Trumpet player Roy Hargrove is a rising star with the promise of a bright future in jazz. His style is fresh and energetic, but he is also well versed in the musical "vocabulary" of jazz and the legacy that precedes him. He opens the show with a hopping rendition of Miles Davis' "Well You Needn't", much to the delight of the audience at the Kennedy Center's Terrace Theater.

Growing up in Dallas, Hargrove started playing trumpet at age nine. His first teacher focused on the blues as a means to teach improvisation. While in elementary school, Hargrove was active in both the jazz band and the school orchestra.

By age sixteen, Hargrove had become attuned to the works of great jazz trumpet players who would influence his own development. According to Hargrove, Clifford Brown was "the first cat that really opened me up". Freddy Hubbard, Woody Shaw, Dizzy Gillespie, and Miles Davis also inspired Hargrove.

An experience playing with Wynton Marsalis may have had the greatest impact on Hargrove's early development. When Hargrove was in eleventh grade, Marsalis came to town to perform some shows at a Fort Worth club, The Caravan of Dreams. One day, he gave a clinic at Hargrove's performing arts school, The Arts Magnet. Marsalis was so impressed with Hargrove's playing that he invited him to sit in with him at the club.

Hargrove hasn't limited his study of jazz to trumpet players. He has also looked to piano and sax players, composers, and vocalists for inspiration and guidance as he developed his own voice as a musician. For example, he studied techniques in phrasing by listening to Charlie Parker. Hargrove and Dr. Taylor also discuss Thelonious Monk's influence, and his ability to "illustrate a groove".

Dr. Taylor notes the lyrical quality of Hargrove's playing, particularly with ballads. When asked how he achieves this, Hargrove emphasizes the importance of knowing the lyrics in order to understand the song and "project the right mood". He also listens closely to great ballad vocalists like Sarah Vaughan and Nat King Cole.

Hargrove plays a variety of types of trumpets, and sometimes selects a specific instrument to complement a song. This practice exemplifies his tendency to strive for a new approach in his music. During the show, he plays a lovely rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" on the flugel horn, the trumpet's larger cousin. The instrument's "warm and mellow sound" perfectly captures the mood of the song.

Hargrove's talents extend well beyond his instrument. He also composes and directs his own band. He and Dr. Taylor discuss the difficulties in controlling dynamics among a large group of musicians, especially when many of them are aspiring soloists.

At one point in the show, Hargrove even puts his trumpets aside and demonstrates his scatting abilities. Responding to questions from the audience, Hargrove states that he is very open-minded about new developments in music, such as fusing jazz with "hip-hop".

Turning his attention back to the trumpet, Hargrove plays a Billy Taylor composition called "Diz", a fitting tribute to the master himself, Dizzy Gillespie. They round out the show with Hargrove's own composition "Public Eye".