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Joey Pero ; From Bach To BrownBy the time trumpeter Joey Pero entered theJuilliard School—in the days before it offeredjazz studies—he appeared headed for the life ofa classical musician. A decade and a few detourslater, Pero continues to play his classical repertoire—hislive set often begins with a straightforwardreading of a Bach partita—but he alsochannels jazz players like Clifford Brown andMaynard Ferguson with such facility that a classical-onlylife now seems unthinkable.“I went to Juilliard to learn to play the trumpet,not jazz trumpet or classical trumpet mutuallyexclusive,” Pero said. “I had thoughts of auditioningfor orchestras, but I always had a differentkind of solo career in the back of my mind.”That ambition is now front and center. Perohas a new album, Resonance (Resonance MusicGroup), which has both jazz and classical offeringsand is garnering praise from people likeWynton Marsalis, who said Pero “plays the hellout of the trumpet and has a unique conception.”The clarity and range of Pero’s playing havestood out since he was a preteen member ofGenesee Quest, a drum and bugle corps in hisnative Batavia, N.Y. “I was so enthralled withperforming, got such a buzz from doing it,” Perosaid. “It felt so natural that I knew this is whatI’m supposed to do.”As he grew up, his father filled the housewith classical and jazz records, and taughthim that they were of equal worth. “I wasexposed to both at a young age and then kindof put them together,” he said.But his desire to pursue jazz along withhis classical studies did not go down welleverywhere. At Juilliard in those days, hesaid, there was little enthusiasm for venturesoutside the circumscribed curriculum.Occasionally, he admits, he rebelled, saying,“I was a black sheep at Juilliard in many ways.”After two years, Pero left Juilliard forBoston and the New England Conservatory,where he was able to integrate jazz formallyinto his studies. He also played with the BerkleeTower of Power ensemble, which gave vent tohis remarkable upper-register blowing. That, inturn, provided a kind of entrée to Ferguson’sBig Bop Nouveau band, with which he spentmost of 2005.When the Ferguson tour ended, Peroreturned home to Batavia, eventually circlingback to New York City, where he renewed relationshipswith artists like percussionist SimonBoyar, who studied and taught at Juilliard andnow teaches at New York University.Boyar played on and arranged two cuts onPero’s album. “I don’t think you’re going to heara classical track he does and say, ‘Oh, he’s reallymore of a jazz guy,’” he said. “In that sense, Ithink you can compare him more to an artist likeWynton Marsalis.”Marsalis, who had become something of amentor after meeting Pero in high school, compareshim to “charismatic” trumpeters likeRafael Mendez and Doc Severinsen. But Perocites Marsalis as a model.“He is someone with absolute devotion toexpressing your voice, and having a voice toexpress,” he said. “Once you allow an instrumentto be an extension of your voice, you canstart speaking your mind. There are no technicalbarriers that stop you from doing that.”—Phil LutzHOPE HEFFNER