Ground rules I am not a jazz professor or jazz musician, nor do I hold myself out as an expert or a jazz illuminato. I have never taken a class in jazz or its history. And, honestly, I do my best to avoid the intellectual side of jazz – I am simply a fan and
After time spent visiting the estate of Harriet Tubman in Auburn, New York, Viktor Le Givens and Angel Bat Dawid presented a new work, Suite Harriet, on the main stage of BRIC Jazzfest in Brooklyn on the 21st of October. Le Givens’ work seeks to deepen and broaden our contact with the “etheric realm” through
During the Covid pandemic, I experienced contrasting periods of artistic lucidity and activity and periods of despondency. Overall, the former won over, and I’m happy to share a few developments that occurred during this time. When the pandemic first hit, I knew if I didn’t stay active playing piano I would go insane, so I
It’s not everyday that everyday looks like any day. The pandemic was a time of opportunity, perhaps, to woodshed, to workshop, to reflect, to reassess. It was also, for me, a time of uncertainty, anxiety, and of doubt. Keeping busy, and doing “the good work,” seemed at once absolutely necessary, but searching the corners
Arkinetics Daniel Carter – Trumpet, Reeds Alexis Marcelo – Fender Rhodes Damon Banks – Bass Roshni Samlal – Tabla Dan Kurfirst -Drums, Percussion, Compositions Arkinetics is an instrumental quintet that utilizes the practice of rhythm as mantra to enter a space of boundless joy and freedom. The concept has been inside of me for the
Early in the global pandemic, I learned about the theory of the “hedonic treadmill.” Maybe all of you know about this already, but in case you, like me, didn’t know, basically this theory posits that after an extremely positive or extremely negative change in a human’s life, we ultimately return to about the same level
Despite performing rarely the past couple of years have been fruitful in a few different ways. Below is a list of some of my musical activities since the spring of 2020. In May of 2020 I started a long distance collaboration with Philippe Lauzier, a composer, improviser, clarinetist and saxophonist based in Montreal, Canada. We began
From saxophonist Travis Laplante: Before I write about my personal and artistic experience during the pandemic thus far, it feels important to acknowledge that this period of time has been devastating for countless people. Whether it’s losing loved ones, working in an over-taxed health care environment, losing one’s business, or dealing with severe long-Covid symptoms—my
From saxophonist and composer Patrick Shiroishi: When 2019 was ending, I was excited for the year to be reborn. Not only did I have my first vinyl coming out, but there were also plans to have a septet assembled to reimagine the music for the record release show as well as my first solo tour
From composer-poet, pianist, and interdisciplinary artist Janice Lowe: Pre-pandemic After years of co-creating musical theater pieces, as well as playing with various bands, I branched out; formed the band Janice Lowe & Namaroon, and was finally on the verge of finishing a self-produced album that had been in the slow cooker. That album, Leaving CLE songs
