Archive for the ‘Thoughts’ Category

• Subway Playlist: Summer ‘10

  Date: 2010.07.14 | Category: Thoughts | Response: 1

  
  

  I’ve recently found myself with some listening time I can count on each day, so I figure it’s time to pay more focused attention to a handful of tracks and put together another of my Subway Playlists (that’s a set of tracks I listen to every day for a few months, to try and absorb on a deeper level than random listening allows, so named because I originally listened to them on my subway ride–some more background here). This one is a little long (although I like iTunes’ option to set markers for the beginning and end of playback on a track–I won’t tell you where I’ve done that, to protect those bass players fine musicians whose solos were sacrificed for time). Here goes:

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• Technique in Jazz: One Guy’s Take

  Date: 2010.07.08 | Category: Audio, Thoughts | Response: 7

  Somewhere in the middle of a notey solo on “Moment’s Notice” last night I started thinking about the role of virtuosity in jazz. (For those unfamiliar with the tune: that is not a good time to start thinking about abstract concepts, because it can lead to “Did I really mean that phrase there? How about that one? Crap, where am I?”–but we can’t always control what pops into our heads.) (UPDATE: Listen to this happen in real-time below.)

  Tunes like that often get me thinking along those lines, though, since their chock-full-of-chord-changes-ness tends to give one the sensation that he or she is being played by the tune rather than the other way around. (The solution, it turns out, is to learn the crap out of the tune until it feels as unconscious as a medium-tempo blues. Check back with me in another 20 years and I’ll let you know how that’s going.)

  Coincidentally, the jazzoblogowebosphere offered two interesting posts on the same subject this morning–one from Peter Hum and a somewhat related take at Nextbop, both worth reading–exploring the role of technical wizardry in the genre. I don’t claim to have any universal insight on the topic, but I have had an evolving thought process about it, which is tied in with my development as a player (as I suspect is the case for most players).

  The short version: when I started getting serious about playing in my teens, I was focused on the high/loud/fast side of things, mainly because it came easily to me in the early days. But by my college years I had started to reach the limits of that ease, and entered a long period of struggles with my instrument. I think this is true for many instrumentalists, and trumpeters especially. My chops became a harsh and fickle mistress which I could never count on from day to day. I fantasized about the sound my horn would make as it was slowly flattened beneath a steamroller into a large brass pancake more than I care to admit. I felt in those days that if I wasn’t able to play to a certain level, it wasn’t worth trying to make music at all.

  Here’s a clip of one guy who made me rethink this equation:
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• Links: My OTHER Other Job

  Date: 2010.06.07 | Category: Thoughts | Response: 1

  Some of you may know that in addition to trumpet playing, designing things, and pestering people to attend my gigs, I am also an extremely amateur internet humorist (FYI: comedians make you laugh, while humorists make you smile condescendingly).

  So I’ve got a thing up today at McSweeney’s, which is known to be the cream of the crop for that sort of thing, called Dan Savage’s Wild Kingdom. (You don’t have to be a fan of the world’s best sex advice columnist or strange animal mating practices to get it, but it helps.)

  And in case you’re looking for more things to make you smile condescendingly, here are some other doodads of mine they’ve previously kindly published:

  • Horror Movies for Kids
  • Favorite Gerund Movie Titles, Un-gerunded
  • Alternatives to “Opening a Can of Whupass” for the Less Confrontationally Inclined
  • Failed One-Liners from My Audition for Host of  “Australia’s Funniest Home Videos” (with Gladstone)

  UPDATE: Looks like somebody already wrote a whole book of sex advice for animals years before my McSweeney’s thing. There are officially no new ideas left in the world.

• Links: Music at Minimum Wage, EJN Sampler, Hank Jones

  Date: 2010.05.17 | Category: Audio, Thoughts | Response: 0

  Still working on part 3 of the big jazz philanthropy/gig discussion, but in the meantime, here’s a cheery infographic about the kinds of numbers a 21st-century musician would have to move to earn minimum wage selling albums (either physically or digitally). Needless to say, it makes me think the whole shebang is better viewed as a way to “get your stuff out there,” than as a moneymaking endeavor, unless you manage to get a cut on a car commercial or something. (Fortunately, Taco Bell is hiring–be sure to tell them about your jazz theory expertise!)

  Speaking of digital distribution: the title track from Contextualizin’ is being featured on this week’s edition of the eJazzNews Sampler, along with some vintage Jaco and other great artists. Download it for FREE here.

  Also: in memory of the amazing Hank Jones (who passed away today after an incredibly long and productive career), WKCR, the world’s greatest jazz station, is playing a marathon of his music right now. Check it out immediately!

• Jazz Philanthropy & the Gig, cont’d.

  Date: 2010.05.13 | Category: Thoughts | Response: 12

  Last week, in response to several pieces of news about large-scale, institution-centered jazz philanthropy, I wrote a post thinking about the possibility that jazz might be better served in the long run by steering money toward smaller venues and less established “stars” (Jazz stars! LOL.) Since then, people far and wide have weighed in on the issue, which is good, and exactly what I was hoping would happen.

  One response was from Patrick Jarenwattananon of NPR’s A Blog Supreme, who mentioned one big reason why Big Jazz is ahead in the funding game right now:

  Big, central institutions, by their nature, have massive potential for outreach. They can spend money on making money, whether by hiring publicity people, financial officers or big-name performers. … In contrast, Mom and Pop’s Bar sometimes doesn’t even have the wherewithal to put up a serviceable Web site with updated show listings. If you were a potential investor, sponsor or major giver, wouldn’t you want to donate to a place with accountability, a proven track record and highly visible accomplishments?

  No argument here (just yesterday I came across a website for a venue which didn’t include the address). The small-club, unfamiliar-name approach has a lot less high-visibility appeal than Sonny Rollins at the Citibank Jazz Palace or whatever. (More about this in a moment.)

  Over on Facebook, several musicians weighed in–one idea which got me thinking came from vocaphonist Lorin Benedict:

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• A Thought Experiment: Jazz Philanthropy & the Gig

  Date: 2010.05.06 | Category: Thoughts | Response: 20

  This morning, NPR’s A Blog Supreme featured a story about a wealthy music lover who has donated $2.5 million to Drake University’s jazz program, to be used for a professorship and a new facility. Confronted by that number, I started to wonder if there might be ways to spend that money which would actually benefit the music and musicians more–like subsidizing 12,500 gigs at $200, for example.

  It was with those numbers ringing in my head that I saw the even more staggering news that SFJAZZ has secured a $20 million donation for a permanent center in the City. (Think about it! $20 million! I wonder whether every single jazz album sale in the past 10 years even made that much money.)

  First of all, genuine congratulations to SFJAZZ on the jazz center–that really is incredible, especially in this economy, in this country, in this culture. But again, as a thought experiment here–that money would pay for ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND $200 gigs. Just imagine for a second what kind of a rejuvenation any jazz scene could get from even a smidgen of that.

  Why am I harping on the $200 gig?

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• Subway Playlist: February ‘09

  Date: 2009.02.14 | Category: Thoughts | Response: 0

  Back when I was living in New York and taking the subway every day, I started making “mix” tapes for myself with stuff I really wanted to absorb; this was based on some advice I got from Dave Liebman that “you’re not in the business of listening to music ‘for fun’ anymore. You need to listen in a focused way.”

  I thought he had a good point, since this was during a time when I was in a literal deluge of sound, from recorded music to live performances to street noise, and narrowing down the variety into more digestible pieces seemed like a good idea. And since it had never been easy for me to memorize recorded solos by ear, I had a certain amount of envy and perplexity toward those smartasses who’d strut by the equipment room at my school singing along with whatever record I was listening to. (Note to music students: this is always annoying. Nobody cares that you can sing Coltrane’s solo on “Oleo.” Go show off somewhere else.)

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• Fall Update, Kind of Blue, Jazz Education

  Date: 2008.10.03 | Category: Thoughts, Updates | Response: 1

  Hi listeners– I know it’s been a while with no updates. Unfortunately I haven’t been performing nearly as often as I’d like lately (an Obama fundraiser here, a street fair there), and with the recent closing of two more San Francisco jazz venues (Jazz at Pearl’s and the Octavia Lounge), prospects don’t seem encouraging. Pearl’s was an especially tough blow, as it was home to the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, which I really enjoyed playing with once or twice a month. But no excuses, we musicians just have to get out there and find new places to play.

  In this month’s JazzTimes and in a post on his blog, the great jazz writer Marc Myers takes a critical look at the cult of adoration surrounding Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue (1959), which has been widely hailed as the greatest (or at least most essential) jazz album of all time. The post is definitely worth a read, as it places the album in the context of its time and looks at factors (on both the musical and the marketing sides) which contributed to its lofty stature.

  After mulling the post over for a few days and seeing Marc accused of being a “reactionary nitpicker,” I left the following comment which sums up my feelings about Kind of Blue, and why, for once, I agree with the “conventional wisdom”:

  I know Marc ISN’T a reactionary nit-picker, so I took this post as a legitimate question, and one that deserves to be asked periodically of any canonical artwork.

  Aside from the question of whether KoB can be separated from its reputation, as I thought about this post I realized the more difficult task for me was separating it from my memories of the record. Although I’d grown up hearing my dad’s copies of the Miles/Gil Evans compilations, KoB was the first jazz CD I bought myself, mainly because of its rep (and despite the cheesy cover the first Columbia CD issue featured). My first listen to it was a sort of rubicon, and maybe because of its reputation, I listened to it with a focus I’d never given any other album. It was moody without being somber; bluesy without being corny; intelligent without being effete; virtuosic without being cold.

  And even though over the years I’ve come to see it in the continuum of Miles’ output (and jazz history in general), it still remains above and beyond for me because of that near-religious response I initially had to it, and which has stuck with me.

  The other records mentioned are great, too, but I hear them as great jazz albums, whereas KoB still feels like the Gutenberg bible (even if I hear it in Starbucks). How much of that is due to the hype-based expectations of a teenager, it’s hard to say–but I’d still rather take it to a desert island than any other jazz record.

  I also read an interesting post by the excellent New York jazz writer Howard Mandel talking about his visit to Berklee College of Music and the incredible number of young musicians still dedicating themselves to jazz even as the market dwindles. It reminded me of my student days, and I left the following comment:

  I’ve often wondered whether it would’ve been helpful for someone to clue me in to the incredible imbalance of supply and demand in the jazz world when I was going into a mountain of debt to finance my jazz education at the New School… (I think I remember my roommate at the time telling me that the average starting salary of a Parsons design grad was over $50,000, and thinking that the average starting salary of a New School Jazz grad would be tips and a beer.) However, I probably wouldn’t have listened if they had, since I was young and invincible and little things (like the fact that there seem to be more people making jazz than listening to it) couldn’t faze me.

  Howard nicely responded with this note: “… I don’t mean to dissuade anyone from studying jazz; as you write the power of jazz to attract the young and invincible is stronger than financial considerations for them. Those of us involved in the music though ought to look at our society clearly, and consider how to work with the gap between what we’re called to do and how we can live. This is what jazz musicians have done since the get-go. I think such reality-checks strengthen the musician and the music. Who said it was gonna be easy?” Damn straight.

• Travels: Portland Trip

  Date: 2008.04.12 | Category: Photos, Thoughts | Response: 0

  Last week Linda and I decided celebrate the home stretch of my sabbatical and her spring break by taking a short trip up to Portland, Oregon (where she lived for a year or so after college). Although we were really only looking to explore and eat some delicious food, the trip wound up having some real musical highlights for me, as well.

  I didn’t know any musicians up there beforehand, but since I had heard there were some great players in town, we dug through the newspaper listings and were lucky enough to find a jam session the first night we were there. It was hosted by the great local drummer Ron Steen, and was at a cool little pub called Produce Row. They were nice enough to let me play quite a bit and hear some fine local players like bassists Scott Steed (formerly of the Bay Area) and Lea Ball, among many others.

  
  Kate Davis & I with Ron Steen at Wilf’s. More photos here.

  Ron also kindly invited me to come by and sit in at his gig two days later at Wilf’s, which is in the classic Union Station building downtown (with its flashing “GO BY TRAIN” sign). Also playing were pianist Dan Gaynor, who was a great soloist with a really nice touch, and 17-year-old phenom Kate Davis on bass and vocals, who will definitely be famous before long.

  Another definite high point of the trip was my visit to the Monette trumpet and mouthpiece factory, where Dave Monette and his staff have been quietly revolutionizing the brass instrument business for the past few decades. First, Dean Comley treated me to a fascinating tour of the shop, where they make every part of their instruments and mouthpieces, “except for the rubber rings on top of the valve casings.” They were just finishing a prototype of a new, hybrid instrument for Ron Miles (it looked a little like a larger, shorter trumpet, and was pitched in G!), which one of the employees demonstrated–it had a great, resonant sound.

  Once we finished the tour, Dave Monette himself came in and gave me an impromptu clinic on the concepts behind his mouthpieces–perhaps the most crucial point being that standard trumpet mouthpieces were originally sized for trumpets in the key of A, and are therefore too long to “slot” correctly over the range of the instrument without requiring the player to make body adjustments which introduce unhelpful tension and effort. He asked me to a) play notes over three octaves with my old mouthpiece and posture, then b) had me repeat them with my tuning slide pulled out until my horn was in the key of A, then c) pushed the slide back in, and had me repeat them again with a Monette mouthpiece and the posture and breathing adjustments he suggested. The results won me over immediately.

  After that, all that remained was for Dean to very patiently hand me a long succession of mouthpieces while we looked for the right combination of comfort, sound, range, and flexibility–a process which made me pity the captive audience of guys working in the shop, but which finally helped me find “the one,” which I fortunately settled on with just enough time left for the short drive to the airport and to make our flight home. (And although I was expecting an “adjustment period,” I used the new mouthpiece on Ben Stolorow’s CD release party gig, and it felt great.) For any trumpeters visiting the Portland area, I highly recommend a making an appointment to visit to the shop, even if you’re not a current customer of theirs. But I warn you, you may walk out a believer.

  Finally, I should mention another great thing for musicians about Portland–its wide variety of used record stores. I made it to just a handful, and came home with way too many new (used) albums and CDs–all reasonably priced, and (most importantly) sales tax-free. My favorite of those I visited was the funereally named Vinyl Resting Place, way out in the North part of town. Fortunately my stack of finds (including Jimmy Rowles, Charles Lloyd with Keith Jarrett, Gerry Mulligan and Lee Konitz, Toots Theilmans with Joanne Brackeen, Paul Motian, etc.) wasn’t quite heavy enough to push the suitcase over the limit–but it was close.

• Thanks + Photos + Bonus Audio

  Date: 2007.10.13 | Category: Audio, Photos, Thoughts | Response: 0

  
  I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who came out to our shows last week at the Parc 55—I had a great time playing with Adam, Ron, and Noah, and with any luck I’ll be able to play there some more in the future. For those of you who weren’t able to make it, here’s our version of the standard “I Love You,” from Friday night.

  • I Love You (Cole Porter) With myself on trumpet; Adam Shulman, piano; and Ron Belcher, bass. Recorded live, 10/05/07.

  Also: last Saturday, I played with one of three pickup jazz groups (mine had Jeff Marrs, Eugene, and Evan Francis) that performed for the Fillmore Street “Indian Summer” Stroll, which culminated in a wild sidewalk jam session featuring 15 or so musicians wailing away amid the pedestrians. I told another musician it would be cool if random jam sessions just broke out all the time on sidewalks around the city–kind of like “Critical Mass.” (Which then led to the mental image of thousands of jazz musicians clogging the streets and stopping traffic to play 500 or so choruses on “Now’s the Time,” as well as the unfortunate nickname “Critical Jazz.”)

  For more photos of this and many of my other gigs, visit my Flickr site here.