Concerts - Chick Corea at Hill Aud., Ann Arbor

Chick Corea is not Return to Forever. Chick Corea is a composer, band leader, pianist and Moog synthesist extraordinaire. Return to Forever is Stanley Clarke (bass). Lenny White (drums). Al Dimeola (guitar) and Chick Corea, four deep musicians and composers. The quartet played to a full and resoundingly appreciative house at acoustically perfect Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor last Friday.

It was the first and probably the only jazz concert to be put on under the auspices of the University Activities Center this season. Given the sell-out crowd and the wild applause which greeted each solo, the lack of jazz in Ann Arbor this year will be sorely missed. Corea and band set out consciously to popularize the medium loosely defined as "jazz" through the use of electronics and the rhythms oí rock. At one point in the concert the entire band switched to acoustic instruments and began to play polyrhythmically, leaving their refreshing brand of rock and roll for the mind behind. Their acoustic music, of course, is never played on the radio, so it was good to see them use the medium extensively during the concert. Stanley Clarke is a hell of a stand-up bass player! Return to Forever is a tight, dedicated unit. Their three straight hours of playing ieft us inspired.