Makis: The
use of the basson in jazz is characteristically rare. Beyond some
sporadic appearances such as in the Paul Whiteman Band in the 1920's
and some references in modern jazz by Yusef Lateef or Chick Corea
and Frank Tiberi or the instrument's use in avant-garde compositions, the
bassoon is not often used in jazz. How successful such a relationship
can be is of course proven by your exceptional work. Tell us about
the relationship of the bassoon with the art of improvisation and
swing.
Daniel: In regard to the basson and it's use in jazz, especially
with improvising : If anyone has gone to my website and reviewed
my biography, they will realize that when I was younger, I played
professionally all of the woodwinds - saxophone, clarinet, flute, even a bit of oboe. . . and that my degree was on flute and not bassoon.
I studied with many of best teachers on all these instruments and
played with name bands, show bands, latin bands, symphony orchestras, etc. . . . so I feel I can give an accurate comparison of the bassoon
to these other instruments. To begin with, the bassoon is similar
to a violin or cello in that one would need roughly ten years to
really master it and become a virtuoso. By comparison, the saxophone
could be played quite well in just a year or two with serious practice
and some talent involved. What makes therefore the bassoon so rare
in jazz is that it is several times harder than a saxophone to play. . . as
just one example. When you hear a jazz phrase on bassoon identical
to that on a saxophone, it is much harder to execute. . . . and when
you get into the area of improvising, it is nearly impossible to
pull off. Many bassoon fingerings are quite complicated, and to execute
original jazz phrases is not for the faint hearted. It requires years
of concetrated study to get to this point, and even if one is already
a virtuoso bassoonist in classical music, it will not help in any
way to switch over to jazz and improvising! You have to completely
retrain yourself to learn all the many unusual jazz chords and scales
which are not in classical music and then move on to hearing ideas
in your head and executing them above the chord changes. So to sum
up, playing jazz on the bassoon is several times harder to do than
on any other woodwind. . . which explains why there are, or have been, so few jazz bassoonists over the years.
Makis: "Be
Bop Basson" and "Swingin' Basson" are two jazz albums
of yours with your quartet. Tell us about these works and about your
fellow musicians.
Daniel: The pieces heard on these two albums were recorded over
three days in New York. Before going into the recording studio, we rehearsed quite a few pieces over yet another three day period
and made decisions at that time as to which pieces worked best with
a bassoon-led jazz quartet. We eliminated several that did not seem
to come together and settled on 21 pieces in all. At the recording
session, I was tempted to concentrate on just 10 pieces, enough
for just one album. Martin Bejerano talked me out of this and urged
me to record all 21 pieces, which then were divided up into two
albums which were later released. I am very thankful that I listened
to Martin and went for the total we had rehearsed for the sessions.
As for these great musicians, what can I say? Martin Bejerano is
currently making a major name for himself on the International jazz
scene while both John Sullivan and Ludwig Afonso are highly regarded
in the jazz world for their skills on bass and drums. We are now
in the planning stages for future albums, including an all blues
album, one featuring the music of the great swing bands, a latin
album, and one showcasing contemporary pieces. The reaction to the
first two jazz albums has been tremendous with great reviews and
extensive airplay worldwide. 'Killer Joe' from Bebop Bassoon is
now the fifth ranked all-time download with All About Jazz and 'Scrapple
from the Apple' from The Swingin' Bassoon is moving up fast on this
same prestigious list. As for those new recording projects I mentioned, I plan to use the same musicians. My jazz skills have improved greatly
since making these albums and I look forward to having the chance
to display this on future recordings.
Makis: You
are one of the few accomplished musicians who moves between two
very demanding musical fields, classical music and jazz. How do you
accomplish this and how do you see the relationship between these
two modes of musical forms?
Daniel: A very good question and one which is not so easy to answer.
As already mentioned, it takes quite some time even after one is
a virtuoso on the bassoon to learn how to play decent jazz and to
improvise. When you have reached this point as a performer, you
then have to 'wear two hats' and shift your thinking and use different
approaches when playing classical and jazz. I have done this quite
a few times within the same concert with split classical/jazz presentations.
The first half of such a programme consists of bassoon with piano
in a recital format featuring classical and crossover music. Then
after the interval, a trio of piano, bass and drums comes on stage
and we perform jazz ranging from bebop to swing, latin, blues, ballads
and contemporary pieces. I perform on acoustical bassoon for the
classical part of the concert and then switch to amplified bassoon
for the jazz segment. The results of these concerts are very rewarding. . . the
audiences appreciate the classical part but are completely blown
away by the jazz that follows. My approach is to not take too many
liberties in the classical segment and keep the music 'straight'
and within a conservatory trained interpretation for each piece.
Then when we get to the jazz, I then take off my classical 'hat'
and utilize many different approaches to the music with bending
of notes, slurs, glissandos, use of space and rhythm, dynamics, etc. . . . something very different from the preceding classical music
which the audience has just heard. I also find the jazz idiom much
more rewarding and challenging than classical music in which you
are a 're-creator' of music instead of a 'creator' as in jazz.
Makis: What
drove you to choose the bassoon, such a difficult instrument, as
a mode of expression?
Daniel: As I pointed out before, I had mastered all the woodwinds
earlier in life and was already performing professionally on these
instruments. When I was in the US army, I was a member of the West
Point Band where I was the solo piccolo/flute player. My daughter
was born around that time and I was concerned about having to make
a living when I re-entered civilian life. . . so I decided to study
the bassoon during the time I was in the band. Since I already played
all the saxophones, clarinet, flute and piccolo, I thought that
by adding on a double reed instrument, I would be ready to perform
with Broadway show bands, do studio work, and so forth, and be in
a position to make a decent living as a 'doubler'. I started my
studies with one of the band's bassoonists and after leaving military
service, took further instruction on both bassoon and contrabassoon
with some of the best teachers around the NY area. . . members of
the NY Philharmonic, The Boston Symphony, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and even a former member of Toscanni's
NBC Symphony. I had scholarships to Tanglewood and the National
Orchestral Association and eventually performed in the bassoon sections
of many of the same orchestras where I had studied with their principal
bassoonists and contrabassoonists. Eventually I developed a 'passion'
for the instrument and step-by-step moved towards a solo career
and step-by-step dropped the other instruments. I found it much
more challenging than any of the other woodwinds and felt that it
was capable of producing the most wonderful sounds. Then after quite
some years of being a soloist in classical music, including concerto
performances with orchestras, numerous recitals, and many classical
and crossover albums, I then added on jazz later in life. . . . which
is now my main focus. Playing jazz is a never ending process of
continually playing at higher and higher levels of creativity and
which catch me by surprise whenever I pick up the bassoon to improvise.
Makis: Which
musicians do you consider your mentors?
Daniel: Besides many classical players from my earlier years, my
main jazz influences would be such as Stan Getz, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Clifford Brown, Dexter Gordon and others. I continually
shift back and forth in my improvisations between various styles
and keep experimenting to see which ones work best on bassoon and
also to combine many of them to create a new style. . which then becomes
my own 'signature' style. Remember that anyone learning the art
of jazz improvising on such instruments as the saxophone, trumpet, trombone, piano, etc. have role models to listen to and get ideas
from. With the bassoon, you are virtually inventing a style from
scratch and the end result will always be something new and different.
Makis: Do
you believe that Europe can (if it does not already do so) play
a role of creative nucleus for this new century's jazz?
Daniel: From what one of my European agents has told me (this would
be Horst Papeler-Deutsch in Berlin), the level of jazz players throughout
Europe is now considered by many as being on a par with American
jazz musicians. I don't have any particular viewpoint on this comment
since this is obviously a a very subjective statement. But I always
make a mental note when I hear someone play jazz as to how good
I think they are, regardless of what country or culture they are
from.
Makis: Have
you ever visited Greece? How do you see our country?
Daniel: I have been to Greece a few times including a month long
vacation on the island of Paros, a trip on a ship heading towards
the middle east which went through the Corinth Canal, and one time
visiting the Acropolis in Athens. I am an avid reader and very aware
of the history of Greece in the 20th century, including the Turkish
invasions of Smyrna and mainland Greece around WW1, the German occupation
in WW2, the civil war that followed, the time of the junta, and
onto the present. As an American, I have very strong feelings about
what the USA did during the worst of the dictatorship by supporting
it during the Nixon years. . . including the role of vice president
Spiro Agnew who went to Greece to praise the junta for their 'strong
commitment to Democracy'. I truly hope that the future for Greece
will be one of a prosperous and Democratic nation. As for visiting
Greece again, my wife informed me that she would love to go and
revisit Paros and also see Athens, and visit other islands. . . as
I would! The Greek islands are very special as you well know.
Makis: What
do you think about the contemporary New York jazz scene? How much
has the city of your birth changed in these past years?
Daniel: The contemporary jazz scene in NY would seem to be booming
in many ways. However, I also remember a previous era when such
jazz clubs as the original Birdland on 52nd st. , Basin Street East, and several clubs in Greenwich Village were the heart of the NY
jazz scene. I went to Birdland countless times where I heard such
greats as Stan Getz, Gerry Mulligan, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Bud Powell, Lester Young, Dinah Washington, Clifford
Brown, and many more. . . this when I was a teenager and used a fake
document to gain entry since I was under age. I was the first person
on line to enter and then sat by the bandstand where I heard all
these legendary jazz players and bands. The jazz artist I wished
I had heard in person would have been Charlie Parker, without doubt
in my opinion the greatest jazz musician who ever lived and a genius
on a par with Mozart in classical music. . . the likes of such genius
comes only once in a century, and perhaps never to be seen again.
Makis: How
helpful is the digital age and the internet for musicians?
Daniel: For me it has been of huge help in getting my name known
throughout the musical world. My website now has 26, 000 viewers
to date, my jazz albums can be heard on many jazz websites, there
are many articles, comments, and reviews on the Internet about my
career and my classical and jazz albums, and much more. All of this
would have been impossible in the past.
Makis: What
can we expect from you in the near future?
Daniel: It looks like there will be live performances in many countries, new recordings, more interviews such as this one, and many other
things now underway. I also know from experience that once people
have a chance to hear in person jazz bassoon, they love it and that
such performances are always a big success with audience and reviewers
alike. I have four agents representing me worldwide; all working
hard to promote me and who are now making significant breakthroughs
towards making jazz bassoon into a major force in music. One should
always keep in mind that with something of a pioneering nature which
is new and different, such as jazz bassoon, it takes time for audiences, critics, and presenters to fully accept it. Given the many excellent
reviews for my jazz albums, extensive airplay, articles and interviews, and the recently launched pod3tv show 'Daniel Smith' Jazz Bassoonist
Extraordinaire" on the Internet, this process is now well underway
and is continually expanding. As for my jazz skills, they are always
improving and as already mentioned, I look forward greatly to displaying
this in future live performances and on recordings.
Makis: Thank
you for everything Daniel. I wish you all the best for the future
and naturally hope we can see you soon in Greece.
Daniel: That's it! Hope you like my answers. And yes, like yourself, I too hope that I will have the opportunity to perform at Mykonos
and other jazz situations in Greece soon. I thank you for this opportunity
and look forward to the interview appearing with Jazz Notes.
-Makis Morakis, www. jazznotes. info
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