Let it Snow

some holiday help

For lovers of the accordion everywhere. I love the sitting vocal quartet too.

And the strangely prophetic ending...



Via Eivind Opsvik

Kurt Rosenwinkel interview at All About Jazz

Besides being one of my favorite players and composers on the planet, Kurt Rosenwinkel is one of the most thoughtful and straight-shooting people an interviewer can ask for. This interview at All About Jazz is short, but worth reading. Here are a few of my favorite parts.

AAJ: Did you have a breakthrough moment when you committed to a career in jazz, or did it more evolve naturally over time?

KR: I committed to playing music for my life when I was nine! Since then, it's never been a question. So, I never committed to a career in jazz. It's all just music to me. Whether it's this or that, I like it all—mostly. I became a jazz musician because so much of the music I love is called that, and it inspired me to learn and grow in that direction.


AAJ: You mentioned, in a previous interview, that you moved to Europe because of a healthier lifestyle—better healthcare, etc. That was over six years ago, and while certainly the American lifestyle hasn't gone through a wholesale evolution, a lot has changed. It is arguably a different time in America now. Do you envision returning to the States at some point?

KR: For now I am cool where I am. I don't think it has gotten any better in the States in terms of the cost of raising a family. If anything, it's gotten worse. It costs next to nothing to send a child to school here, all the way through 'til [a] Master's degree. Health care is affordable. I am not bombarded with advertising everywhere I go, and people are generally pretty cool. That said, it is not my culture, and I do feel the sense that I "belong" more to the States than to "Europe."

But then again, I don't wanna belong. I don't want to be a part of that larger cultural conversation in the United States. I don't share the same experience or assumptions about life that most people do here or there, so it ain't really that simple.

Mostly it really just boils down to that my kids are in Berlin, so I will stay in Berlin.

AAJ: You chose to work with Eric Revis and Eric Harland. What about their playing fit this project?

KR: Eric Revis and Eric Harland are the musicians I wanted to play with because they are both open minded and spontaneous, listening musicians. And also, as Ethan Iverson puts it in the liner notes, they are "committed to the straight-ahead mission," which means that we aren't trying to reinvent the wheel here, but rather play in the more traditional jazz conception that we love and know.

That said, there is no dogma involved and that is a critical point. I cannot play with anyone who is playing music from a dogmatic approach. But I also am not about throwing the baby out with the bathwater either. I love the jazz tradition, that is to say the music of jazz. And I know that we share this attitude, and I have had great experiences playing with Eric and Eric in lots of situations.

2009

I just completed this questionnaire for the Interboro Rock Tribune, which got me reviewing my year. Here's my submission:

1. What was your favorite album of 2007 and why? Least
favorite album?
The Bad Plus - For All I Care - It's a masterpiece by one of the few real working BANDS that are out there in the jazz world. Proves that great music can be fun to listen to and the production is amazing.
2. What are your other four favorite albums of 2009?
Fred Hersch - Plays Jobim
Laurent Coq - Eight Fragments of Summer
Emilio Teubal - Un Monton de Notas
Matt Kanelos - Silent Show

3. What song did you love this year and hated yourself for it and why?
Porque Te Vas scene from the film Cria Cuervos - the song is from the 70's and is absolutely perfect kitsch

4. What was the coolest thing you downloaded off the
Internet this year?
eMusic - It can sometimes be so overwhelming to keep up with buying music. It really helps me stay with it and keep my ears fresh.
5. What annoyed you most about 2009 and why?
television news and the increasing impact that it has on our culture

6. What freaked you out most about 2009 and why?
see #5 - specifically the pathetic shape the discussion of health care reform took
7. What was the best thing you saw on television in
2009 and why?
MADMEN - Actually, it was the only thing I saw on television this year.
8. What was your favorite film of 2009 and why?
Man on Wire. I know it was made in 2008, but it made a lasting impression. Goodbye Solo was a quiet film that I really liked. The Mike Tyson doc was great too.

9. What was the best concert you saw in 2009 and why?
Pat Metheny, Larry Grenadier, Jack DeJohnette at the Bear Theater in Woodstock NY. I had never seen Metheny before and it was totally awe inspiring to see him in such a small place with such an incredible group. I felt like I was 15 again listening to these guys play.
10. What does your gut tell you about 2010?
Not much different from 2009
11. Of all the retail stores that went belly up in 2009, which one will you miss the most and why?
Falafel Fusion on Church Ave. in Brooklyn.

12. What are your thoughts on Obama now vs. back in November of 2008?
Not to say that I'm not troubled by a number of policy decisions, but for the most part he's fighting a noble fight and up against some harsh political and social realities. It's a lot easier to be critical of him now that he's not being compared to people like McCain and Palin.