Orchestra Rehearsal for the Great American Composers performance this Saturday

Last year when B+ (Mochilla) told me that a symphony orchestra from Cedar Falls, Iowa was planning on performing J.Dilla alongside Duke Ellington, William Grant Still, and George Gershwin to celebrate Black History Month and African-American achievement in orchestral music, I thought he was pulling my leg. But sure enough, as soon as I Googled “Cedar Falls Orchestra J.Dilla,” the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra popped up and put my disbelief to rest.

When you hear about these “creative blips” happening in the world, it makes me smile. It reminds me that people are listening, and those who can, try to the best of their ability to find a way to share. This is what this show represents to me, sharing something new that would have been overlooked by so many who have not been given a chance to judge for themselves. It’s an opportunity for the music lovers of Cedar Falls to understand and appreciate hip-hop in a whole new light, and who knows, J.Dilla might have a few more fans before the night is through.

But I still had to know more on why Dilla’s music was chosen to be performed together with such an iconic group of composers. I emailed the music director at Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony, Jason Weinberger to find out how he first came to discover the music of Dilla.

“I’ve been listening to Dilla since the beginning, before I even knew who he really was. I think I first became more directly aware of his story and persona through his work in the 90s with A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and Pharcyde, and from there my interest just grew with each new project. If I had to pick my absolute favorite Dilla records I’d probably go with Donuts and Jaylib, though I could easily spend days on end listening to his beats from the Slum Village Fantastic albums and Common’s Like Water for Chocolate. J.Rocc’s Thank You Jay Dee mixes are always close at hand too.”

When did you first discovered Suite for Ma Dukes?

“I heard Suite for Ma Dukes when it first came out a year ago, and my first thought was that I needed to find a way to perform Miguel’s stunning reinventions of Dilla’s music. I’m always looking for ways to open up the traditional orchestra experience to new things anyway, so this seemed very natural. I looked around for Miguel on the web, found him on Facebook, and sent him a message to see if we could talk about getting these pieces in front of one of the orchestras with which I work. A few months later we met up in LA (where I’m from and where my family still lives) and connected over Dilla, Flying Lotus and Lutoslawski. The rest is history.”

And about this upcoming Saturday…

“I think one of the most special things about this weekend’s performance at the WCFSO – aside from experiencing the sheer beauty of Miguel’s orchestrations – will be the opportunity to appreciate Dilla’s achievements alongside those of other prominent African American composers who preceded him. To me it seems totally organic to hear Dilla alongside Duke Ellington and William Grant Still, and I think it’s a great way for audiences who may not be familiar with his work to get to know him.”

Progressive in his approach to music, Jason Weinberger and the WCFSO will bring Dilla to life on Saturday, February 6th in what will be an amazing evening. If you’re in the area or within driving distance, I encourage you to go. Experience Miguel Atwood-Ferguson’s beautiful crafted orchestrations and let the music pervade your senses. As much as Suite for Ma Dukes was a can’t miss for music lovers in Los Angeles, this event should be viewed the same way.

It’s music, it’s magic, and dare I say it, it will be timeless. Enjoy.

For tickets and information, click here: WCF Symphony

photos by: Noah Henscheid