Miles Davis Live In Paris, France, 1969

Not much that needs to be said about this. It pretty much speaks for itself.

The Head and the Heart Mezmerize at Castaways

I have been listening to The Head and the Heart's self titled, independently released album, since the end of 2010, and really enjoying it. So I was excited to see that they were coming to town. Excited enough to head out on a very cold Tuesday night and stand on a concrete floor. I'm getting kinda old for standing on floor like that. But once the band started playing, I wasn't really standing still, anyway.

The band really puts on a moving, mesmerizing show, but at the same time there's a kind of foot stomping, hand clapping, jump around quality to it. Really great stuff.

The Head and the Heard recently signed with Seattle's storied sub Pop Records. The label will be re-releasing the aforementioned debut album in April. If you can't wait, it can be download at iTunes.

Talking to members of the band while buying a poster after the show, they gave me buttons for my kids. They were just super genuine, nice folks. And great musicians.

The videos below gives you a sense. Just picture a dark club and 14 degrees and snow outside.

*2/25/11
This is a thought I added a few days later, still thinking about this show. Sometimes you find the music and sometimes the music finds you. In other words, there are times when you hear just the right music or attend just the right show for where your heart is. And this was one of those times.

The John Stetch Interview

Jazz pianist John Stetch is high on the list of Ithaca’s great musicians. A Canadian by birth, he made his way to Ithaca via New York City. He’s received 5 Juno Award nominations, placed 2nd in the 1994 Thelonius Monk International Composer’s Competition, and won the Prix du Jazz at the Montreal Jazz Festival in 1998.

Photo: Jimmy Katz

John Stetch often performs around Ithaca. He’ll be performing with his group the Phrase-Shifters—featuring Renato Hanriot on bandoneon and Nicholas DiEugenio on violin—for a Valentine’s Day performance at the Carriage House. The show starts at 8 PM and they’ll be playing ballads from the great American songbook. The Tompkins Weekly was fortunate to sit down and talk to John about his music. It was a great conversation.

Tompkins Weekly: What first attracted you to playing jazz? 

John Stetch: I think, no question, it was my father because he had a lot of jazz records. And I would just sort of hear him play them at home or he always had the local jazz radio station on in the car—especially if it was just him and me in the car. I don’t know if I liked everything, but just occasionally something would grab me. And I’m not sure if I was acting a role in the family—you know there’s five siblings or rather 5 kids total—and I wonder in a system if sometimes, in a system you take a role, and I wonder if mine was kind of the rebellious role against their pop music or something. But obviously I liked it, or I wouldn’t have pursued it for that long. . . . There’s something about the non-vocal music, the instrumental music that allowed for more options of interpretation because it wasn’t so literal toward the lyrics. So it took me off to another land. It just sort of had images, you could just sort of make up your own images. I didn’t really understand it yet, and I didn’t know what it meant to swing, or a lot of things about meter and time. I knew how to read basic music, because I took clarinet lessons and sax lessons, but I don’t think I understood all the harmony, that’s for sure. Or even when I heard Charlie Parker for the first time on one of my dad’s LPs, I really liked it but didn’t understand why or worry about why. There was something fun about it and happy. Something swinging about it, but I didn’t know that word yet.

TW: How does Ukranian music influence what you do?

JS: My first performance experience was in Ukranian music, in a Ukranian wedding band. I would find some ways to sneak some of my jazz language into that, but not very many. But later, the keyboard player was leaving and they knew that I fooled around on the piano, but was still considered a sax and flute player, so they asked if I wanted to take over. It was obvious I should take over. . . . I would say that now Eastern European colors, even Turkish or Bulgarian music—I’m not trying to be a master of that—but I try and draw elements of that. My album Ukranianism is all folk tunes from my childhood that I arranged and made larger, into sometimes virtuostic pieces, influenced by Bartok and Prokofiev.

TW: Do you still bring that classical influence to your improvising?

JS: That’s a good question. I used to think that if you just listen, it would just come out. And I don’t really believe that much anymore. I think, and I’ve seen that with the students over and over again, unless you practice it over and over again and try and work on getting those quotes into the music live—If you don’t actively do that—only little bits will come out. I notice that at least that it gets better and easier and I can apply it better if I know the source material really well. For example, If I look at some Debussy music and look at the overall shape and the texture and the dissonance level or the harmonic devices at any given moment—if I understand the theory than I’ll try and duplicate that in different keys so I can test myself that I understand it. . . . Having heard it is the first level. You just listen to it and you love it. The next one is you play it literally, note for note. That can help. But then the third level is breaking it apart, so that you can put it back together again in your own way.

TW: Do you think teaching makes you a better player?

JS:  I was concerned, for a while, that it would make me worse because I was sitting there analyzing and breaking things down all the time, and having to do it in slow motion—and that would fry my brain so that I wouldn’t have energy for music anymore. But I’ve actually found that it is helpful when I go through the process of demonstrating for them, and saying a bunch of stuff to them and having to walk my talk. And then it is good because I’ll hear the students do something that I want to be critical of, but to make my point I have to demonstrate something musically.

TW: Do the students hip you to music that you might not otherwise hear?

JS: They do. They mention names and I’m interested in hearing that. But what’s really interesting is to hear why they like someone or something.

TW: You've had the opportunity to collaborate with some amazing musicians. Has anyone really stood out?

JS: I played with Ben Street and Jeff Ballard and did a tour with Seamus Blake and Jorge Rossy. . . Rufus Reid. I played in his band for ten years. And sometimes he’d bring in subs like Billy Hart on drums. Recently I played with Hank Roberts and Jim Black in Europe for two weeks. And that was really, was definitely one of the best things I’ve been part of in many years. Just because every night we were playing in places that not only are kind of used to hearing very modern, and often free, jazz. But not only that, being with Jim on stage, who kind of makes a living doing that kind of music. He works a lot. He plays probably 200 shows a year. And Hank is so free and open and supportive. He accepts any sound and provides that too. With the two of them being so open like that, it’s an incredible experience. I felt I grew from it.

Of course when I lived in Brooklyn for many years, people would drop by for jam sessions, like Josh Redman. Lots of good players.

TW: You were in New York at this—New York seems to have these peaks in Jazz and you were there at one of these times when folks like Brad Melhdau and Kurt Rosenwinkel were coming up. That must have been a pretty exciting time to be there?

JS: It was. And I took it for granted because when you’re in a time zone, you don’t really know you’re in it. You just kind of think this is how it’s always been. But looking back I was lucky that the first people I met were these Berkeley [College of Music] guys. And New York . . . just to go out and hear great names, there’s just no shortage.

TW: What brought you to Ithaca?

JS: I was starting to get a little burnt out on New York. So my wife and I were looking for somewhere a little further outside. The first stop was Rockland County. After a few years of that, we were like maybe we need to go further. We heard about Ithaca and we just took a chance. We didn’t know one person here. We really like it here.

TW: In 2004 you released a Monk record. How do you go about tackling the music of a giant such as Thelonious Monk. Take a track like "Evidence," which you take at a really fast, un-Monk-like tempo.

JS: I think I wanted to go with songs that I knew well. I didn’t want then to all be in one key. Some of them, like “’Round Midnight,” I didn’t really do an arrangement of. I just really played it straight. I guess I wasn’t too concerned with being judged too that much because every kind of player in Jazz from the avant garde to the really straight ahead, they all do Monk in their own kind of way. And they’ve been doing that for a while. So it’s accepted, and even Monk himself would have liked someone to take liberties with his tunes. So I was more concerned with coming up with arrangements of each tune that would sound, not so that each one would go to the same place. I wanted each one to be a bit different to sort of provide a challenge for me. One of the best ways to explain this music is that most of these are études that I created for myself, to give myself something virtuostic to practice.

TW: Please tell me about your upcoming new record?

JS: My next trio CD is coming out on Addo Records, based in Toronto, this spring (probably late April) and features all new originals of mine. On bass is Joe Martin and on drums is Greg Ritchie, both living in Brooklyn. We recorded it in Ford Hall at Ithaca College over the Christmas break, and I was very touched by all the help and generosity from the IC staff and faculty.

TW: What do you think of Ithaca’s Jazz Scene?

JS: Some of the first people I met were Hank Roberts, Paul Merrill, and Steve Brown. So that was great, because they immediately started throwing me some work at the Carriage House and things like that. . . . What’s been good for me has not only been the jazz scene, but has been the so-called cross over scene. I’ve played some projects with classical musicians. Doing what I do and finding common ground.

Surprisingly Lovely

Remember Men At Work? They were a bit of a goofy band, right? And the band's song, "Down Under" was also somewhat silly. Or Not. Until hearing this version, I'd never really listened to the words. Check out this really surprisingly lovely version performed by the band's lead singer, Colin Hay.

Cassandra Wilson Live At The State Theatre, Ithaca, NY

Yesterday I interviewed jazz pianist John Stetch. It was a great time. You can look for that interview in the Tompkins Weekly on February 14 or here shortly there after. One of the things that came up was Cassandra Wilson's show at the State Theatre from 2008. This brought back my memories of what a great show this was, so I thought I'd re-post my review of the concert.

As much as I like rock and roll music (a lot!), many of my most memorable concerts have been either classical or jazz performances. There was seeing Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring at Boston Symphony Hall or Henryk Górecki’s Symphony Number 3 in Portland, Oregon. On the jazz front, I once saw Charlie Parker protégé Phil Woods play at the now defunct Zootz, a tiny club in Portland, Maine. It was an acoustic show and I was sitting five feet from the band. Sunday night at the State Theatre provided me with another concert for my list. Cassandra Wilson played to a much too small crowd of about 400.

Cassandra Wilson is to my mind the preeminent jazz singer performing today. As my wife describes it, she has a way of finding the song within the song. So when she performed Glen Campbell’s song “Wichita Lineman” at her show, the tune was totally morphed. For Wilson, it is as though the song is a sheet of paper to be folded like origami. The paper is still there, but is has turned into something greater, and certainly more beautiful.

As a performer, she and her amazing band didn’t disappoint. They were a tight, serious, and playful band adding guitar, piano, bass, drums, and percussion to her vocals. This was aided by the excellent sound provided by Calf Audio. The secret to a show like this is that it shouldn’t sound amplified at all. And it didn’t. You could hear all of the instruments in the mix perfectly. If you wanted to listen specifically to the bass, for example, you could. And it sounded acoustic.

What this means is all of these elements, built on Ms. Wilson’s incredible voice, created an evening of transformative music. When I closed my eyes and listened it was as though I was floating. I’m not sure how else to describe it. This was one of those concerts I’ll never forget by an artist that I’ve wanted to see live for over a decade.

Set List:
Caravan
A Sleeping Bee
Black Orpheus
St James Infirmary
Sweet Lorraine
Them There Eyes
Wichita Lineman
Dust My Broom
Till There Was You
Encore: Death Letter/Arere

The Dave Douglas Interview

Jazz trumpeter, composer, bandleader, record label owner. All these terms apply to musician Dave Douglas, who is coming to Cornell University on February 4 to perform his soundtrack to the film “Spark of Being” at Cornell Cinema. “Spark of Being” is experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison’s retelling of the Frankenstein story. “Spark of Being” is also the soundtrack album that goes with the film.

Dave Douglas & Keystone

Douglas will be performing along with his excellent band Keystone. Debuted in 2006, the band is comprised of Douglas on Trumpet along with Marcus Strickland on tenor/soprano sax, Adam Benjamin on Fender Rhodes, Brad Jones on electric bass, Gene Lake on drums, and DJ Olive on turntables. Stay Lucky was fortunate to get the opportunity to get to ask Dave Douglas some questions in advance of his coming to town 

Stay Lucky: How did you get your start playing jazz?

Dave Douglas: Listening to Billie Holiday records and trying to get that sound.

SL: Who do you count as your influences?

DD: John Coltrane, Igor Stravinsky, Stevie Wonder. Among trumpeters, of course Miles Davis! And Woody Shaw, Lester Bowie, and Dizzy Gillespie.

SL: You've lived in new york since the early 1980s how as the Jazz scene changed since you have lived there?

DD: It's a lot more normal now that people play in multiple groups in different styles. Also, jazz has an institutional presence now that it did not have then. Which creates opportunities, but also naturally forces independent alternatives.

SL: You've played or collaborated with great musicians such as John Zorn and Don Byron in your career. Are there any that really stand out for you?

Both of those that you mentioned for sure. Trisha Brown was also an inspiring collaborator. Among musicians I am proud to have worked with Horace Silver and Tim Berne.

Through directing the Banff Workshop I have gotten to interact with some giants and hear what they have to say about music, among them George Lewis, Jason Moran, Miguel Zenon, Bill Frisell, so many others.

SL: How do you think the state of improvised music is?

DD: Better than ever. In a way this is a golden age, so many great people are working right now.

SL: You run your own record label, Greenleaf. Nels Cline, of Wilco fame, is one of the artist on your roster. Why did you decide to start your own label and how is it going?

DD: I enjoy running Greenleaf Music, but I couldn't do it without a ton of help! The entire industry is changing and I feel like, not only am I blessed to be able to make the recordings I want to make, but I get to work with some really cool musicians and people. And part of that is the ongoing discussion of where the industry is headed.

SL: You've been incorporating DJ, turntables, and computers into your music with tour group Keystone. What interested you about incorporating these sounds into your music?

DD: I've always been interested in new sonic possibilities for music. Great DJs, like Olive for example, work like sound artists and musicians--they bring something new to the table as far as what a band can sound like. It's an inspiration to me and I've learned a great deal from bringing that technology into my work.

SL: Your coming to Ithaca to perform live with the film, Spark Of Being, which you wrote the music for. How did this project come about?

Stanford University made the resources available for this project, it probably wouldn't have happened without them. I invited film maker Bill Morrison to collaborate on the production of a live sound and film event. We ended up doing a lot of the work on the Stanford Campus--and in the middle of this NY winter I am pretty nostalgic about that--including recording the score and giving the first performance.

Bill and I made the piece by passing bits of audio and video back and forth over a period of about 18 months. Because of that it came together in a truly collaborative fashion--neither the sound or the image came first.

SL: How is composing for a film different from the other writing you do?

DD: It's like having another band member to leave space for!

SL: Who are you listening to now?

DD: Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.

The White Stripes Hang Up Their Colorful Frocks

Deep down, I always felt I should like the White Stripes music more than I do. I don't deny Meg and Jack's talent. It's just that, perhaps, I'm more a fan of the whole aesthetic. Or that it always kind of seemed more of an art project, than a band.

Today, the band announced the end of touring and recording. I guess, in translation, this equals breaking up. I can't say as though I'm going to miss the music all that much. But I am going to miss the thoughtfulness the band brought to every aspect of what they did.