The great jazz guitarist Jim Hall played at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury in 2013. It was one of those concerts that I tried to round up people for in advance, saying “You have to go.”’ I think I was somewhat successful with a few non-jazz-loving friends. One of my best friends, John Holohan, who plays excellent guitar himself,. drove to Danbury from his home in Massachusetts to hear Hall play, in a quartet with the young guitarist Julian Lage. He knew it would be worth the trip.
It was a spellbinding concert. Hall, who died Tuesday at the age of 83, had undergone back surgery and walked on stage bent over, looking frail. But as soon as he began to play, the music he made - vibrant, and intelligent and open – was all that mattered.
I think I’ saw Jim Hall play four times. His records – with Sonny Rollins and Bill Evans and Red Mitchell and Ron Carter – - are part of the sound I heard as I learned about jazz over the years.
But we are lucky. There are LPs and CDs and now YouTube. Jim Hall is around whenever we want. His music waits, patiently, for people to listen to, and be rewarded.