism from the trombone, while staying true to the jazz rhythm and harmonic structures that inspire me as a composer and musician.” This video was recorded in Turner Hall at Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music. The audio was recorded by Kevin Edlin and produced by Nick Laufer. The video was recorded and edited by Continuous Motion Productions.