A mix of standards and lesser known jazz tunes with a sprinkling of original compositions are the ingredients of H, the 8th Letter's repertoire. Original member Elise Henderson (saxophones) will be joined by Jeff Waite (bass), Tom Singer (trumpet/flugelhorn), Jeff Magby (drums), and Gary Peyton (piano) when H plays Blowout VI. The band started playing around town in the fall of 1994. Waite and Singer joined H at the beginning of '95, followed by Magby in the fall of that year. Peyton, who had appeared with H many times as a substitute keyboard or drum player, has been playing keyboard regularly with the band since last summer.
Singer said the band used to rely heavily on jazz standards by the greats --- Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, and so on. "We gradually reached out to tunes that are not as commonly played by people like Bill Dobbins, Woody Shaw, and Herbie Hancock," he said. H is doing a number of originals now, including two tunes composed by Singer. "Hopefully we will continue to work in this direction," he said.
Henderson and Singer have played together in big bands since the spring of 1992 (U of I jazz bands and John Garvey's Illinois Jazz Orchestra). Waite and Magby are also products of the U of I jazz program; Magby currently plays with Jazz Band I. Both play with I-Pan. Peyton, who will also be appearing with Confluence at Blowout VI, is very active in the local music scene.
With gigs at Sweet Betsy's and the Blind Pig Co., look for H, the 8th
Letter to continue to be a fixture on the C-U music scene. H plays Blowout
VI at 3:05 p.m.