The New Horizons Ensemble quietly took the Crowell Stage on Saturday night, but two hours later left to a hollering standing ovation. Headed by the saxophonist Ernest Dawkins, the quintet led the audience down free jazz lane, through contemporary improv, swing, bebop, hip-hop, ballads, avant-garde, and even some klezmer-like melodies.

“We try to span all the types,” said Dawkins, when asked about the hip-hop and klezmer.

Dawkins, with trombonist Steve Berry, bassist Darius Savage, drummer Issiah Spencer and the newly-admitted trumpeter Maurice Brown, began the concert with a moment of silence.

“Which direction is east?” Dawkins asked.

Pointed towards the back of Crowell Hall, all five members stood, heads lowered, in a moment of silence for their former band member and Dawkin’s childhood friend, Ameen Muhhamed.

After this silence the first song began slowly. Brushes on the drums, muffled bass—then the three wind players meandered over to a table laden with instruments such as chains, a whistle, finger cymbals, maracas, a slide whistle, and a long tube to be blown through or whipped about one’s head. With the help of these random percussion instruments the song quickly picked up steam. Finally trumpet, saxophone, and trombone came in with a minored harmony, spotlighting the fast-fingered, free-form, high-screeching style of each player.

It is not uncommon for the band to dedicate pieces, such as “Mean Ameen,” to former or fellow musicians. Dawkins told the audience that they often write pieces in homage to past musicians which inspire them in some way. During the concert they played “The Messenger,” which salutes Art Blakey and his deep groove. This influential saxophonist passed away in the 90’s, but had a profound effect on Dawkin as a developing saxophonist.

The second tune, “Jeff to the Left,” was written by the trombonist Steve Berry. This ballad-like piece began with a solo from the bassist, Darius Savage. The deep tones of the bass coupled with the flowing melody made this piece especially moving.

“What I liked most about the music was how it was like dialogue,” said Julia Kleederman ’09. “There was a verbal quality to it, as though the instruments were talking.”

If the opening song, “Mean Ameen,” was a fevered discourse, “Jeff to the Left” was a mother’s murmuring. It was to be the only slow piece of the evening. The rest of the night left the audience short of breath, or possibly worse for the faint of heart.

An older piece, “Ashes of Dust,” made great use of the percussion-goodies table. Sporadic spurts of whistle-blowing and backwards trumpet-playing enlivened the drummer’s feature piece. Drummer Isaiah Spencer played the cymbal supports as much as the cymbals; at one point he departed from his set and drummed the ground, the music stands, the back wall. He skipped back and forth across the stage running his drum sticks along the paneled wall as though he were a young boy with a stick and a metal fence. The entire concert was filled with this childlike energy.

Dawkins spoke slightly on their music being avant-garde.

“I don’t like to think of our music as being free, but as it being the greater music,” he said.

The audience certainly appreciated this “greater music.” Shouts of “Bravo, bravo,” and hand clapping accompanied the musicians. The wind-players entered the audience at one point, playing next to the ears of young and old alike. One woman began dancing and clapping in the aisles.

Their new album, “Mean Ameen,” contains many of the songs played last Saturday.