Jazz Inside NY 2009 09

The Ultimate Directory of NY Area Jazz Club, Concert & Event Listings

Authenticity & Staying on The Path

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2 September 2009 Jazz Inside NY www.jazzinsidemagazine.com To Advertise CALL: 215.887.8880

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September 2009 Volume 1, Number 2Cover Design by Lori Dawson

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Publisher: Eric NemeyerEditor: Gary HeimbauerAdvertising Sales & Marketing: Eric Nemeyer, John AlexanderCirculation: Robin Friedman, Susan BrodskyPhoto Editor: Joe PatitucciLayout and Design: Karry ThomasContributing Artists: Shelly RhodesContributing Photographers: Eric Nemeyer, Joe Patitucci, Ken Weiss.Contributing Writers: Dan Bilawsky; Al Bunshaft; John Cizik;Curtis Davenport; Bill Donaldson; Dimitry Ekshtut; Robert Gish; Ira Gitler; Gary Heimbauer; Rick Helzer; Jan Klincewicz; Joe Lang; Ronald Lyles, Matthew Marshall; Dave Miele; Nick Mondello; Patricia Nicholson;Joe Patitucci; Michael Steinman Ariel Teitel; Ken Weiss.

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SUBMIttINg PrODUCtS FOr rEvIEWCompanies or individuals seeking reviews of their recordings, music books, videos, software and other products are requested to send tWO COPIES of each CD or product to the attention of the Editorial Dept. All materials sent become the property of Jazz Inside, and may or may not be reviewed, at any time.

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CONTENTSCLUBS, CONCErtS, EvENtS

37 Calendar of Events46 Announcements Upcoming Events;

Regular Engagements; Additional Club and Venue Schedules

51 Directory of Clubs, Venues, Music and Record Stores, Schools & Universities, and more

65 Noteworthy Performances 68 Around Town

COLUMNS 4 Apple Chorus by Ira Gitler

CD rEvIEWS25 20 Hot New CDs

INtErvIEWS & SKEtChES 6 Rondi Charleston

BRASS LOVERS CELEBRATION

10 Jami Dauber12 Orbert Davis14 Nathan Eklund16 Duane Eubanks18 Freddie Hendrix19 Luis Bonilla20 Michael Mossman22 Mark Rapp24 Michael Rodriguez66 Fall Preview70 Michael Lazaroff Jazz Cruises LLC72 Nicole Pasternak74 Randall Keith Horton75 James Moody76 OSPAC Jazz Festival - Kate Baker77 Bob Gluck78 Eldar Djangirov99 Jazz Education Sourcebook

LIvE PErFOrMANCE rEvIEWS 63 Jazz In July; Tierney Sutton

Two publications from Jazz Inside

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On The Cover: Rondi CharlestonFeature begins on page 6


Apple ChorusRalph Lalama, John Marshall, 92Y Roundupby Ira Gitler

For Apple Chorus I enjoy a carte blanche to write about where my ears take me but when I attended three concerts at Jazz in July at the 92nd Street Y I saw and spoke with Jazz Inside NY colleague, Joe Lang, and figured out that he was on assignment.

He made me aware that he had already taken in the first two night of the seriesSondheim & Styne and A Helluva Town:New York Jazzso in order not to step on Langs lines for the three musical experi-ences we had in common I got a pre-publication copy of his review that you will no doubt read, further in-side Jazz Inside NY.

I think we basically agree that the repertoire was top shelf and the musicianship on a lofty level. For Pi-ano Jazz, subtitled With Respect to Oscar (Peterson, that is), the pianists were many and varied with many new combinations. No one tried to emulate him

but producer Bill Charlap took off on an unac-companied excursion of parallel runs ala Oscar at one point.

Some Highlights: Charlap, with Peter and Kenny Washington, opened with a Slow Boat to

China that was anything but slow but decelerated somewhat by docking time; a two-piano meeting between Mulgrew Miller and Eric Reed on Just Friends in which Mulgrew accompanied Eric for a stretch with some Teddy Wilson-like, gentle stride; Reeds delivery on Petersons arrangement of Leonard Bernsteins The Jets Song; later on, Erics passion practically turning his piano into a B-3 on Oscars Hymn to Freedom; Miller and Renee Rosnes col-laborating on an airborne Everything I Love that led to an extended tag; Nicholas Payton and Rosnes in a moving Ballad to the East.

The Gerry Mulligan Songbook also had some piano pyrotechnics when Charlap and Ted Rosen-thal, both former sidemen with Mulligan, shared the piano bench on Walking Shoes for three and four-handed forays fueled by tightly-choreographed switching of sides. Gary Smulyan and Jeremy Pelt filled the Mulligan and Chet Baker roles on Line For Lyons. I do feel that Gary, who normally sports one of the harder baritone sax sounds, coming out of Pepper Adams, softened his approach somewhat

without trying be Gerry, and Jeremy was not chan-neling Chet. However, the counterpoint was there for all to hear.

As noted by Joe Lang, some of the most success-ful numbers were Mulligans romantic ruminations: Noblesse, Lonesome Boulevard and A Ballad.

Saxophone Summit wound up this years pro-gram in a blaze of talent. Ill second Langs praise and give Bill Charlap full marks for his overall presenta-tion, production and playing. This was his fifth year at the helm and it keeps getting better and better.

Those of you who have read this column over the past couple of years are aware of trumpeter John Marshall, who from 1992 has lived in Cologne, Ger-many where he teaches, is a stalwart in the trumpet section of the West Deutscher Rundfunk big band and tours in Europe with his small group. Twice a year (August and December) he comes back to New York and plays two nights at Smalls. I make sure to catch at least one night each time. His regulars were

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all there in mid-August: Grant Stewart, tenor sax; Tardo Hammer, piano; Neil Miner, bass; and Jimmy Wormworth, drums. The repertoire on this eve-ning included Clifford Jordans Bearcat and Jimmy Heaths Bro Slim. On Johns Tailwind where the rhythm section lived up to the title and the soloists responded in kind, I was captivated by the sound of Jimmys cymbal behind Tardos solo but everyone had the pots on. Johns one vocal this time was a lesser-known Jay Livingston song, I Was a Little Bit Lonely and he sang it in his unpretentious musician style with Grant contributing a beautiful solo. They finished with Bud Powells Wail, living up to the title and then some. I didnt have to ask myself if I was having a good time.

In fact, the entire evening was a good time be-ginning with a set by tenor saxophonist (and Johns former colleague in the Metropolitan Bopera House) Ralph Lalama. From note one Ralph, backed by bass-ist Murray Wall and drummer Clifford Barbaro, hit you with that gigantic sound and relentless attack on his own Lalamas Dilemma. On Namely You, melody by Gene DePaul for the Broadway produc-tion of Li l Abner (circa 1957) he was melodically expansive and Wall minimalistly perfect in solo. Barbaro was an integral part of the dynamic. Wayne Shorters Lester Left Town was followed by a ten-der but tough Portrait of Jenny before Ralph dialed it up again with Take the Coltrane.

Later in August I went to the Bemelmans Bar

at the Carlyle where pianist Bob Albanese was leading a trio with Ugonna Okegwo, bass; and David Meade, drums. Some of you may be aware of him because of his re-cent Zoho CD of One Way Detour with guest artist Ira Sullivan that has been garnering many positive reviews. It was during the release party at Smalls that a Carlyle ex-ecutive heard him and offered him the Sunday night gig at Bemel-mans for the month of August. Im hoping that hes held over into September so that you can hear him in trio mode playing such songs as This Heart of Mine, Just in Time, Alone Together, with a vigorous mambo section, and his original Merciful Percival.

Sitting in at times were guitarist Paul Myers, trumpeter Chris Payson, a mate of Bobs in a Buddy Rich band of yore; and vocalists Karryn Allison and Loretta Ables Sayre, the latter currently appearing on Broadway as Bloody Mary in the revival of South Pacific.

By the second set it became a big party. Judg-ing by the enthusiasm of the audience, with one more Sunday to go, perhaps youll be able to hear and see it for yourself in September.

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Deep within man dwell those slumbering powers; powers that

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Orison Swett Marden


Rondi CharlestonBy Eric Nemeyer

FEATuRE

Chicago native Rondi Charleston started her musical journey with piano lessons, playing Bach by ear, while also exploring her love of theater. At 16, she entered the Juilliard drama department, but went on to earn a BM and MM in vocal perfor-mance. She quickly rose to the professional level in the world of opera. Eventually, her interest in jour-nalism took her to pursue a degree at New York Uni-versity. Proving that she can be great at anything she puts her mind to, she eventually landed a position as an investigative reporter working with Diane Saw-yer on network television. Moving away from that life, Rondi has now come full circle and devotes her-self to creative pursuits in a life of composing, writ-ing lyrics, recording and performing. The world of jazz has embraced her with open arms.

JI: Youve gotten heavily involved in writing lyrics. I know you carry a notebook around. So youve made a transition from working in network television, which was a corporate and less creative opportunity as I un-derstand. Talk about a little bit about the transition.

RC: Well, Id have to say that Ive really come full circle and back into music. I started out really as a musician as a child, and I got into Julliard at a very young age. My mother was a professional singer and my father was an English professor. So I really have extremely creative juice in my family. And its almost as if the journalism was a side trip - albeit a very inter-est and productive side trip. It was nonetheless, you know it was a part of the process that led me back into music. I learned how to tell a story working with Diane Sawyer - whether it be a journalism story or a story through a song. Everything that I learned up un-til now in my life has all fed into being a songwriter. Even the music that Im doing now is, is really, its sort of the culmination of many years of experience.

JI: When you were at Julliard, you were focused more on the musical end of the song than on the lyric-writing end of it.

RC: Correct, yes. I was really in; I was a classical trained musician as are a lot of jazz musicians. My brother Eric plays with the New York Philharmonic and he also plays a lot of jazz though. And if fact, he and I grew up sort of fighting over who got to practice piano after school. It was sometimes a real race home just to see who got first dibs on practicing. So were both deeply into the music. I used to play Brubeck and Miles Davis, and my dad played Miles Davis for

me when I was in utero, he tells me. So, I had to come back to music. Its always been my destiny. Now Im getting the chance to thank God and fully explore whatever gifts I may have. Its surprising even to me how the songs that Ive written have turned out to be kind of the audience favorites on the road and on the

radio. Telescope has become like one of the hits. Like if I dont sing it, if I dont sing it I get in trouble.

JI: Now, what was the inspiration for Telescope?

RC: Telescope was inspired by a trip that I took with then eight-year-old daughter to the Hayden Plan-etarium in Manhattan. She did not want to go in. She was terrified of dark, of the bigness of it all. I had to persuade her. Once she was finally inside, she had one of those moments that kids have - thats an epiphany. She started to connect to herself and the Universe and started to ask these really intelligent, really sophisti-

Every thought or subconscious thought that I have is what I will become. Again it goes back to authenticity. It goes back to

having the guts to walk the walk not just talk the talk. I realized that every thought I have will manifest in the world.


cated questions that I had no answers for - questions like what are black holes? What is a cosmic collision? What are galaxies? How did I end up in the Universe and feeling like a very little small piece of dust, a piece of sand. Then amidst all this, the hugeness I was completely like unprepared for this moment. I had to come home and write - I just came home and started writing. I started writing like a dialogue, or the dia-logue down between the two of us that occurred on that day. I got to then end of the song and I wrote, you can see, the whole idea of seeing out into the uni-verse with a telescope and she said to me at one point, can I see my future? I had been reading the book The Litle Prince to her, and I said, you can see with your heart. What I wanted to impart to her is that even if you couldnt understand the magnitude of the Uni-verse that you know this is really what matters. She was happy with that answer. In Minneapolis I had a mother bring her three daughters into the Dakota to hear my performance. She had heard Telescope on the radio, and she resonated, and she wanted her daughters to come and hear it live. The way that the song, this song was born was that I brought the words really fully-formed into Bruce Barth. I told him that I wanted to create layers and layers of sound to illustrate the layers and layers of complexity in the Universe. So, on the top we have this very floating child like melody, very simple. [sings]: Tell me how the dance began be-tween the stars and moon and sun very simple, yet very profound floating melody and then underneath it I said I wanted something that is like the churn-ing pulsating chaos of the universe. Give me sounds that are, that sound like cosmic collisions and that sound like the rings and strings, as she said the rings and strings of Jupiter, you know that magical element that happens when you look up into the sky. I said I need all of these sounds in layers and he was able to do this string arrangement - pulsing rhythmic string arrangement that you hear underneath the melody then we have this rhythm thing going and then he adds this sort of counterpoint and syncopated string line, then we have the melody and then I began and ended this song with this very simple African chant that Emma [my daughter] actually sings along with on the recording and on the DVD at Live at Dizzys. I brought her on stage a couple of years in a row now. So it goes from being very simple and pure to sort of layering, layering, layering, more and more complexi-ties, and then back at the end to being very simple and pure with the thought of being able to see with your heart and the pure voice of the child at the very end as well, bookends. On the tour, the originals are get-ting the response. The standards are great as well. Im passionate about the standards as well. I love, and Ive been getting great response to Shall We Dance and Im Old Fashioned.

JI: Talk about your composition Ancient Steps.

RC: Ancient Steps started with another trip with my daughter to see the March of the Penguins, the

documentary. The very mystery and power of it re-ally touched me. There was the sense of wonder, the capacity for love and caring - in this harsh, harsh environment. I thought there was something there. I thought there was a nugget that could be brought into the world. The songs that I write, I try to make both personal and universal so that you know it has to have a huge resonance for me, but generally it turns out that its something that everybody can relate to as well. Again, I wrote the lyrics and the melody and then brought them into Bruce Barth. We would just

sit at the piano together and play with harmony un-derneath the melody and see what works. Wed be like oh yeah, thats good, thats good, lets do that, or no, thats not quite right, thats not the way we want to go. But it was very much a collaboration on-the-spot, together. Im also writing now with Lynne Ar-riale and thats really exciting. Unfortunately she lives down in Florida, so I cant go and sit next to her on the piano bench and write together. But Song for the Ages I had a seed of an idea. I was born and raised in Hyde Park in Chicago, which is Obamas town.

www.rondicharleston.com

THE DUKEJAZZ SERIES

Funding for this series was provided by The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts presents

Beginning in Fall 2008, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts hosts eight live jazz performances, featuring a selection of Chamber Music America award-winning artists and their innovative jazz ensembles.

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BRIAn LyncH &SpHERES of InfLUEncESeptember 23, 2009Doors open at 7pm; concert at 7:30pm / Bruno Walter Auditorium 111 Amsterdam Ave @ 65th Street / The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Dorothy and Lewis Cullman Center/ Free Admission / 212.870.1793

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And I wanted to write something after the Grant Park acceptance speech in Grant Park that would convey the hope and sustain the feeling of unity you know into the future. I told Lynne that this was the gist of what I wanted, and she came up with this. I basically wrote the lyrics phrase by phrase on that one. She sent me a phrase of a melody in an MP3 file over the inter-net. She would send me one phrase and I would write to that one phrase. Then I would send it back to her with the words and shed be like oh yeah, yeah, thats good, thats good, thats good. Okay, let me see now. Where is it going to go from here? Then she would write the next phrase so, and then I would get it and then I was like okay, yep that works. Then I would write the words and send them back to her. We just did that back and forth, and back and forth until we had the whole song. It was really organic because you know it was like building brick upon brick upon brick. People literally got on their feet when they heard the song. Now of course part of it was political that they were happy about Obama, but part of it was just the power of the song, the power of the music. So Lynne and I are definitely continuing to write together and we have one, two, three, four, like five more originals that are going to be on my next album that are com-plete and ready to go and we are going into the record-ing studio next month to put them down.

JI: Talk about the kinds of dialogues and dynamics that evolved in the studio to bring it to life from pa-per to sound for the album In My Life.

RC: Im passionate about standards on this album. Shall We Dance, Ive always wondered what it would, I played the part of Anna in the King and I when I was in high school and I always wondered what it would be like if in the movie, if Yul Brynner had like a couple of glasses of wine I love to do that with standards and it turned out there was a lot of juice there underneath the surface. And so the way that Bruce and I did it was, it turned into a very kind of a sexy sultry kind of a thing, which was great fun. Then we took Im Old Fashioned, which I adore, adore, adore, by Johnny Mercer. Im Old Fashioned moves at 100 miles per hour, very modern, very mod-ern sounding version the words suddenly dont sound corny at all. They sound completely relevant and modern. I wont do something unless I have a re-ally strong point of view. Bewitched - same thing.Its different and yet still authentic and true - because authenticity is everything to me. Its got to be. I cant fake. Im not capable of faking it. I paired it down to the most intimate form that I could.

JI: Were there ample rehearsals for the recording?

RC: Oh you know, its like one of those things where we have one or two rehearsals with the guys and go in. You want to work things out so you know which direction you want things to go. Thats why I try to work with musicians who are really generous, respon-sive, warm nonjudgmental collaborators like Joel Frahm. You know sometimes musicians just click. Sometimes people just click for whatever reason and

we just have this trust that is growing and growing and growing over the years. He played for me on my last album. He brings such a big heart and has gener-ous spirit and to say nothing of brilliant chops and really probing mind. Hes always, always fresh and creative and you know just a giant, giant spirit. He inspires me to sing.

JI: Why dont you talk a little bit about what drives your creativity?

RC: We played yesterday at the Hole in Wall Gang Camp for terminally ill children, the camp that Paul Newman founded 20 years ago. We were playing for 60 kids who are seriously very, seriously sick, bone can-cer and all kinds of stuff. We got to a place in the per-formance where some of the kids I knew were riveted. They were riveted by the music and by the words and by the vibe. I got feedback afterward you put out this incredibly careful and yet peaceful vibe. And at one point I dont remember what happened but I think I got down on my knees and I sang Over the Rainbow. I had Dave Stryker and Jay Leonhart and Alvester Garnett. Regina Carter, his wife was in the audience as well and Regina and Susie came up to me afterwards with tears in their eyes and commented that was the most amazing gift that you just gave to these chil-dren. So it was a mind, body experience for all of us. I thought it was going to be so difficult. I was kind of terrified to sing in front of these kids and because its a big responsibility. What I thought was going to be a scary experience turned out to be a wonderful experi-ence and I find myself today craving to do it again.

JI: Its all perspectives, you were scared. We make our own meaning. The mind is a powerful thing.

RC: Its such a powerful thing and every thought Ive been reading a lot lately about the power of thought and how every thought that you have forms, forms your existence and forms your reality.

JI: Everything is energy. Recently, I was listening to Bob Proctor, personal development speaker and au-thor. He was talking about how we know in the phys-ical world that the gestation time for a baby is nine months or 280 days. He commented that in the spiri-tual world there are also gestation period although we may not know exactly what they are because we cant visually measure things the same way. But of-ten make pretty good guesses. So when we have a thought in our minds about creating something new, if we can visualize it, believe it what you what you can see in your mind you can have in your hands.

RC: Exactly, exactly. Have you ever, did you ever see the movie What the Bleep? I love it. The whole meta-

physics there is an explanation for these things. Some people dont believe it but its there. Like the molecules with the water move and response to sound. I wanted to talk a little bit about sound heal-ing and music therapy because its another area that fascinates me. Have you read Oliver Sacks book Mu-sicophilia Tales of Music and The Brain?

JI: No.

RC: It talks about, he talks about the power of music and how it can lift us out of depression when noth-ing else can. It can, it can animate people with Par-kinsons Disease who couldnt otherwise move. You know it can give words to the stroke patients who cant speak. The power of music, the power of sound its fascinating to me. Music occupies more areas of our brain than language does. I have in front of me right now, I have a series of tuning forks, because Ive been exploring the sound, sound healing and the power, I dont know if youve heard of this, this group called Tama-do, theyre actually out in California. You place them on different areas of the body and for example, the heart area, its almost like a chakra thing. Im no expert on this. I think knowing about it can help with composing and with getting our mu-sic in the right place. Certain forks correspond to the heart, the spleen, the stomach, the lung, you know. Everything has a sound relation. That its fascinating. Certain notes correspond, resonate with the heart. Hello, you know?

JI: And it has a certain frequency too.

RC: Frequency. Frequency. Exactly.

JI: You were talking a minute ago about, about the, about what you manifest. One quote that I resonate with is Be careful what you think because your thoughts become word. Be careful of your words, your words become actions. Be careful of your ac-tions, your actions become habits. Be careful of your habits, your habits become your character. Be care-ful of your character, your character becomes your destiny.

RC: Its so funny because Aristotle got that sound and music could contribute to qualities of character.

JI: Could you talk a little bit about some of the words of wisdom that youve heard from a mentor that has inspired you or that has made a significant impact on your creativity?

RC: Well you know I have to go, Id have to go to Wayne Dyer. Id have to go to the power of thought. Every thought or subconscious thought that I have is what I will become. Again it goes back to authen-

the physical act of yoga is really a preparation for deep meditation and self-inquiry. The physical part of it is great and

I do it everyday. But the deeper rewards are the opening of creativity, the opening into your mind.

To Advertise CALL: 215.887.8880 September 2009 Jazz Inside NY www.jazzinsidemagazine.com 9661828-TBD_V01_01_01_01.pgs 08.03.2009 17:37 BLACK YELLOW MAGENTA CYAN

ticity. It goes back to having the guts to walk the walk not just talk the talk. I realized that every thought I have will manifest in the world. I actually figured that out before I started writing songs and so I know now that the songs that are now pouring out of me, and its really kind of scary how theyre pouring out. Its not scary bad, scary good. Its wonderful, its exhilarating. It is important to pay attention to each, each thought that I have to be sure that its not self-destructive - thats its going in a positive direction, that its a thought that will impact people in a positive way, that its a genuine loving thought. If you have genuine loving thoughts, your music will reflect that. Ive gotten sort of out of my head and into my heart I suppose you could say. Shining a light on those negative thoughts, kind of makes them go away if youre just being aware of them. Just so you know, my thoughts were usually of self-doubt and feelings of unworthiness and that kind of thing. I never had any darker thoughts than that.

JI: One of the fragments of wisdom Ive come across often is that if only we knew how powerful we are, it would scare us. What do you do to, to recharge your bat-teries and decompress from all the stress in contemporary society?

RC: Im deeply into yoga. It is a means of union - union of body, mind, and spirit. The more you learn about it the more you realize that the physical act of yoga is really a preparation for deep meditation and self-inquiry. The physical part of it is great and I do it everyday. But the deeper rewards are the opening of creativity, the opening into your mind.

JI: Well, the greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance its the illusion of knowledge, as Dan Boorstin, past Librarian of Congress put it. So how have you experienced or dealt with this in your life?

RC: The illusion of knowledge, I love that. Recently I read an article in the New Yorker by Malcolm Gladwell about people who are overly confident and how dangerous. He was talking about Bush and Cheney. The more I feel that I have everything to learn and I have insatiable curiosity and wanting to really get it right, to get things out in my own way, the better off I am. The more that I rely on other peoples analysis and the more that I dont question

JI: therefore youve stopped learning.

RC: Then I think the ego gets engaged, and once the ego gets engaged, its over. Its the kiss of death for art. I think even Miles Davis said once, approach music as if you were in kindergarten. Approach it as if you just learning it for the first time and youll see so many more possibilities from that perspective. If you approached it from a perspective of thinking you know it all already, its over.

JI: What kind of musical things are you practicing? Do you work on things at the piano?

RC: I have playing the Bach Inventions by ear at age six. My parents sent me to piano lessons immediately. I had piano my whole childhood - but it was a classical foundation. I had no concept of the language of jazz. So a few years ago, I took it upon myself to learn it as a child would learn it basically from kindergarten you know. I studied with Garry Dial for awhile at Manhattan School of Music. Ive been working recently a lot with Kate McGarry whos such a brilliant, a brilliant musician and shes helping me really incorporate the elements of jazz into my music. Only now, after ten years of real study do I feel like Im getting a handle on it where I can start to improvise and play with the rhythm and play with melody and be spontaneous and in the moment. Its so thrilling. But if I had had any ego involved, I wouldnt have been able to go back and study. You cant fake it. You cant fake it. You have to go back and learn it. So I did.

JI: Im constantly searching as well and I share Mark Twains perspective about it. I love to learn. I just dont want to be taught.

RC: Its painful. It was hard, hard, hard work. I put in a lot, a lot, a lot of hard work to learn this language of jazz but Im so glad that I did. Im having so much

Continued on Page 43


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lar gig on Sunday nights in Brooklyn at a restaurant/bar called Downtown Atlantic. Virginia Mayhew, Lisa Parrott, Jamie Fox and Cook Broadnax are the regulars, and its a really fun, swinging band. Carl calls tunes that arent your typical standards, like Carioca, Humpty Dumpty Heart, Afternoon in Paris. Its a great gig with an owner and staff that treat the musicians exceptionally well!

JI: What was it that initially inspired you to play this music? How did it all start?

JD: I started playing piano when I was three, and both of my parents are big music lovers, so music was always playing in the housefrom classical to folk to jazz to big band. When I was old enough to be in the school band, I chose the trumpet, probably be-cause of all of the Maynard Ferguson, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Count Basie and Buddy Rich records Id heard at such a young age!

JI: What are your top five desert island trumpet records that you couldnt possibly live without, and please state why?

JD: Hmmthis is a really tough one. Definitely Clif-ford Brown and Max Roach Live at Basin Street. That was the first small group recording Id ever owned, thanks to my dear friend Marcus Printup. The first time I heard Clifford play his solo on What is This Thing Called Love, I was in shock. I couldnt believe that the trumpet could be played that way! And along those same lines, Id say MF Horn 1 by May-nard Ferguson, Miles Davis Steamin, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrongs Porgy & Bessyou gotta have Louis and Ella on the island! Fifth would be The Best of Lee Morgan The Blue Note Years.

JI: As a musician, what do you feel your role or re-

Jami DauberBy Gary Heimbauer

JI: Many great players have attended North Texas University. Can you talk about your experience there?

JD: Attending the University of North Texas was re-ally life-changing for me, actually. I had just gradu-ated from the University of Florida in the fall of 1990 with a Music Education degree, and I moved back to Dallas, lived with my dad and commuted to Den-

www.divajazz.com

Believe it or not, the band has NO divas in the strict sense of the word. Everyone is very cool!

Ive actually seen more diva behavior in males than females!

ton. Initially I wanted to get a Masters in classical trumpet, but I decided to audition for one of the lab bands, and I was shocked when Mike Steinel called me at home to tell me I had made the Three OClock and did I want to be in it? Of course! I finally real-ized that playing jazz always put me in a much better mood than playing other styles. So, later that semes-ter I changed my major to Jazz Studies. I eventually moved up to the One OClock Lab Band, formed my own small group and got up enough courage to book a few gigs around Dallas. There were a lot of perfor-mance opportunities and hundreds of amazing play-ersmost of the learning happened at jam sessions at friends apartments. When I first moved to New York, it was my friends from UNT who helped me outits a like a big family here.

JI: What is it like being the manager of The DIVA Jazz Orchestra? That sounds impossible because a diva is someone who wont be managed!

JD: Believe it or not, the band has NO divas in the strict sense of the word. Everyone is very cool! Ive actually seen more diva behavior in males than fe-males! I sort of naturally progressed into becoming manager several years ago after having been the per-sonnel and office manager. In the beginning, it was awkward, because Id been in the band for so long and was friends with everyone. It turns out that that actually was a positive aspect. I think the band mem-bers feel like Im looking out for their best interests since I am also in the band. And I would not be able to do this job without the guidance of Stanley Kay (founder/former manager) and help from Sherrie.

JI: What events current or upcoming are you excited about in your musical life?

JD: DIVA will be performing September 16-20 at Dizzys with Marlena Shaw. I love working with her. She is such a great lady (and she swings her ass off). We also have a concert September 26 at the College

of St. Rose in Albany with Johnny Mandelwell be playing his charts, which will be a blast! I also play in the Ellington Legacy Band with Norman Simmons and Virginia Mayhew, which I really enjoy. That music is right up my alley. Edward Ellington is the leader and is one of the most amazing people I have ever met! And I occasionally play with Carl Thomp-son, a master bass maker and player, who has a regu-

sponsibility is in our society? Is what you do some-thing only for you and the musicians you are sharing the stage with, or are you trying to achieve something outside of that microcosm?

JD: Im one of those who believes that we are en-tertainers as well as musicians. I have learned over the years that as a musicianbeing on stageit is extremely important to connect with the audience whether it is on a musical level or on a personal level or hopefully, and ultimately, both. Im not a big fan of musicians who stand up there and play and do not acknowledge applause from anyone in the audience. Taking a bow or giving a nod or a smile is a way for us as musicians to say thank you for listening. There is a reason that there is an audience and I want to make sure they feel appreciated. Once the audience is gone, so are the gigs.

JI: What is the greatest compliment that you can re-ceive as a musician?

JD: I think the greatest compliment is when someone says that my playing touched his or her heart. The best advice I ever got was from Marcus Printup. We worked together at Disney World in the late 80s, and when I began venturing into the world of improvisa-tion, he told me to always play from your heartfive simple words that Ive always remembered and hope to live and play by for the rest of my life.

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions.

Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you,

too, can become great.

Mark Twain

in 1973Duke Ellington

chose Randall Keith Horton

to succeedBilly Strayhorn

Randall Keith Horton conducts TWO CONCERTS

Sunday, October 4, 2009, 7:00 p.m. Three NYC premieres*

The Duke Ellington-Randall Keith Horton full-length orchestral tone poem,BLACK, BROWN AND BEIGE for big band, symphony orchestra, steel drums, African drums, soprano and baritone soloists

Carman MooresGOSPEL FUSEfor soprano soloist, soprano/alto vocal ensemble, Gospelmusic quartet and symphony orchestra

Kirke Mechems SONGS OF THE SLAVE(the suite from Mechems opera, John Brown)for soprano, bass-baritone, chorus and symphony orchestra

Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln CenterBroadway at 60th St., NYCwww.jazzatlincolncenter.org

Sunday, October 18, 2009, 4:00 p.m.Taped for PBS Television

THE SACRED MUSIC OF DUKE ELLINGTONThe Riverside Choir, The Riverside Inspirational Choir, Hortons big band: the Randall Keith Horton Gospel Orchestra, the Dance Theatre of Harlem

Ensemble, tap dancer Floyd Williams, sopranos Diana Solomon-Glover and Tamara Mesic, bass-baritone Tyrone Aiken presented by Music at

Riverside in cooperation with Rakeiho Musical Offerings, Inc.

The historic Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Dr., NYCwww.theriversidechurchny.org

www.randallkeithhorton.comconcerts produced by Rakeiho Musical Offerings, Inc, a tax exempt 501 (c) (3) corporation, Chrysler Bldg., 405 Lexington Avenue, NY, NYEllington photo Howard University, the Founders Library, Channing Pollock Theatre Collection, www.founders.howard.edu; other photos: Horton, Bruce Shippee; Moore, C. Moore; Mechem, G.Schirmer, Inc.

*

*

*



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muscles in one event! CJP is the culmination of my career. Add to that the fact that I strive to present a new genre based on combining all the amazing qualities of jazz and classical music. When fused, the result is something newsomething that satis-fies the audience regardless of preconceived notions. Gunther Schuller called me recently and told me that CJP is the only orchestra of its kind in the US. We are planning a 2010 season of three full orchestra and six chamber orchestra concerts, and new recordings as well as a few road performances.

JI: What is it about musical improvisation that you find so valuable? What does it offer to you, your band-mates, and the listeners? What motivates you and drives you forward?

OD: Improvisation is life. In it we find many skills found in life itselfhigh levels of communication listening and responding democracy, decision making, problem solving, language, leadership, flex-ibility, teamwork, and even memory. When perform-ing with my small group I often plan complete sets only to change my mind as I count off the first tune. Then sometimes I just start playing without commu-nicating by word to the guysjust go! An hour can fly by so quickly!


OD: The fifth grade band in Momence, IL and Louis Armstrong on the Ed Sullivan Show around 1970. Once I got going, I was hooked on Rafael Mendez and loved to practicestill do!

JI: What are your top five desert island trumpet re-cords that you couldnt possibly live without?

OD: Only five? Youre killing me! Lets see: Miles

Orbert DavisBy Eric Nemeyer

JI: After reading your biography, it seems like Chi-cago is as fertile as New York when it comes to jazz. You have stayed busy, prolific and in the limelight as a jazz musician without having to move. Can you talk about the scene there, and how it may compare to jazz in other parts of the country or world?

OD: I believe that Chicago is as fertile as New York

Cre

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Kenn

eth

Moh

amm

ad

www.orbertdavis.com

Improvisation is life. In it we find many skills found in life itselfhigh levels of communication - listening and responding

- democracy, decision making, problem solving, language, leadership, flexibility, teamwork, and even memory.

when it comes to jazz! So the question becomes, what makes a healthy jazz scene? For me its Chi-cagos performing opportunities (concert and clubs), audience, community, fiscal support and education. Chicago received a huge stimulus package with the formation of the Jazz Partnership in 2005. This coalition of corporations and foundations provided over two million dollars in efforts to build the Chi-cago jazz audience by focusing on Chicago jazz. My 56-piece symphonic jazz orchestra, Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, has performed twice on the Made in Chicago series performing for over 22,000. What a huge risk! The jazz education scene is also healthy. Area students are realizing that they dont have to leave the city to get a quality jazz education and can be part of a supportive, creative network that sup-ports their career. Thats exactly how my career has developed. I was also fortunate to find consistent work in the recording studios, on the stage, in the clubs and in education. Students from all corners of the United States are also choosing schools like the University of Illinois at Chicago, where I am an asso-ciate professor as their destination for jazz education. Jazz is also finding its way back into the schools. My plan is to get it into the general classroom.

JI: You have played with a huge list of notable people. Can you talk about the highlights for you and how they impacted your musicianship and career?

OD: I was very fortunate to hang out and perform at a club near DePaul University, where I received my undergraduate degree, every Monday night. The band was made up of guys (and a few gals) who domi-nated the recording studios in Chicago. Thats how I learned to play jazz. Every week I only missed one week in three years I studied with great jazz musi-cians such as Art Hoyle, Bobby Lewis, Roger Pem-berton, Ronnie Colber, Ralph Craig, Ed Peterson, Sonny Seals, Mike Smith and John Whitfield. They were my heroes. Through the years I have had the privilege to record and perform with Ramsey Lewis, including an amazing performance at Chicagos Sym-

phony Center that featured Grover Washington Jr.


OD: Chicago Jazz Philharmonic! You can check it out at www.chijazzphil.org. I get to flex and chal-lenge all my compositional, musical and conducting

Davis Sketches of Spain and Kind of Blue; Clif-ford Brown with Strings; Chet Baker The Touch of Your Lips; Dexter Gordon Homecoming, featuring Woody Shaw).

JI: When you first embarked on the sophisticated journey of becoming an improvising musician, or a jazz musician who plays over changes, what were some methods that you found extremely useful to achieving your goals?

OD: Learning the theory and forgetting about it! Once I developed as a composer, Ive learned that the creative thought process of writing for orchestra and improvising is exactly the same, except one has a larger template and the other is spontaneous. I de-veloped a method that combines creative free impro-visation, transcribing solos, understanding the blues and the writing of jazz motifs in the development of improvisation. It takes a lifetime of practicing!

JI: As an artist, your state of mind and ability to dig deep is important. Outside of playing, what do you do to re-center and find peace of mind?

OD: I find peace in prayer and my faith as a Chris-tian. Having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ puts everything in perspective and provides strength to deal with reality and to be creative. Also, I work just as hard as CEO of a creative education program, DMDL, where we teach reading and math to chil-dren deemed at-risk through music. You can learn about it at www.discovermusicdiscoverlife.com. Its a full-time job in itself! CJP also has its own innovative education programs as well. Every day is different. So when its time to finally play, I get to play from my exhausted soul! I find tremendous balance with it all. Did I mention that Im a husband and father as well? Being at home is the time when I am not a musician.

JI: As a musician, what do you feel your role or re-sponsibility is in our society? Is what you do some-


PERFORMANCE SPOtlight PERFORMANCE SPOtlightScot JazzImprov Ad-SEPT-09.qx7:Layout 2 8/21

Upcoming concer

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Southpaw September 9, 2009

at 8:30PM

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2009 sets at 9:00 & 10:30PM

227 4th Ave, Brooklyn NY Tel:

(718) 857-4816

13 memorable tracks includin

g Underdog,

Popeye, Sanford and Son, Bar

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Ted Kooshian piano, arrangem

ents Jeff Lederer sax

Tom Hubbard bass Warren

Odze / Scott Neumann drum

s

on Summ

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www.Kooshmania.com

"Ted Kooshian's...Quartet

is out of this world!"

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"Ear opening contemporary ja

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Ted Kooshian'sStandard OrbitQuartet

NewCDNewCD

To advertise your

performances in

Jazz Inside NY Magazines

PERFORMANCE SPOTLIGHT

section, contact Eric Nemeyer

at 215-887-8880 or

[email protected]

Upcoming performances with Jazz Guitarist

Sheryl BaileySeptember 10 and October 14Early Show @ the 55 Bar w. The Sheryl Bailey 3No Cover! 55 Christopher Street NYC www.55bar.com

September 24 and October 18Late Show @ the 55 Bar w. Jazz Guitars Meet Hendrix featuring Sheryl Bailey and Vic Juris$10 Cover 55 Christopher Street NYC www.55bar.com

Saturday, October 17Late Show @ The Bar Next Door w. The Sheryl Bailey 3129 MacDougal Street www.lalanternacaffe.com

Check www.sherylbailey.com for information on A New Promise. In tribute to Emily Remler from MCG Jazz, available this fall.

A modernist burner with an abundance of Pat Martino-style chops. - Bill Milkowski

JazzTimes Magazine

Hear Gras on these classic CDs and performing with his quintet in the New York & New Jersey metro area.

September 4 & 580th Birthday CeleBrationCeCils RestauRant & Jazz Club

September 10lennox lounge

Grassella Oliphant

[email protected]



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my grandparents generation. But the first jazz I re-ally spent consistent time listening to, were Louis Armstrong records. It wasnt a conscious realization at the time, but my guess now is that I was drawn to the character and energy that exuded from his music. I loved the tracks where Louis would sing because I could really hear how much fun he had as a performer. After hearing him sing, you can hear the same energy in his playing. Although practicing wasnt always fun, I always loved the idea of playing music and had a lot of fun with it.

JI: When you first embarked on the sophisticated journey of becoming an improvising musician, or a jazz musician who plays over changes, what were some methods that you found extremely useful to achieving your goals?

NE: I dont think anything that Ive done over my life Ive truly developed on my own, but instead gathered from all the different people Ive studied with over the years. My goal is always to be as far from being a jazz musician playing over changes as possible. By that I mean that my primary goal is to create music. The playing of chord changes is a part of the process, but isnt the end-all result. This is something that Im still constantly working on. My goal is to truly gain all of this musical knowledge and understanding so I can forget about it and just play. I dont feel like Im even remotely close to where I want to be in that re-gard, and I hope Ill feel that way for the rest of my life. The foundation of my improvisational practice is transcribing. I feel that everything I could ever want to play is on a recording somewhere and learn-ing through the process of transcribing really open up my ears. Not only does it get me into the brain of another great performer, but I find that it exposes

Nathan EklundBy Gary Heimbauer

JI: Can you talk about your new album Trip to the Casbah?

NE: Trip to the Casbah is all original music, most of which was written within about six months of the re-cording. I love playing standards, but I find that one way to continue to develop my own voice in the world of jazz is through composing. What I find interest-ing about small group jazz is how much personality

www.nathaneklund.com

My goal is always to be as far from being a jazz musician playing over changes as possible. By that I

mean that my primary goal is to create music.

each member of the group brings to the music. Since I knew who the band would be as I wrote the music, their styles of play were in my brain through the com-position process. The band is Donny McCaslin on tenor sax, John Hart on guitar, Bill Moring on bass, and Tim Horner on drums. It was a great experience being in the studio with these guys, because they have spent so much more time there than I have. They were all really relaxed but ready for what we were go-ing to do, or if not they had me seriously fooled.


NE: Im playing in a dektet project organized by Ron Horton and Tim Horner that focuses on the music of Andrew Hill. Ive checked out a couple of Hills re-cords from the 60s, Point of Departure and Andrew!, but dont know his music very well. Hills composi-tional style is very unique and Rons arrangements of the material has its own vibe as well. The group is almost a middle ground between a small group and a big band, as there is plenty of arranging, but also lots of room for blowing too.

JI: What is it about musical improvisation that you find so valuable? What does it offer to you, your band-mates, and the listeners? What motivates you and drives you forward?

NE: For me, improvisation is an opportunity to cre-ate my own voice through music. It exhibits many major characteristics of any language-building vocab-ulary, understanding structure and inflection, and es-tablishing a mood or attitude. So playing improvised music becomes a conversation between myself and my band-mates, and also often the audience as well. Im very thankful that most of the gigs I play on feel like a collaborative effort as opposed to a competition. I believe that my playing is stronger because of those musicians around me. The driving factor for me as an

improviser is creating something different than what Ive done in the past. Thats a huge part of my motiva-tion for practicing and building vocabulary.


NE: As a young child I was definitely familiar with music from the big band era, being the music of

weaknesses in my playing or thinking process. Fred-die Hubbards playing is very logical to my brain, but his technical execution is really hard to match. Thad Jones, on the other hand, has such a unique approach that I often cant predict where hes going or what hes going to do. When I studied with Joe Magnarelli, getting my masters degree at New Jersey City Uni-versity, we used to sit and transcribe together in our lessons. That was great because I got his perspective on the music and how he heard some portions of the music was really different than how I did.

JI: As an artist, your state of mind and ability to dig deep is important. Outside of playing, what do you do to re-center and find peace of mind? What do you do to break through all of the surface stress in our contemporary world? Or perhaps, you feel that angst is good for music?

NE: I think angst can be good for music, but I dont have a hard time finding that energy when I need it. I spend a great deal of my day focusing on music or music related issues, so simple things like walking my dog or playing tennis are great escapes from the stress of the everyday world. In those moments Im typically able to forget what else is going on in my life and just enjoy the present.

JI: What is the most rewarding facet of your life as an artist?

NE: The most rewarding facet of being an artist for me is the pursuit of a completely elusive dream. Im sure that sounds a bit strange, but the idea that I can continue to learn and grow musically over the course of my entire life, never coming close to attaining what is potentially available, is really inspiring to me. That being said, there are many goals I set that I will attain or at least I hope to. But the primary goal of learning and understanding all the options that exist in the world of music will never be met.

PERFORMANCE SPOtlight PERFORMANCE SPOtlight

@

236 East 3rd St. between Aves B & C

Thurs. September 24th

2 Shows starting @ 9:30 PMwww.nuyorican.org

...................

REAL NEW YORK STYLE LATIN JAZZ

www.williemartinez.comwww.myspace.com/lafamiliasextet

W i l l i e M a r t i n e zW i l l i e M a r t i n e z

Peter Mazza New York City Jazz GuitaristDebut CD on Late Set Records Through My Eyes features 8 originals and 2 standards

played by Will Vinson- Alto Saxophone, Matt Penman- Acoustic Bass , Bill Campbell on Drumsand Peter Mazza on Acoustic Guitar and Electric Guitars

switching between acoustic (with a variety of standard and odd tunings) and a beautiful L5 and was playing fingerstyle and with a pick - amazing on all permutations. But most impressive of all is his sense of harmony and voice leading. At times, I thought I was listening to the entire Pat Metheny group and it was only him playing solo Dan AdlerSee Adlers full CD review in this issue!

The CD is Available on Amazon and iTunes....

Mazza is the musical curator of the Bar Next Door at La Lanterna, and plays there Sunday nights from 8-11:30pmwww.lalanternacaffe.com

Sunday September 13th - Selections from Through My Eyes in a super-trio, Donny McCaslin and Hans Glawischnig on Bass

For More info on this performance and other upcoming Mazza gigs, see www.myspace.com/petermazzawww.petermazza.com



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My grandmother was the root of it all. She got my mother and Uncle Ray deeply into music. It was a real help to know that the tradition of the music that you love jazz - and the ability to learn and get tips about music were right at my fingertips. My uncle, the great bassist Tommy Bryant, used to come by and give me an earful about music when I was very young. I also have another Uncle, Leonard Bryant, who is an in-credible singer and drummer. He recently released a CD putting lyrics to some of Ray Bryants most well known tunes. My mother shares stories of my uncles sneaking out of the back window with bed sheets low-ering down the upright bass at night to play gigs when they were teenagers. Although my uncles were, my grandparents were not fans of the nightlife and ev-erything that came with it. One thing that came with it was great nights of music with some of the giants of this music that we all hold in high esteem like Sonny Stitt, Miles Davis, Betty Carter, Lester Youngthe list goes on and on. This and the many other stories shared by my family about my uncles musical exploits peaked my interest in jazz music. I am forever in-debted to my uncles and my parents for allowing my-self and my brothers to see musical dreams that were attainable. I also forgot to mention: My mother gave me piano lessons when I was still young. That gave me a foundation when I started my trumpet lessons. My mother was Kenny Barrons first piano teacher and I listened to her give a number of piano lessons every Saturday morning to a number of students. She was making a name for herself on the gospel scene and was an incredible teacher. Seeing people so close to you doing what they loved on such a high level, it gave me a sense of achievabilityis that a word?

JI: What would you consider to be your desert island top 5 trumpet albums, that you couldnt live without?

DE: Wow, only five? Hmmlets see. One for sure is Lee Morganmy trumpet idol. He has an album

Duane EubanksBy Gary Heimbauer

JI: You work in many different idioms, including hip hop. Many people say that hip hop is a modern equiv-alent to bebop, in terms of self-expression, improvisa-tion, developing your own sound, social significance. How do you perceive this link, and how do you bring these different elements together while still remain-ing true to your own sound?

DE: I got into hip hop early on. Its impact on the music industry and popular culture was immediately

Cre

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Eric

Nem

eyer

www.myspace.com/duaneeubanks

Usually trumpet players try to outplay each other losing the subtleties like sound and phrasing that

makes trumpet playing individualized.

felt. People changed the way they dressed, talked, danced, and interpreted music. My twin brother, Shane, Cousin Barry, and I had a DJ group that wrote raps, scratched, and mixed on turntables in the 80s. We did neighborhood parties and made mix-ing tapes to listen back. It was definitely the popu-lar music of that time and today just as bebop was in the 60s. Thats one of a number of similarities that I see between the two. I pondered the connection between rap and bebop on a number of occasions and could write a thesis about the subject. Ill try to keep my answer somewhat concise. The communal aspect also relates to them both. In the 60s, musi-cians would get together to learn, grow, and eventu-ally form musical groups and relationships. The jam session was the ideal place to flex your chops and test what you worked on. In the hip hop world, battles are quite common when trying to outdo another rap art-ist. I think the two allow for the freedom of expres-sion to rhythm. I think the rappers today are lack-ing a sense of tradition and that is hurting the quality being put out. Those that flourish have a strong feel for the ideas and concepts that preceded them. This holds true for both idioms. I think jazz musicians have a broader understanding of this concept. Just as I listen for a jazz artist to tell his story musically, rap artists have that ability as well. Its not always about how high and loud you can blow, just as in hip hop its not all about rapping about guns, hatred, and doing bodily harm. I am trying to incorporate some hip hop concepts in my own music. Im looking for a rapper named Gabriel Nox AKA The Dark Knight. I heard him on a tape and was intrigued by his lyrical flow and the relevance of his lyrics. You can tell by lis-tening to him that he has natural ability and things come to him quite easily. I am in the process of put-ting together music that will cross genres and see him as a piece to the puzzle. My love is playing traditional jazz and I am starting to use rhythms similar to rap artists in my improvised lines to make my playing a little more personal, interesting, and challenging. Its going to take some time to effectively get it across to those listening but eventually it will happen.

JI: What was it like growing up with your brothers, your mom Vera and your Uncle Ray Bryant? Was music something that you took for granted as just an everyday skill?

DE: Having music in my family is an advantage that I couldnt ask for. It was a blessing. From the time that I can remember, I can hear my mother practic-ing and playing the hardest piano concertos and etudes I have ever heard. She is really a great pianist.

he recorded when he was 19, a young kid, called The Cooker. Whenever I run into Jeremy Pelt, we talk about this album. The maturity and precision he was playing at such a tender age really blew my mind. He has a sound that captures the streets to me. Its a sound that people can relate to. Another one I need is Art Blakey, Free For All. From beginning to end, Art is the driving force on this recording. I dont remem-ber hearing him play that much drums on any other recording. Also, the great Freddie Hubbard is playing at a level that no one can touch. Check out his solo on Children Of The Night. I got to have Clifford Brown With Strings. The mans sound is enormous, round, and lyrical. I checked this out to learn how to interpret ballads. I gotta have some Woody to keep me reaching for the starsDexter Gordon, Live At The Village Vanguard. Woodys technical facility on this recording is just ridiculous. Give me Miles Davis too. I cant remember the name of the recording. Its the album with Airegin, Half Nelson, and Tune-Up with Trane, Red Garland, Philly Joe, and Paul Chambers. This recording swings so hard and really is a staple for a band sound and concept. I always look and listen to Miles because he really knew how to run a bandstand. Thats something they dont teach in school. I have a couple of non-trumpet recordings. But the one I most definitely must have is Herbie Hancocks Inventions & Dimensions. Its really a con-cept album that was basically discussed more so than reading charts. I love the idea of allowing music to just happen instinctively. Back to trumpet playersI love Ryan Kisors Usual Suspectssurprise! You werent expecting that were you? I dig this because he basically just plays his ass off. He very wisely selected and wrote tunes that play to his musical strengthsvery smart and very killin. Also Nicholas Payton, Paytons Place. Nick was very on top of his game on this one. You can just tell that he was practicing, gigging all over the world, and basically playing his horn a lot. Donald Byrd did a recording with Johnny Colestwo of my heroes. They play a tune together that I played with Roy Hargrove trying to capture


PERFORMANCE SPOtlight PERFORMANCE SPOtlight

This event is $10 for adults and $5 for seniors. Children are free. Admission is taken at the entrance. The amphitheater is located atCrystal Lake, 4 Boland Drive in West Orange N.J. Audience members are encouraged to bring blankets or chairs to enjoy the relaxed outdoor setting.All performance scheduling and musicians are subject to change.

Directions: www.ospac.org

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 12th 12:30-6 PM12:30 ENRICO GRANAFEI1:00 PAM PURVIS & Bob Ackerman Quartet 2:00 STEVE LOVELL Vocalist & Friends3:00 DAVE STRYKER & West Orange All-stars W/ Billy Hart / Steve Slagle4:00 NAT ADDERLEY, JR. TRIO5:00 CECIL BROOKS III & Hot D.O.G., Featuring: Matt Chertkoff6:00 DIZZY GILLESPIE All-stars Featuring: John Lee & Special Guests7:00 MAYRA CASALES Latin Band W/ Cuban Drummer Francois Zayas

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 13th 12-6 PM12:15 JANE STUART QUARTET1:00 BOB DEVOS ORGAN TRIO Featuring: Vocalist Kevin Burke2:00 OSCAR PEREZ* Nuevo Comienzo w/ Emiliano Valerio & Charenee Wade 3:00 VIC JURIS QUINTET w/ Nilson Matta / Cafe / Kate Baker & Steve Wilson 4:00 ALI JACKSON TRIO Featuring: Aaron Goldberg & Carlos Henriquez5:00 NEW YORK VOICES (Grammy Award Wining vocal group)

WWW.OSPAC.ORG|OSKAR SCHINDLER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER4 BOLAND DRIVE|WEST ORANGE, NEW JERSEY|(973) 669-7385

TWO DAYSOF GREAT JAZZBRING YOUR

FAMILY, FRIENDSLAWN CHAIR

& GOOD SPIRITS

OSPAC's Seventh Annual Jazz Festival is sponsored by:



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and to Jazz music, I placed this record on and started trying to imitate his singing and playing. And that turned me into the player that I am today.

JI: If you had to choose five of your favorite desert is-land trumpet records to bring with you, which would they be?

FH: I dont have any desert island records in my repertoire because there are too many great artists and albums to choose from to be considered the epitome of desert island records. But Ill give you a list of trumpeters as leaders of the dates based on what I think is either some of their best playing or it just represents the best characteristics of their play-ing style. Im omitting Armstrong and Roy Eldridge because thats too hard to choose. Dizzy Gillespies Diz and Bird in Concert Roost 2234; Clark Terrys Serenade To A Bus Seat, Joe Newmans Joe Newman with Woodwinds; Miles Davis Kind Of Blue, Red Rodneys Red Alert; Chet Bakers She Was Too Good To Me; Art Farmers Gentle Eyes; Fats Navarros The Fabulous Fats Navarro vol. 2; Clifford Browns Study In Brown, Donald Byrds Byrd In Hand, Kenny Dor-hams Quiet Kenny; Nat Adderleys Radio Nights; Lee Morgan is a two-way tie between The Gigolo and Delightfulee; Freddie Hubbards Red Clay, Woody Shaws Stepping Stones, Tom Harrells Sail Away; Ed-die Hendersons Dark Shadows, Wynton Marsalis Standard Time Vol.1 or Vol.5 and Midnight Blues.

JI: When you first embarked on the sophisticated journey of becoming an improvising musician, or a jazz musician who plays over changes, what were

JI: What is it about musical improvisation that you find so valuable? What does it offer to you, your band-mates, and the listeners?

FH: The most valuable part about musical impro-visation is that it grants you and your band mates the freedom of expression. Musical improvisation or music in general evokes emotions, feelings, good vibrations, and spiritual enlightenment if executed efficiently and effectively. It gives each band mate a chance for individual achievement through a group collaboration as one. What motivates me and drives me forward is playing a great solo and continuously trying to repeat the process.


FH: When I heard a big band for the first time, thats what struck my interest in this music. I first heard a large ensemble in junior high school. I wanted to know what that sound was and what I needed to do to get next to that sound like getting next to a fine female (which was one of my focuses in those days). I auditioned for jazz band and didnt get in. I couldnt read. I was still struggling, and I mean struggling, with the instrument. I completed school for that year, 7th grade, and went home that summer de-pressed. One day, I began digging through the family record collection and came across a Louis Armstrong record called Louis and The Angels. Unknowing of the significance of Louis Armstrong to the trumpet

Freddie HendrixBy Eric Nemeyer

JI: What kind of words of wisdom have you re-ceived, or absorbed by osmosis, by playing with cats like George Benson, Michael Brecker, Lou Donald-son, Jon Faddis, Slide Hampton, Wynton Marsalis, Rufus Reid, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Byron Stripling, Marcus Belgrave, Joe Williams, James Spaulding, Kenny Burrell, Stanley Turrentine, John Blake, Sr., Melvin Davis, Bob Mover, Mulgrew Miller?

FH: Well George Benson says, Be able to play all styles of music baby. It will make you a more versa-tile player. I performed with Michael Brecker two timesboth in collegiate settings. Just before I started my graduate studies, I was hired as a ringer in the NJCU Jazz Ensemble that featured Michael. At the end of sound check, I walked up to him to introduce myself and show gratitude. He said, You dont go to school here do you? You sound too good to be a student at this school. Give me your telephone number. Jon Faddis said, If you want to be a great improviser, you have to practice improvising. If you want to be a great sight reader, you have to practice sight reading, etc. Slide Hampton said, Your play-ing reminds me of a young Miles Davis. The best thing that you could be doing right now as a young African American is playing this music (Jazz). Lon-nie Smith and I recorded together on a George Ben-son record that was never released. At the session he said, Your tone reminds me of the way Lee Morgan played the melody on the song Flamingo from that Jimmy Smith recording The Sermon. Im gonna tell Lou Donaldson about you. I said, Im not ready to play with Lou Donaldson yet. He replied, When I say that youre ready, then youre ready. Prof. Rufus Reid, my mentor says, Listen my young friend, youre working because you can play and it shows when peo-ple see and here you. There is great music and great musicians everywhere and you are willing to be a part of what they ask and throw down hard! When you get a gig, make it hard for the person thats trying to get in your spot or the person that youre filling in for. Leave your stamp. Mulgrew Miller said, Youre on the right path. Keep your ears wide open and dont be afraid to explore your own ideasand stay beautiful. Kenny Burrell says, You have to learn to combine your ears with your theoretical knowledge. But dont ever completely throw your ears out of the window. When in doubt, your ears will always get you out of trouble. And Wynton Marsalis says, Theres a certain sincerity in your sound. Sometimes you go into playing something that Freddie Hubbard or Woody Shaw would play and thats not your stron-gest attribute. You need to focus more on your sound and your own ideas. We should shed together.


FH: Well, most of my excitement already came. I did a year long tour in 2008 of 103 shows in 30 coun-

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Stress is no good for anyone but daily struggles are good for a player because it helps develop character. That character will then

begin to develop maturity. Maturity will give you something to talk about. Then you can tell a story when you play.

tries with the pop star/actress Alicia Keys, which was great! And from November of last year through April of this year I subbed for Sean Jones in Wynton Marsalis Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra which also was great! Both gigs were major achievements for me. I had a wonderful performance last month with the great tenor saxophonist Billy Harper and his quartet at the MOMA (Museum Of Modern Art) for their outdoor concert summer garden series. And now that Im back home in the mix of things, Im looking forward to three great performances with Roy Har-groves Big Band next weeka performance on Aug 26 at the Hollywood Bowl in LA, a live broadcast for 88.3 WBGO in Newark, NJ on the 28, and a live performance at J&R Music in NYC on the 29th.



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ate a successful musical venture. The venture, in this case, is I Talking Now. The players/partners involved include not only the musicians, but Thomas Bellino of Planet Arts, Mariah Wilkins Artist Management, Two For The Show Media, and Ed Reed of Light-house Productions.

JI: What is currently happening in your musical life and whats on the horizon that you are excited about?

LB: Ive just celebrated my 10 year anniversary with the (Grammy Winning) Vanguard Jazz Orchestra and spent this past Summer touring with them as well as with Dave Douglas & Brass Ecstasy. Perhaps the most recent and most exciting event is the release of my fourth CD as a leader - I Talking Now! - Planet Arts/NJC). It features Arturo OFarrill, John Riley, Andy McKee and Ivan Renta on all original compo-sitions and its been well received. Were beginning to play and tour and already starting to make plans for our follow-up recording .

JI: What is it about musical improvisation that you find so valuable?

LB: I enjoy the challenge of having to compose and interact spontaneously my band members and the audience. Creating and controlling the flow of the room, if even for a moment, is one of the most ex-hilarating experiences any performer could ever ex-perience.

JI: What was it that initially inspired you to play trombone? How did it all start?

LB: Signing up for Beginning Brass in 7th grade (Eagle Rock J.H./HIGH SCHOOL) wasnt what I thought itd be. I thought it was a shop class and Id be making lamps and ashtrays.

Luis BonillaBy Gary Heimbauer

JI: Education, as both a student and a teacher, has been a big part of your life. You got your bachelors from Cal Arts, Masters from Manhattan School of Music, and now you teach there, as well as Temple. How has edu-cation from both sides had an impact on you? What insights have you gleaned about what we need more of and what we need less of in music education?

LB: Education has been one of the biggest gifts and life enhancing endeavors I could have ever asked for.

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I personally dont believe I have to suffer to create a more profound type of art. Ive always been more effective

and efficient being a happy and positive individual.

My students are a source of inspiration and keep me more excited then ever about music and its infinite possibilities. The wonderful relationships Ive formed with my students over the years have also allowed me to have an impact on how we, as young artists, should look at Jazz and the marketplace that surrounds it. Specifically, how we can make the music more acces-sible to a larger audience. The students act as a sound-ing board for my ideas and concepts about what it takes to be a successful musician in todays often challenging musical climate.

JI: Although you are still youthful in age, youve played with such a diversity of legendary players, such as McCoy Tyner, Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Bowie, Tom Harrell, Freddie Hubbard, Astrud Gilberto, Willie Colon, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Billy Childs, Gerry Mulligan, Tony Bennett, Marc Anthony, La India, Paquito dRivera, Mary J. Blige, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Mingus Big Band and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra. How has this diversity of experience impacted your play-ing? Do you have any anecdotes, or ah hah! moments that you can share with us, that you experienced with some of these players or groups?

LB: Ive always been curious and impatient by nature. I was also never very interested in becoming a mem-ber of just one group or playing just one musical style. This made me available - time-wise and musically - and exposed me to a host of different musical person-alities and musical worlds. As a result, I am not tied down to any one musician or any one musical style. I have learned valuable musical lessons from a host of musical masters and played a lot of great music. In these types of situations its easy and natural to give 100%. When you give that way, you receive that way too. It all becomes part of your musical vocabulary

JI: Your latest album, I talking now, mixes so many elements together-Latin, jazz, funk, blues--and it seems like everyone on the album has the same di-verse style. Can you talk about the record a little bit?

LB: Im very proud of this recording and of all the people that helped make it happen. The musicians are virtuosic as well as musically muscular. They are not afraid to take risks or hand over complete control to me or to each other. The whole process reflects our attitude and approach to the music and to the jazz industry in general. Several years ago I formed the Now Jazz Consortium [NJC]. The idea behind it was to create a place where several entities - both musical and non musical could come together in order cre-

JI: What are your top five desert island trombone records that you couldnt possibly live without, and please state why? The leader doesnt have to play trombone, but please choose albums based on the role of the trombone.

LB: (1) The Great Carl Fontana, (2) Frank Rosolino: Frankly Speaking & Turn Me Loose, (3) JJ Johnson: JJ in Person, (4) Toshiko Akiyoshi: Road Time (for Bill Richenbach) and (5) Bill Berry LA Big Band: Hello Rev (for Jimmy Cleveland)

JI: When you first embarked on the sophisticated journey of becoming an improvising musician, or a jazz musician, what were some methods that you found extremely useful to achieving your goals? (Per-haps something that you developed on your own, or your favorite instructional resource)

LB: I had a great start at Eagle Rock High School under John Rinaldos direction. He was a wonderful trumpeter and had a great ear, which is how he played. He was very expressive and encouraged each of his stu-dents to play with that kind of approach and with a big sound. After graduation, I continued my studies at Cal State University at Los Angeles with Roy Main. There, I was taught the importance of the fundamentals: scales, arpeggios and execution of the instrument. JI: Some say that stress and angst make for good art, and others say you need to find serenity to really ex-press yourself. Have you found that your life outside of music, or your state of mind in general have a di-rect correlation to your playing? If so, what activities do you do outside of music to better prepare you for playing/practicing success??

LB: The art in what I do is in the ability to express and communicate ideas clearly. I try to create snap-shot at every opportunity I get to play. Making a real effort to be in touch with myself greatly improves




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selves well at the moment. I also learned it was OK to think big and expect things to turn out well. I also learned leadership skills and marketing concepts, key to being successful as a musician. I created a Music Business program at Queens College that starts out with many of the basics I learned in Mastery Univer-sity. Not a year goes by that I dont hear from a for-mer student who transformed their career by putting some simple principles, especially that of constant and never-ending improvement into practice.

JI: You received degrees in Anthropology/Sociology as well as Jazz Composition. Have your studies in other areas affected your musicianship? Do you con-tinue to research these topics?

MM: Sociology is the study of people in groups pretty applicable to the music business! I could see that early on after college. Anyway, I find people fas-cinating and see music as an innately human activity. I try to keep my music relevant to people, especially the ones playing it! That is a constant study, solicit-ing comments from players, engineers, directors and the listening public. There are always insights to be gained from people, if one is open to them.

JI: Can you talk about the process of composing for you? How do you approach this task?

MM: Composing, for me, starts with songwriting a vastly underrated part of jazz education. Some of my heroes are great jazz songwriters, like Jimmy Heath, Freddie Hubbard, Thelonious Monk, Charles Min-gus, Joe Henderson, Clare Fischer and Thad Jones. Melody says more than anything and also provides lots of material for the development that follows. A good melody is inexhaustible as far as ideas. I loved the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, started by Jon Faddis and George Wein. The arrangers, like Slide Hamp-ton, Frank Foster, Manny Albam and Jim McNeely used standards to create new, innovative arrange-ments. But what made the task easier for us was the quality of the songs we worked with. Composition is, to me, one of the great mysteries of abundance. How a person can create a new work of art that can sus-tain human life both spiritually (Barber Adagio for strings) and economically? (How many Nutcracker Suites have sustained how many musicians over how many decades?) A composition is like the gift that just keeps on giving. After the melody comes the fun part, development. Its like inventing characters in a story and watching them do their thing. Of course study-ing music composition is essential. I was lucky to have studied with Wendell Logan at Oberlin Conserva-tory. He taught me to have reasons behind the notes I wrote and to keep those reasons relevant to human be-ings. I think that just knowing someone was actually listening made all the difference to me as a student. Composing is also a great experiment in seeing how

Michael MossmanBy Gary Heimbauer

JI: You are known for your work in Latin jazz idi-oms. To really be cutting edge, one has to live and breathe Latin jazz. How did you go from a straight ahead classic player to Afro-Cuban and Brazilian? How did this develop?

MM: Many brass players start out in big cities play-ing in Latin bands. The Latino community, at least when I first moved to Chicago, and then t

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Jazz Inside NY 2009 09