The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, December 05, 1986, Image 21

The Battalion., December 05, 1986, Image 21

Image provided by: Texas A&M University

About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 1986)

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Newspaper Page TextPhoto by Bill Hughes 9 >e missed one of College >n’s hidden treasures, e sound is uncluttered jazz netimes mellow, times energy-packed. The is simple. And the music, ord, is unpretentious. 2se guys just enjoy playing isic’s sake. They like what lo, and so does their nee. an Lippman, bass guitarist ^ent for the local band, bes Notropis’ music as it-ahead jazz (“the older , or fusion type with a r funk twist. He says that the free style of Notropis’ music is what makes it work. “(Notropis) is not structured like a Top 40 cover band, where you have to play what’s on the record, ” Lippman explains. “We’ll take a lead sheet (with the chords and the melody line), play it through once and then it’s off to left field.” Lippman says the band will play just about anybody’s music, and usually includes some of its own compositions in the show. Notropis’ saxophone player Don Pope does a jazzy solo version of “Amazing Grace” that will send goose bumps crawling up anybody’s spine. Notropis began a few years back when Lippman and Chris Amemiya discovered a mutual interest in jazz and decided to form the band. “We had the same interests — doing jazz standards and things like that — and everything seemed to click, ” Lippman says. Amemiya adds, “We just got together. We just wanted to play little. That’s how it happened.” Amemiya, who is working towards a Ph.D. in genetics, plays trombone, valve trombone, fluegelhom and various percussion instruments, and serves as the band’s fearless leader during performances. Senior Jef Fite plays drums and Joe Warner works at the keyboards. Saxophonist Pope, a graduate of Houston High School for the Performing Arts, played on the professional circuit for several years. Regardless of their respective