Speaking of which hearing this band is like attending a masterclass on how to play tight-sphinctered swing

Speaking of which, hearing this band is like attending a masterclass on how to play tight-sphinctered swing. That, of course, is how Dizzy Gillespie explained his ability to play so high – “it’s from the ass”. As an exemplar of a big band, the Woody Herman orchestra can’t be faulted: great arrangements, from Gillespie’s Manteca, a gorgeous take on “Laura” with Fedchock’s buffed trombone plunging into the cotton wool, to a successful version of Steely Dan’s “Aja”: good soloists in all sections: and even in the ballads the steel shows through the gloss, every intervention by the brass a “bap!” or a “whap!”, the dynamics rising swiftly from mezzo-forte to fortissimo.Enjoyable though a masterclass is, it’s not the same as an authentic performance from the master And Woody is gone. The heart of the Herman band has always been “The Four Brothers”, a saxophone section of three tenors and one baritone, most famously of Stan Getz, Al Cohn, Zoot Sims and Serge Chaloff.Running through the tune named after the brothers, the current generation of siblings showed what made the Herman sound so distinctive: the sax section, made heavy through the lack of altos, gave a virtuoso display of four-part harmony, riding the bumps like one of those American limousines – the chassis low off the ground and the speed fast, but the passengers don’t feel a jolt.The weight of the saxes, anchored by a river-bottom scraping baritone and reinforced by a forceful bass trombone, was balanced by a five-strong trumpet section screaming out the staccato stops, commas and semi-colons. While some of the numbers were from the early years, there was no post-bellum formality about them. The remaining “herd”, as Herman’s groups were known, is led by tenor saxophonist Frank Tiberi, picked by Woody himself to keep the ruminants rumbling, and features many of the hot young players who were with the great man in his latter years, such as the trombonist and arranger John Fedchock.
Perhaps some might expect an outfit such as this to rest on the laurels of the past, smoothly swinging their way through sepia-tinted numbers. It’s 15 years since Woody Herman replaced his last clarinet reed, dying, incredibly considering his fame over five decades, in poverty.

The IRS had even seized his home and he had to lease it back from the government, which is a salutary lesson for anyone thinking of setting up a pioneering big band. Then Nalbandian made a crucial breakthrough just before the rain arrived, breaking Henman for a fourth time. And Henman ­ who was handed a place in the second round after Fernando Gonzalez retired hurt after the first set of their first round tie ­ could not recover after the rain relented. Nalbandian re-established his dominance to break again and then served out the set.The first four games of the second set went with serve. However, the good work was undone immediately as an uncertain looking Henman offered Nalbandian two break points and he took the second with a smash.

Nalbandian won his next service game to move 4-2 ahead but in a topsy-turvy set, Henman won the following two games ­ the latter to love against serve ­ to haul himself back into the match at 4-4. The Argentinian maintained his focus despite rain forcing a temporary halt after he had broken Henman in the second set.
Britain’s No 1 could hardly have made a worse start, dropping his serve in the first game. A drop shot from Nalbandian left the score on deuce in Henman’s next service game. But he held on, and in the next game, he survived two game points to break Nalbandian and level the match.