Melissa Aldana
Tenor Sax Solo on
Along Came Betty

About

Melissa Aldana's tenor saxophone solo opens the improvisation on this WBGO broadcast performance of Benny Golson's Along Came Betty, the first of nine solos across the concert program. She takes three choruses of the unusual 34-bar ABCD form at 122 BPM with a swing feel, navigating Golson's distinctive structure where each section is entirely unique rather than following conventional repeat patterns. Aldana, who won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition in 2013, brings a warm, focused tone and deliberate melodic construction to the harmonically inventive changes. Her solo sets the tone for the performance before Emmet Cohen follows on piano.

Melissa Aldana was 32 to 33 years old at the time.