© Michele Jansen, KBEM
From its origins in spirituals and gospel,
jazz always has been closely intertwined
with messages of faith. Larry
McDonough has continued the
tradition by taking pieces of faith,
and pieces containing elements of
faith, and putting his stamp of
altered harmonies, rhythms and
meters to create new arrangements
for a new generation.
McDonough’s quartet CD,
the style of Bill Evans,
with minor harmonies, and the
meditative “Tuscarora” based on
the Northern Minnesota lake,
McDonough first explored the genre
(2001), with his arrangement of
“Nature Boy.” While many consider
the piece only as a beautiful jazz
standard made famous by Nat King
Cole and George Benson and a
generation later, the lyric of a wise,
strange and enchanted boy with a
message of being loved and loving
others is unmistakable in its
message of faith.
McDonough’s second solo CD,
Piano” (2003), contained original music,
as well as arrangements of jazz,
popular, religious, and historical music
in different times signatures and
harmonies. From McDonough’s
liner notes:
I wrote Tuscarora after finding what remains my favorite lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Northern Minnesota. A long portage on the east side keeps the remote lake from many visitors. Its combination of clear water, bluffs, beaches, fishing holes, and landscapes made it the perfect site for contemplation.
“Amazing Grace” often is viewed only in its religious context, but it also speaks with strength of the potential of all people to review their priorities and find new and higher directions. By placing the piece in 5/4 time and first in minor harmonies with later resolution to major, I sought to capture this evolution. It is dedicated to the late great pianist Bobby Peterson, whose faith and music were one.
...
“We Shall Overcome” continues my interest in interpreting historical pieces with jazz harmonies, and is dedicated to my late friends Paul and Sheila Wellstone, Roger Cobb, Paul Marino, and Bernie Becker, whose tireless work for social justice always gave me hope, and to my daughters Kelsey and Shannon, who continue to reach for new heights, and Rosie, who overcomes disabilities every day.
contains many Christmas favorites.
McDonough regularly performs these
and other jazz influenced pieces of
faith in church services in his home
state of Minnesota, as well as around
the country. Recent performances
have included:
Europe:
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Paris
La Maison Verte, 127 rue Marcadet
75018 Paris, France
Nationally:
First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia
2125 Chestnut St.
Philadelphia, PA
215-563-3980
West Valley Unitarian Universalist Church
5904 W. Cholla Street
Glendale, AZ 85304
(623) 846-6004
Mid West:
Minnesota:
Pilgrim House Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
1212 W. Highway 96
Arden Hills, MN 55112
People's Congregational Church
293 3rd St N.
Bayport, MN 55003
Dakota Unitarian Universalist Church
13001 County Road 5
Burnsville, MN
Peace United Church of Christ
1015 East Eleventh Street
Duluth, MN
St. Andrew’s by the Lake Episcopal Church
2802 Minnesota Ave.
Duluth, MN 55802
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth
835 W. College Street
Duluth, MN 55811
Michael Servetus Unitarian Society
6565 Oakley Drive Northeast
Fridley, MN 55432
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Mankato
937 Charles Avenue
Mankato, MN
Gethsemane Lutheran Church & School
2410 Stillwater Rd E
Maplewood, MN 55119
651-739-1264
Augustana Lutheran Church
704 11th Ave South
Minneapolis, MN
Basilica of Saint Mary
88 North 17th Street
Minneapolis, MN
Central Lutheran Church
333 12th St. South
Minneapolis, MN
Church of St. Albert the Great
E. 29th Street at 32nd Ave. S.
Minneapolis, MN
First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis
900 Mount Curve Avenue
Minneapolis, MN
First Universalist Church
3400 Dupont Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN
Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church
511 Groveland Avenue
Minneapolis, MN
Plymouth Congregational Church
1900 Nicollet Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN
Simpson United Methodist Church
2740 South 1st Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55408
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Northfield
5785 Lonsdale Blvd. E.
Northfield, MN 55057
St. Philip The Deacon Church
17205 County Road 6
Plymouth, MN
Church of St. Richard
7540 Penn Ave S.
Richfield, MN
First Unitarian Universalist Church of Rochester
1727 Walden Lane SW
Rochester, MN 55902-0901
St. Cloud Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
3226 Maine Prairie Road
St. Cloud, MN 56301
Macalester Plymouth United Church
1658 Lincoln Ave.
St. Paul, MN
Pilgrim Lutheran Church
1935 St. Clair Avenue
St. Paul, MN
St. John the Evangelist Church
60 North Kent Street
St. Paul, MN
St. Paul Reformation Lutheran Church
100 N. Oxford
St. Paul, MN
Lake Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists
24575 Glen Road
Shorewood, MN 55331
First Presbyterian Church of South St. Paul
535 North 20th Avenue
South St. Paul, MN 55075
Unitarian Church of Underwood
206 North Main Street
Underwood, MN 56586.
Unitarian Universalist Church of Minnetonka
605 Rice Street
Wayzata, MN.
St. James Lutheran Church
460 Annapolis St W
W. St. Paul, MN
Redeemer Lutheran Church
3770 Bellaire Avenue
White Bear Lake, MN
Unitarian Universalist Church of Willmar
500 Southwest Fifth Street
Willmar, MN
Wisconsin:
Blue Hills Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
230 W Messenger St.
Rice Lake, WI 54868
Unitarian Universalist Society of River Falls
N8010 Hwy 65
River Falls, WI 54022
St. Croix Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
Edling's Building, 201 North Adams St.
St. Croix Falls, WI 54024
Iowa:
Iowa Lakes Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
P. O. Box No. 93
1405 Highway 71
Okoboji, IA 51353
