Eric Blumer - keyboards, drums, microKorg synthesizer, percussion
Lonnie Motley - electric bass
Jason Klobnak - trumpet
Elijah Samuels - saxophone
Debbie and David Blumer - handclaps

This is my most inventive, creative, epic and intense composition. I think the whole is greater than the sum of Brubeck’s parts. The haunting opening notes are from Jason Klobnak on trumpet. I can hear this in a classic spaghetti western movie. Jason improvised the opening trumpet lines while soloing over my piano part. It sounded mysterious so I separated and moved it to the open where it stands by itself. Once Jason’s trumpet lures you in, staccato keyboard notes then add tension. Intensity grows with sudden crashing, attacking strikes. Lonnie’s bass supports the keyboard intensity. Then Ode to Brubeck evolves completely into a bluesy back beat swing.

Writing and performing this on keyboard (piano) was challenging for me. There are repetitive 8th notes (or perhaps 16th notes, depending on how you score this.) My left hand (on piano / keys) plays steady 8th notes which then evolve into another time signature. In the middle section they evolve into triplets. (It might be a 12/8 time back beat swing.) Suddenly, there is a jolt back to the intense A section. Once again we hear the mysterious trumpet before the staccato energy finishes.
When editing Ode To Brubeck I decided to run some cymbals parts backwards to add mystery. My wife Debbie and son, David Blumer help with the handclaps.