On Thursday, April 10, 2025, Princeton University Concerts presented Saxophonist Jess Gillam and Pianist Thomas Weaver as the final presentation of its current season.

Both artists are astonishingly young, both in their 20s, it would appear, yet both have complex careers and fame. 

Jess has appeared on the BBC, and at London’s Proms Concerts, as well as at the great concert halls of the world. She has appeared with symphony orchestras both here and abroad. She has several recordings to her credit. 

Thomas Weaver is a pianist, composer, and conductor, currently a faculty member at the Curtis Institute of Music, and at Tanglewood. 

Their program was an ambitious and varied one, to be sure. Generally speaking, the first half was original works by famed composers such as Debussy, Poulenc, and Benjamin Britten, arranged for saxophone and piano. After the interval, their program focused on Jazz greats, and George Gershwin, whose “Liza,” was arranged for saxophone and piano.  Their music spanned from John Dowland to John Harle, to Rune Sorensen, who.was born in 1983.

Jess played two saxophones, a soprano and alto. Unfortunately,  nothing explained this fact. Many were puzzled by the soprano saxophone,  since we are mostly familiar with the tenor saxophone. Researching saxophones on Google, you can discover that at one point there was an entire orchestra of saxophones, some quite astonishing and large. 

Jess and Thomas played wonderfully and with great passion. Jess occasionally spoke to the audience using a microphone,  which added much to the evening’s enjoyment as she recounted episodes from her life and experiences, as well as details of the music.

This audience went wild with its appreciation of the dynamic duo. All hoped for their return to Princeton University in the near future.

Princeton University Concerts may have completed their current season, but their fall season is now on sale. All of the concerts look fascinating. For information and purchasing, visit: www.puc.princeton.edu .

Loving what I do, and being handicapped, I often can’t meet the demands of driving, paying tolls and parking fees. Like our social media stars who ask for donations, could you donate a dollar, two, or twenty to defray my expenses by tapping the Buy Me A Coffee hotlink below. Thank you. 

Program

• JOHN DOWLAND / RUNE TONSGAARD SØRENSEN (ARR. JESS GILLAM)
  “Flow, My Tears” / “Shine You No More”
• FRANCIS POULENC (ARR. JOHN HARLE)
  Oboe Sonata, FP 185
• BENJAMIN BRITTEN (TRANS. JESS GILLAM)
  Temporal Variations
• CLAUDE DEBUSSY
  “Beau Soir”
• NADIA BOULANGER (ARR. ALISTAIR VENNART)
  “Cantique”
• GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN (ARR. SIMON PARKIN)
  Sonata in F Minor for Flute or Bassoon, TWV 41:f1
• PEDRO ITURRALDE (ARR. JOHN HARLE/JESS GILLAM)
  Pequeña Czarda
• STAN GETZ / JIMMY ROWLES (ARR. IAIN FARRINGTON)
  The Peacocks
• PHIL WOODS
  Extracts from Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano
• RUDY WEIDEOFT
  Valse Marilyn
• BARBARA THOMPSON
  “The Unseen Way”
• SIDNEY BECHET
  Petite Fleur
• GEORGE GERSHWIN (ARR. AL GALLODORO, TRANS. PETER RILEY)
  “Liza”
• JOHN HARLE
  RANT

Jess plays saxophones from Yanagisawa Saxophones UK and reeds from Vanderoen UK. Both companies endorse Jess. Jess plays many different saxophones and most of her performances are on the alto saxophone and soprano saxophone.