jazzbeat

Musician thrives in gospel, jazz and classical music

Composer/performer to play at Dayton Art Institute.

Drummer Mark Lomax and his trio will perform at the Dayton Art Institute on Thursday night.

ENLARGE PHOTO

By Adam Alonzo , Contributing Writer 5:05 PM Saturday, July 30, 2011

Mark Lomax II made an important career move at 2 years old when he began playing drums. During his childhood, he was nourished on many different musical styles. Now a resident of Columbus, he plays drums in his own ensembles and as a sideman in bands led by others. He has written jazz and gospel pieces and also composed classical works for orchestra.

The Mark Lomax Trio will perform in the Shaw Gothic Cloister of the Dayton Art Institute on Thursday starting at 5:30 p.m. “The audience can expect a high-energy mix of jazz standards and originals,” Lomax said.

The trio also includes Edwin Bayard on tenor saxophone and Dean Hulett on bass. This same group released “The State of Black America” in 2010, an ingenious recording that is more of a five-movement suite than a typical jazz album.

Though the trio is small, their improvisations can reach the point of frenzy, as Lomax detonates like the finale of a fireworks show and Bayard explores the edges of harmony, bending his body for low grunts and rising for rapid trills. Hulett punctuates the proceedings with lively bass as an accompanist or soloist.

Lomax can make the drums whisper or shout, a refreshingly unpredictable blend of tempos and textures. During lengthy solos, his shimmering cymbals and chattering drums sound as if two percussionists were collaborating.

Lomax lists Maurice Ravel and Bela Bartok alongside Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk as his favorite composers. He was recently in Prague for a concert in which the Czech National Orchestra performed several of his scores.

Whether the music is for the concert hall or the jazz club, Lomax said, “I write from my heart and my experiences.” But he loves jazz because it gives him the greatest freedom as a drummer.

“When I compose a classical piece, more often than not, the drums are absent,” Lomax said. “In a gospel setting the drums are accompanying a singer, ensemble or choir. African-American art music is the one music in American culture where the drum can still have its original voice.”

Adam Alonzo is a contributing writer for the Dayton Daily News. He can be reached by e-mail at music@adamalonzo.com.

How to go

What: Mark Lomax Trio

When: 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 4

Where: Dayton Art Institute, 456 Belmonte Park N., Dayton

Cost: Free for members, $8 for nonmembers

More info: (937) 223-5277 or daytonart institute.org

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