What happens when you take 5 talented jazz musicians and put them in a room full of wind instruments? You have to go see the Doublers Collective to find out.

The Doublers Collective was kind enough to let me sit in on one of their rehearsals recently. I'm sure that attending a rehearsal does't sound that exciting... but when you have 5 people who can play a total of 23 different instruments plus a rhythm section, things get a little crazy. This isn't your typical , “Oh yeah, I play rhythm guitar, some bass and sometimes kit” situation. In this rehearsal, you have a small group of people expertly commanding an army of wind instruments. It took about 40 minutes for the group to set up, tune and get settled. The most impressive weapon in the Doubler's Collective arsenal is a bass saxophone. This behemoth was constructed in the 1920s, it's bell looks as big as a tuba bell, and I'm pretty sure it's bigger than me (certainly felt that way).

It requires a harness that looks more like a device to carry a large child than a typical saxophone neck strap. The co-ordination implemented to get through their songs was impressive. Instruments need to be placed in specific orders to accomodate for a clarinet section followed directly by a flute section that ends in a saxophone solo. It's not as frantic as it sounds. The Collective has orchestrated these changes beautifully.

Most of the music for the Collective has been written or arranged by Mike Crotty, the flugel horn/clarinet/flute/saxophone player. He is a long time resident of the valley and a prominent member of local jazz families; he is also the former staff arranger for the Airmen of Note in Washington DC. The founder and saxophone/flute/clarinet player Monica Shriver, met with me a while back to talk about the Doublers Collective on TWiP, my arts podcast. Monica is an Arizona native, and just like many AZ musicians, she was searching for an ensemble and in that quest decided to create a new breed of ensemble. There are huge advantages that come with playing more than one instrument really well. The idea itself is a draw, composers have a brand-new playground of sounds and textures and their group can be tailored to fit a plethora of gigs. The Doublers Collective has another advantage- they all get along. Honestly, this doesn't always happen in the music world. Sometimes disagreements can be so severe that it is difficult to play in tune with your band mates. The Collective has amazing group dynamics.

The Doublers Collective also wants to bring the concept of doubling to young musicians. They are open for hire to do clinics and performances at elementary through high schools. It is always wonderful to find ensembles who aim for the highest levels of musicality but also make room to reach out to younger generations.

The Doublers Collective can be seen on March 16th at 1PM at the North American Saxophone Alliance Biannual Conference at ASU and they will be performing with the famous doubler, Chris Vadala for the Phoenix College Jazz Festival on March 4th, 2012 at 8 PM. Phoenix College Bulpitt Auditorium. Please join Doublers Collective and the Superstition Jazz Orchestra for a great night of jazz!

To find out more, go to www.doublerscollective.com and www.monicashriver.com