October 2006 – https://www.abstractlogix.com/

…a lyrical, melodic player with instrumental virtuosity
Kevin Oliver, Columbia Free Times

…a player of this caliber could easily break into the national spotlight at any given moment.
Mike Childree, Charleston Free Times

A hot player whose music I highly recommend.
Eric Johnson

Lest you don’t know who guitarist / composer Barry Richman is, read that last quote again and especially note who said it. That’s right. Richman is the Real McCoy. A resident and in-demand player in Atlanta, GA’s vibrant music scene, Richman continues to build national momentum for himself. His guitar playing is soulful without being clichéd, chops driven without being too technical, and imaginative without being commercially pandering. He’s like Goldilocks and Three Bears: not too hot, not too cold, just right. Here is an abbreviated list of the stellar players with whom Richman has already performed or recorded: The Allman Brothers, Gov’t Mule, Eric Clapton, Les Paul, Buddy Miles, John Lee Hooker, Mike Gordon & John Fishman (of Phish), Little Feat, Derek Trucks Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Shawn Lane, Col. Bruce Hampton and many more. Hence, the money is on Richman becoming a household name with guitarists within the very near future. And rightly so. Abstract Logix had the pleasure of interviewing Richman via email in mid-October.

Abstract Logix: You mentioned in an online interview on your website that you “hate traveling.” How does / has that impacted your career? Seems you almost have to tour to earn a living in music these days, so how compensate?

Barry Richman: It’s really not a problem. With the high cost of gas and hotels these days, the band does better to play around Atlanta.

AL: What don’t you like about traveling, per se?

BR: I guess I get tired of sitting in a van for hours and there’s never time for a decent meal and a shower before the gig. Aside from that, I really do love playing new places and meeting new people.

AL: I thought the following comment you made in your online interview was especially profound: “After many years of developing my technique and learning theory, I think I’m finally able to find those notes and sounds at the exact same time that I’m hearing them in my head. Then it passes through my heart to my fingers. It’s an incredible feeling, and I hope the people in the audience can feel some of that while they’re listening. If you listen closely, you can hear words coming out of the guitar.”

AL: Did that happen automatically for you or what something that you actively strove for and practiced? What advice do you have for others who are looking to integrate the left-hemisphere / theoretical aspect of music with the right-hemisphere / heart of music?

BR: I think that comes about automatically for musicians. I never made a conscience effort to get to that point. It goes back to that old saying: First learn your instrument, then forget all that stuff and play. Wish I could say there is a shortcut, but it really boils down to spending a lot of time playing. Eventually, you and your instrument become one.

AL: Tell me about some of your early training. Did you have formal music education? Self-taught? Private teachers (if so, any body whom we might know?)

BR: I’m pretty much self-taught but I had a wonderful guitar teacher, Sigi Alan, when I first started playing. He tried to teach me how to read music, but I never got the hang of it. He would give me books of Broadway show tunes and I hated it. Instead, I would learn solos note for note by slowing down the speed on my turntable. Music by Jimi Hendrix, Django Reinhardt, Cream, Wes Montgomery, Jeff Beck, etc. Doing that really helped develop my ear.

AL: I hear some Aquarium Rescue Unit influence in your compositions and a similarity to Jimmy Herring in some of your guitar work. Intentional?

BR: I love Jimmy and A. R. U. but I think any similarities would be because of mutual influences: guitarist such as Steve Morse and Scott Henderson. And also, Jeff Sipe was playing drums in my band before he joined A. R. U. and for a short time, Oteil Burbridge was on bass. I think just being around each other in the same city has something to do with it. I guess that’s why some cities develop a characteristic sound, for example New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, and Austin.

AL: When you’re playing with Jimmy, as on “Back Door # 4” with two great guitarists on the same track, how do you guys communicate? How do you ensure each of you has his own “say” without getting into each other’s way? Do you think / play differently when he’s on board with you?

BR: Being a musician is all about communicating, with each other and with the audience. It’s as natural as having a conversation. Jimmy and I have always had a great mutual respect for each other and we have a total blast playing together. I can’t help but be inspired when I hear him play.

AL: Your guitar collection is awesome; I’m jealous. When you tour, which guitars do you usually take on the road?

BR: Well, I’m up to 35 guitars now, so sometimes it’s hard to decide which to take with me on the road. I usually wind up with one Fender and one Gibson. Now that these vintage guitars have become so expensive, I wind up leaving the most valuable ones at home and save them for using in the recording studio. Same with my vintage amps. I’ve had my equipment stolen out of my car twice. And I’m also reluctant to try flying around with one of those vintage guitars as well.

AL: Tell me more about this 1958 Les Paul model…

BR: It’s an original tiger stripped sunburst with Patent Applied For pickups. Plays like a dream and sounds amazing! That guitar has a lot of soul.

AL: I see you do some teaching. Is that a significant part of your music career? Do you only teach advance students or do you also teach beginners? What materials do you use when you’re teaching (not necessarily books, but what approaches to music learning/making to strive to instill in your students)?

BR: I have time for about 5 to 10 students a week. It helps out in between gigs. I teach beginners to advanced professional players. I don’t use any materials or books; the lessons are geared towards each student’s musical goals. I teach them that everyone has his or her own unique style and voice on the guitar. I try to help them find it. I also make certian to encourage proper technique and good practice habits. There’s so much more to it than just learning scales and picking fast.

AL: I read on your website where Les Paul invited you to play with him. What was that experience like?

BR: Les is without a doubt one of the greatest guitarists – ever! I can’t even begin to tell you how much respect I have for him. It was an honor to be on stage with him and his trio. I brought my ’58 Les Paul with me to N.Y.C. for that show. We spent an hour talking to each other back stage.

AL: Tell me more about this live DVD that you’ll soon be recording. What players? What venue? What stage of production is it in?

BR: We did a three camera shoot last year at The Masquerade in Atlanta with my current band: Kari Connolly, Bill Diehl and Jeff Haley. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties, the audio was out of sync with the video, and I can’t release it. It’s like watching a foreign flick with the voice and mouth moving at different times.

AL: Atlanta strikes me as being — and it’s been so for quite some time now — a real hot bed for original music, as well as sporting great musicians. Is that still true? What’s the scene like for you up there?

BR: It’s a very healthy music scene here. Atlanta doesn’t quite have the same musical soul as say N.Y.C. or Austin or New Orleans, but it’s a beautiful city to work in. I stay busy with gigs and studio work.

AL: BTW, you have very well laid- out, informative and fun-looking website. Congrats! Lets encourage everybody reading this to go check it out. Even the Links page is impressive.

BR: Thank you! The credit goes to my web master, Norman Wilson; he’s awesome.

AL: Walk me through the songs “Jazz Noise 1-4.” What cool solos you’re doing! Great tone, too. Why did you decide to include them as just song snippets?

BR: That was actually about a four-minute jam that had a couple of glitches in the recording that we couldn’t repair. So, instead of throwing the whole track away, we edited it into four little pieces and placed them in between some of the longer tracks.

AL: Ditto re: “Get It While You Can,” which features a great, funky shuffle groove. It also has a great solo, especially that very brief wah-wah phrase. I’m eager to hear you in concert.

BR: A lot of times, I wind up writing songs on the spot, live on stage or in the studio. I’ll start a rhythm groove and throw some chord changes or a lick at the band and everything falls into place. I’ll do the same thing when I’m soloing. I make up a groove on the spot and take it from there. It keeps the live shows sounding fresh. Even the songs that we play every show turn out a little different every performance. I hope you can catch one of our shows next time you’re in Georgia. I think I do my best playing live.

AL: Tell me about how you compose, develop your solos, etc.

BR: I like to start out writing a chord progression first. Then I decide if it’s best to have my songwriting partner/producer, Paul Kelly, add lyrics or keep it as an instrumental. To me, a good solo tells a story and is similar to a paragraph in literature. It starts with a sentence and the following sentences relate to the previous ones. This can be achieved both rhythmically and harmonically.

AL: When I’ve previously spoken in depth with Oteil Burbridge, he talked about how playing w/ Col. Bruce Hampton really challenged him as a musician in ways that were “outside the norm.” What have you learned from playing with Col Bruce?

BR: Playing with Bruce was definitely a learning experience. He has a way of getting you wander outside of your box. Then he locks the doors and eats the keys. (LOL.) It was a lot of fun playing with him! We’ve been great friends for many years.

AL: That’s a wonderful cover version of The Allman Brothers’ “Whipping Post.” It’s very imaginative. Is that very different groove something you came up with? Admittedly, that’s one of my favorite tracks on your new “Blues from Mars Vol. 1”.

BR: That was inspired by a version I heard on a Greg Allman solo album. I’ve only heard that particular version one time, so I’m not really sure how similar ours is to his. I think we’ve expanded on the arrangement a bit. Personally, I always think that when I do a cover of someone else’s song, I want to add my own personal touch, instead of playing the original note for note.

AL: If there is any thing else you’d like to add? If so, go for it…

BR: I am so appreciative of the people out there that love real music played by real musicians. As you well know, mainstream media is engulfed with commercial music and very little artistic or sincere, heartfelt music ever gets any exposure. I want to thank all the cool people out there that support the art of creative and improvised music! I love hearing from all of you. Please feel free to write me through the Contact page on my site: www.barryrichman.com.

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Bassist Mark Egan Interview

October 24, 2006

Mark Egan, News

Mark Egan

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One of the premier electric bassists of contemporary jazz, Mark Egan has distinguished himself as an in-demand session player, valued sideman and respected leader in his own right. His distinctive fretless bass sound has graced countless jazz and pop albums as well as award winning movie and television soundtracks .

A charter member of the Pat Metheny Group, he has played on multi platinum-selling recordings by Sting, Arcadia and Joan Osborne and has also recorded with the likes of Roger Daltry, Sophie B. Hawkins, Marianne Faithfull, David Sanborn and John McLaughlin and was a member of the Gil Evans Orchestra for 13 years.

On his latest as a leader, the 2-CD set “As We Speak”, Egan stretches out in a wide open trio setting with jazz guitar great John Abercrombie and former Pat Metheny Group band mate and Elements co-founder Danny Gottlieb on drums. Recorded at his Electric Fields studio, Egan’s latest on his own Wavetone Records label is an ambitious follow up to 2001’s “Freedom Town”.

Mark just returned from a highly successful European tour featuring John Abercrombie and Danny Gottlieb.

AL: Mark, Congrats on your new record. Beautiful and powerful compositions that sound that it comes from an ECM realm. Could you speak about the project and your concept?

Mark Egan: Thank you, Souvik. Yes, I think the record does come from an ECM influence and it also comes from a lot of other areas as well. In some ways it’s more electric and more upfront than some of the ECM mixes and sounds. This was the way I heard it and mixed it with the great engineer Richard Brownstein. We’ve worked together on all my solo records, many of the Elements records, the group that I co-lead with drummer Danny Gottlieb, and other records I’ve produced. Richard has an amazing gift of organizing and bringing fourth distinctive and beautiful sound.
The concept behind this record was that for many years I’ve wanted to do a trio record, in particular with John Abercrombie and Danny Gottlieb. I’ve always enjoyed their playing in various groups and recordings. Danny Gottlieb and I always have such a great rapport with all of the various musical situations that we’ve been in as a rhythm section. We’ve been playing together for 35 years now. Danny and I first met at the University of Miami where we studied music under the direction of Jerry Coker and Whit Sidener.
I first met John Abercrombie in 1981 and we played together in New York at the club, Fat Tuesdays. At that time the event was called a guitar summit and many guitarists – Vic Juris, Chuck Loeb and John Abercrombie were featured. Also, when I was member of the Pat Metheney Group we toured with John and his band on an ECM tour of Japan and the US. Also on that tour were the bands Egberto Gizmonti and Nana vas Concelos. I really had the great opportunity listen to John on those tours for repeated nights. I always felt close to his music and wanted play and record with him.
I always thought that our sounds and our sensibilities would fit together very well. With “As We Speak” we finally had the opportunity to play together and it was a great experience for me. I worked on compositions for about 4 months before the recording with the specific players in mind. The inspiration for this trio was also influenced by the group Gateway, which is a group with Jack Dejohnette, Dave Holland and John Abercrombie. I really enjoy their sense of structure improvisation and freedom and I wanted to do more of an electric version but with some of the sensibilities in terms of improvisation and interplay. I have been playing in a lot of different trios for my whole musical career however during the last 10 years I’ve been focusing on the trio format with guitar and writing songs with that context in mind. For the last 4 years I’ve been performing worldwide with the Larry Coryell Trio featuring drummer Paul Wertico. I’ve been thinking, composing and playing with a trio in mind and really wanted to crystallize some ideas I’ve had for that format. I feel that this trio recording, “As We Speak”, really captures an intimate and exposed side of my musical expression.

AL: You have been performing with Larry Coryell and Paul Wertico in the recent past, what made you choose John Abercrombie as the plectorist on ‘As We Speak‘?

ME: I love the way Larry Coyell plays, and we have a great rapport with his trio with Paul Wertico. We have been touring worldwide for the last four years and have recorded one release, Tricycles. For my trio recording I wanted to record music in a different direction, and, as I said, I’ve always been fascinated with John’s playing and I thought he would really fit in with the way that Danny and I play.

AL: I know you have been using fretless basses for a while, what were you using on this album ?

ME: I mostly used my Pedulla 5 string fretless MVP5 bass, which is a Mark Egan signature series bass. It has a low B string and it is designed with my specifications. I use a fairly thin neck from top to bottom and it also has some special electronics, a mid-range boost, and a cut away which allows me to play up into the highest note on the fingerboard. I love to play in that area. I’ve been with Pedulla basses since 1981 when he built the first bass for me. I knew him in 1978 because he refinished a Fender Jazz bass from which I’d taken the frets out of and put a finish on. I did a bad job and had to take it to his shop and put a spray finish on the fingerboard to make it playable. We’ve since developed a great working relationship and he’s built many basses for me, all the double necks, the 8 string fretlesses, the 8 string fretted. On one track – “Tone Poem For My Father” – I used a fretted bass, also a Pedulla. The reason for this was that there were a lot of chords that I played, root 5, and melody, and I really wanted to play them in tune.

AL: How do you compose, on bass or anything else?

ME: I compose many different ways. Sometimes I write completely from the bass. Many of the songs on “As We Speak” were composed on the bass – the title track, “Vanishing Point,” “Depraw,” “Spirals.” Often times I start things on bass and then go to the piano and work on harmonies and melodies. Sometimes I’ll record a bass line and play on top of that on piano. One of the songs I wrote completely in my head away from anything except pencil and paper, and that was called “Plane to the Trane.” At times I write entirely on the keyboard, but for this record most of the compositions were written on the bass, and bass/keyboard combination.

AL: You come from the illustrious -University of Florida. Do You ever look back ?

ME: Actually, it’s the University Of Miami in Florida and it was a very fertile time for me when I attended there from 1969 untill 1976. There was a great jazz educator, Jerry Coker, that attracted a great combination of players such as; Danny Gottlieb, Clifford Carter, Pat Metheny, Steve Morse, Rod Morgenstern, Mark Colby, Eric Traub, Matt Bonelli, Stan Samole, Bill Bowker and many others. The timing was really great. A lot of people were taking chances, musically. Miles Davis had just come out with “Bitches Brew”, “Live Evil”. Jazz fusion was really coming on strong then. John McLaughlin just released the first Mahavishnu Orchestra recording and both Miles and Mahavishnu performed at the U. of Miami. Those were very inspiring times and I do look back at those days quite often and recall a lot of great memories. Those were very intense and inspiring years. I still have great friends there who are teachers and players that I’m in touch with regularly. It was a very deep experience for me and really opened my head up to creative jazz and world music. Not only was it great musically but it also opened me up to a path of yoga, mediation and an awareness of healthy food and exercise which I still follow today.

AL: The first time I heard about you was on the early Pat Metheny records, how do you feel your playing has evolved today?

ME: The Pat Metheny records were recorded almost 30 years ago in 1977 and 1980. I feel that my playing has evolved since then in so many ways. I’m much more technically fluid and harmonically I have much more knowledge of music in general. Compositionally I feel much more evolved since then having written music for the group Elements which I co-lead with Danny Gottlieb as well as my solo recordings and productions that I have been involved with. I always had good sensibilities about playing in tune and playing melodically since I was originally a trumpet player and I continually draw from those experiences.

Since my experience with Pat Metheny I’ve had so many great musical experiences; from being a part of the New York session recording scene to touring with many great artists. I’ve had the opportunity to play with Airto Moreira, and Bill Evans, the saxophone player. I was fortunate enough to record a Bill Evans record, “The Alternative Man”, with John McLaughlin – a high point of my career. It’s also been inspiring to play with Larry Coryell, Jim Hall, Pat Martino, John Abercrombie, Jeff Ciampa and many other great guitarists. I’ve drawn and emulated so much from all these great players and experiences. I honestly feel as if I’m only scratching at the surface of a deep well, and that is to me the beauty of music and art: It’s an endless well. Once you experience a taste from the well you just want more, and that’s what keeps me going musically and spiritually and creatively.

AL: I know you are already thinking about what you want to do next? So what is it?

ME: Well, Souvik, I have many ideas that I want to do, but one idea is to do another record with this trio because I feel like we just scratched the surface of what is possible. Although “As We Speak” is a double CD set I feel that’s there’s a lot more music where that came from. We just returned a few days ago from a great two-week tour of Europe which was very successful and it gave me a lot of ideas for compositions with the trio. At the moment I’m savoring those moments and using them to inspire new. You really learn what works and what doesn’t work very fast when you play for a live audience. I also have a lot of projects on the burners. I want to do a heavy groove record with the great drummer Steve Jordan along with some avant guard saxophone on top of it. What I’m thinking of is a heavy funk, “Bitches Brew”, groove type of feel with some real avant garde music on top of a real strong funk groove. I also have an idea to do a very acoustic record with acoustic guitars, flute, tablas and percussion, something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.

AL: You have a wonderful catalog through your company Wavetone records. Could you speak about the various releases?

ME: Thank you for the compliment on Wavetone records. We have 10 releases to date. One of the reasons I started Wavetone Records in 1993 was because I had a live CD which I recorded with Elements in Japan – actually we recorded a whole week – and I was able to release three CD’s from those sessions and they’re called: “Elements Far East Volumes 1 and 2”, and “Elements Untold Stories”. That band was with David Mann on saxophone and the great keyboardist and composer, Gil Goldstein, Danny Gottlieb and myself. Another release from Wavetone is a Joe Beck CD called “Finger Painting” and that features Bill Evans on saxophone, myself, and Danny Gottlieb on drums. Joe Beck is a monster guitar player, a deep thinker, very adept in harmony, and one of the greatest guitar players that I’ve ever played with. So that’s a very interesting project.
We’ve also done two other projects with another great guitarists Jeff Ciampa. One is called Signs of Life which features Danny Gottlieb and myself – we’re sort of the stable rhythm section of Elements. It also features Rick Martinez on keyboards, Jon Werking on keyboards and Billy Drews on saxophone. Jeff Ciampa The other release from Jeff Ciampa is called “House of Mirrors” and it’s a progressive, electric guitar trio with Danny and myself.
Jeff has an extraordinary fluid guitar style and a love of melodic jazz, Brazilian music and World Beat rhythms.
We also have “Mosaic” which was my first solo record originally released on Wyndham Hill. I licensed it to them and I decided to release it on my label after it was deleted from their catalog. I added two bonus tracks which were duos with Danny Gottlieb and myself. Mosaic is a special recording for me. It features many different basses that I was playing at the time and the music was orchestrated to feature those instruments in a very intimate and unique musical environment.
“Freedom Town” was my previous solo project release in 2001. It is a recording based on songs in a contemporary world jazz setting featuring the fretless bass as well as saxophonist Bill Evans and Trumpeter, Lew Soloff. I played a lot of the melodies and solos on various Pedulla fretted and fretless basses. Also featured are: Danny Gottlieb on drums, Clifford Carter on keyboards, Jeff Ciampa on guitar, David Charles on percussion and Jon Werking also on keyboards.
Thelonius Bach’s Lunch is an acoustic piano, bass and drums super jazz trio, It is original music with simplicity and complexity using a wide range of dynamics and textures to create a completely unique ensemble voice using traditional jazz trio sensibilities. It features Jeff Laibson on piano, Danny Gottlieb on drums and Mark Egan in a rare acoustic bass debut.

Mark Egan “As We Speak” is our latest two CD set release featuring John Abercrombie on guitar and Danny Gottlieb on drums. My intention for having Wavetone Records was and is to have a creative outlet for my different productions and recordings. It’s been a very successful company for the artists and myself, and I’m going to continue recording various creative projects. It has allowed us to do anything we want without restrictions in a wide open format of creative music.

Here is a summary of the Wavetone Records releases:

Elements Vol. 1
Elements Vol.2
Elements Untold Stories
Mark Egan Mosaic
Mark Egan Freedom Town
Mark Egan As We Speak
Joe Beck Finger Painting
Jeff Ciampa Signs of Life
Jeff Ciampa House of Mirrors
Thelonius Bach’s Lunch Feat; Jeff Laibson, Danny Gottlieb and Mark Egan

It’s great to be associated with Abstract Logix, Souvik, which is such a focused website and company that draws a lot of people to a world of creative music. I’m glad to have Wavetone Records afilliated with Abstrac Logix and I wish you continued success.

Thank you very much, Souvik, for the interview. Thanks to all the readers and to anyone who listens to my music. I appreciate the interest and support. There’s more to come.

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Guitarist Nguyen Le Interview

October 7, 2006

News, Nguyen Le

Nguyen Le

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One of the world’s foremost and incomparable World Jazz Guitarists / Composers / Producers Nguyên Lê was kind enough to respond to AL’s questions in between sessions of his “Homescape” album to discuss his latest, illustrious ensemble project, “Walking on the Tiger’s Tail” .

Abstract Logix: Did having a brush with cancer affect your thinking about your music or life any differently? I know in part that’s what “Walking on the Tiger’s Tail” is about from reading the liner notes you wrote. How has that manifested in your life now, nearly 2.5 years later after recording the album?

Nguyên Lê: With hospital life for several months I learned to be even more patient than I was before. With major illness I learned both the quiet acceptance of destiny and the urge and intensity of living. I experience music the same way; every moment in music is a miracle!

AL: You wrote in “Walking on the Tiger’s Tail” (WoTT) liner notes that most of the songs were inspired by Taoist stories. Do you practice Zen or Buddhism? If so, how has that affected your approach to music? Your approach to life in general?

NL: I don’t practice any religion. It’s more about a philosophical approach, a way of thinking and an attitude in front of life that was inspired by reading those Chinese texts.

AL: What were some of the ancient Chinese texts that you referred to in the liner notes? Some people may want to read them as well.

NL: It’s mainly “Dao De Jing” from Lao Tze, Zhuang Zi, a collection of texts from Zhang Zi, & Yi Jing, the ancient divination book.

AL: There isn’t a bassist on WoTT. After playing with the some of the world’s finest (Carles Benavent, Renaud Garcia-Fons, Michel Alibo, etc.), why did you decide not to use a bass player on this album?

NL: Sure. Some of my bass players friends still don’t understand. In fact this started from a non-musical fact: the unique understanding we have together with Art & Paul. Once we played in trio and I felt that this combination of human and musical beings was something to keep preciously, and to develop wisely. There was still some rhythm support missing, but no bass function missing, as we can play bass lines with piano left hand, bass clarinet or octaved guitar. I like also the idea that therefore the soloist must have the mind and the responsibility of also being a rhythm player. So this bassist-free concept has nothing against bass players, it’s more an exploration of new soundscapes that can happen because of it (like the drum & bass concept).

AL: One of your trademark sounds I’ve discovered – from having heard many of your albums over the years – is your guitar’s doubling and / or dancing with harmonies with the saxophone. Sometimes it’s very subtle, other times more overt. Did that start in “Ultramarine”? Why do you like doing it? (I love it; I just wanted to hear your opinion).

NL: Wise listener! This started indeed with “Ultramarine”. I love the singing force of a guitar / sax unison – it is melody at its best lyrical strength and I must say that I worked a lot on the fusion of expression of both instruments (w/ trumpet it works very well too, as with Paolo Fresu) In WOTT it was more a chamber music concept, with everybody having his own line and moving melody leadership between instruments.

AL: Playing with Paul really gives you the opportunity to explore that more, correct?

NL: Correct. The rare instruments Paul plays ask for a special work on the sounds that go with them. I wrote all the music of this album while thinking of him (and Art, of course) and his very identifiable sound.

AL: “Wingless Flight” has elements of jazz, world percussion and rock guitar. Very cool song. There’s an element of Oregon’s music; of course Paul’s presence helps in that regard. But the melody line reminds me of something Ralph Towner might write… Yet your guitar solo is nearly raucous, almost rock like. Interesting contrast. Please discuss the piece further.

NL: In fact the melody reminds me a of something that Oregon had pioneered in the ’70’s when during their original “meeting” between Western classical music with jazz, they became the most European sounding American band, and defined what European jazz could be. In a way I started from them and added rock energy and non-western music to the meeting! Oregon has long been one of my favorite groups.

AL: Your guitar solo in “Yielding Water” guitar is so cool. I hear elements of AfroAmerican blues, Middle Eastern scales, rock-in-general, outside bebop, and Asian / Chinese / Vietnamese… it’s wonderful. It’s almost a microcosm of your approach to soloing in general, as it were. Care to discuss that a little bit?

NL: You said it. After and while integrating the lessons of traditional music from all over the world, my goal is to bring them to a true and homogenous language, as much in the guitar improvisation as the compositions themselves. This became prominent in my “Bakida” CD.

AL: Also “Yielding Water” has a beautiful melody/harmony by you and Paul McCandless. Tell me more about that line.

NL: Again, the idea is to have two lead melodies at the same time, so the listener can choose which she / he likes to focus on. Sometimes it’s harmonizing, sometimes it’s counterpoint. I’m a lot inspired by Vince Mendoza, who’s writing for big band is full of these multiple melodies.

AL: Walk me through “Jorai”… that’s a great piece! Sounds East Indian at times. Chinese, too. And your guitar solo texture/playing is just wild. Great track!

NL: “Jorai” is based on a traditional song from a –Vietnamese ethnic minority of the same name. I think it’s played on kind of circular harp with strange tuning. There are two different tonalities on each hand. I first transcribe the tune, then develop each hand part to two complete lead lines. Then added some interesting rhythms and harmonies. Lots of ethnic Vietnamese music can sound Indian as well as Indonesian. Here I emphasized the Indian side while asking Jamey to play his hadgini and kanjira instruments.

AL: “Totsu!” has such a cool guitar sound at the beginning. Is that your synth guitar? Tell me more about that tune…

NL: Which part ? The first neo-African guitar part with arpeggios doubled by the piano? I overdubbed my Parkerr electroacoustic guitar, which gives a bright and large dimension. Then there’s an ambient pad, which you find back behind Paul’s solo. This is my usual guitar pad sound, made with lots of different delays w/ different times, modulation rates and depths (using the Lexicon PCM 81). But I reworked this sound that I played live at home with the Ohmboyz plug in, with a program that transposes one octave down, while looping it like a delay.

AL: Are there any other tracks you’d like to discuss in particular?

NL: In fact the process of this recoding was interesting: we recorded two days in a live jazz situation while on tour in Germany. I brought all the multi-tracks back home and worked for two weeks on editing every track, choosing the best takes, adding effects and overdubs, refining sounds. Then I came back to the German studio (Bauer studios, Ludwigsburg, where they produce lots of ECM records) to mix during four days, including a 5.1, mix which was made for provision.

AL: Do write most of your music on the guitar? (Chord changes, melody lines, etc.) I’ve noticed that throughout your work, many of your melodies can be melodies are quite somewhat complex yet ultimately “rememberable” not unlike a motif in Western classical music. Of course, I find this prevalent in WoTT quite frequently. Truth be told: it’s one of the many elements I’ve always admired about your approach to composition. Discuss your approach to songwriting, please.

NL: Everything is possible regarding songwriting: singing or rhythm 1rst; chords 1rst, bass line 1rst;, melody 1rst, technical guitar lick or synthesizer sound, sampling, or an idea stolen from a previous listening, poetic, textual or philosophical ideas, etc.. For me, the computer is the central tool to keep track, organize, develop and orchestrate all these elements. It’s a fantastic tool because it frees the composer of having to play what he writes. After finishing a composition, I always spend some days to learn it on guitar. There’s a main rule I have, though: everything should be singable.

AL: Your approach to the electric guitar is so unique. Your melodic lines often have an angular, Eastern-influence intervallic approach to them. Did you develop that when working on “Tales from Vietnam” or has that always been an element to your writing/playing?

NL: It mainly started while studying Vietnamese traditional music with Tales from Viet Nam — but first in the writing then in the playing. I also learned a lot when doing Maghreb & Friends and also just by ear while listening precisely to Indian and African music.

AL: For the guitarist / musicians reading this, how would you recommend someone begin practicing more with intervals to help understand how you utilize them in such a unique fashion?

NL: First transcribe some phrases you like. Short phrases can be enough; for example, there can be so much to learn in just two notes played by Hariprasad Chaurasia, by example. Then try to emulate the sound and phrasing of that motif . Once you’ve learned that, try applying that phrasing and those techniques in other phrases of your own.

AL: Along those lines, what do you practice? Study?

NL: I do exactly what I just described. Last time was working on material from Indian mandolinist U. Shrivinas. But I don’t have much time to do this. These days, when I’m not touring, I’m either preparing for a next record (Huong Thanh’s fourth CD) or writing music. Also learning some new software at the moment.

AL: I think its wonderful that there are scores of your songs on your website to download and learn from. Did you personally write all those parts out or did someone transcribe them for you?

NL: I wrote everything. That’s the scores with which the tunes were created and are being played. Well, sometimes musicians.

AL: Are those what you used as studio charts, for example when recording “Maghreb and Friends”?

NL: For “Maghreb” there’s a lot of orchestra scores. When I give sheets to the musicians each one has his own part, except if it’s trio music.

AL: When did you learn to read music? Is that something you gained early on in your music education?

NL: As a self-taught musician, I learned to write music because I needed to fix my compositions. Then because I was in some reading-demanding situations, like National Jazz Orchestra. In fact I’m not a good sight reader – except for [chord] changes of course. In sideman situations, I always ask the music to be sent in advance.

AL: You haven’t played acoustic guitar much on any of your albums… Is that something we might here from you in the future?

NL: I’m slowly trying to include acoustic guitar as my instrument, but I must say I’m always frustrated when I play acoustic : no whammy bar, big body, heavier strings where bends are more difficult, etc.… But I love the sound, the immediate presence & the natural rhythmic efficiency.

AL: Intonation being an obvious one, what are some of the other challenges you encounter when playing your fretless guitar?

NL: It’s another frustrating but loved instrument. Besides intonation, the main issue is sustain (not much) & attack (very medium & sometimes too round).

AL: What inspires you?

NL: Everything, from the song of a bird to the perfume of a flower, an event on TV news or a specific musical idea. But everything is still pretty abstract & hazy, I cannot say this comes from that except for the specific musical ideas, like a special rhythm from North Africa, or a precise scale.

Born in Paris from Vietnamese parents, he began to play drums at the age of 15, then took up guitar & electric bass. After graduating in Visual Arts, he majored in Philosophy, writing a thesis on Exoticism. Then he devoted to music, creating “ULTRAMARINE” (1983), a multi-ethnic band whose CD “DÉ” has been considered 1989′ s best World Music album — Philippe Conrath, Libération.
Nguyên LE is a self-taught musician, with a wide scope of interests: Rock & Funk (Jim Cuomo, Madagascar tour 84), Jazz standards & contemporary Jazz (bass player with Marc Ducret, guitar player with Eric Barret), Improvised Music (Yves Robert), Singers (Ray Charles), Contemporary Music (André Almuro, Tona Scherchen, Marius Constant, Mauricio Kagel), Ethnic Music : African & Caribbean with “ULTRAMARINE” , Algerian with Safy Boutella & Cheb Mami, Indian with Kakoli, Turkish with Kudsi Erguner, Vietnamese with his Dan Bau (traditional one-stringed instrument) teacher Truong Tang.
In Sept. 87 he was chosen by director Antoine Hervé to play with the O. N. J. (French National Jazz Orchestra). Within this big band, he played with such musicians as Johnny Griffin, Louis Sclavis, Didier Lockwood, Carla Bley, Steve Swallow, Randy Brecker, Toots Thielemans, Courtney Pine, Steve Lacy, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Gil Evans, Quincy Jones. Nguyên LE’ s work also deals with programming synthetizers, effects & computers as well as writing orchestral pieces: PROCESSOR composed, arranged & recorded on CD O.N.J. 87 & LUNIK II co-arranged with Dominique Borker & performed by the O.N.J. 1989.
In Sept. 89 he records “ULTRAMARINE”’s 2nd album “DÉ” and in May 90, his first album as a leader: “MIRACLES” recorded in the U.S.A. with Art LANDE, Marc JOHNSON & Peter ERSKINE. At the same time he works with such musicians as Michel Portal, Miroslav Vitous, Trilok Gurtu, J. F. Jenny Clarke, Aldo Romano, Daniel Humair, Dewey Redman, Andy Emler, Jon Christensen, Nana Vasconcelos, Glenn Ferris, Christof Lauer, Paolo Fresu, Kenny Wheeler, John Taylor …
In May 92, after a month tour with Paul McCANDLESS on winds, Art Lande (p), Dean Johnson (b) & Joël Allouche (d), he records his 2nd album “ZANZIBAR”, which gets the « ffff » award by Télérama. In Jan. 93 he records “INIT”, a trio with André Ceccarelli, François Moutin & guest Bob Berg, while setting up a new band on the music of Jimi Hendrix, w/ Corin Curschellas (voc), Steve Argüelles (d), Richard Bona (b). Since Jan. 93 he’s been a frequent guest soloist of Köln’s WDR Big band, especially with composer / director Vince Mendonza. Nguyên Lê plays on three of his projects: Jazzpaña, Sketches w/ Dave LIEBMAN, Charlie MARIANO, Peter Erskine, & Downtown, w/ Russell Ferrante. In April 94 he’s the guest soloist of The New Yorker, a suite by Bob BROOKMEYER, with Dieter Ilg (b) & Danny Gottlieb (d). With these two musicians he set his first trio, & recorded “MILLION WAVES” (ACT 9221-2) in Dec. 94 . About this CD, Télérama writes: This trio brings him to some musical spaces which he had not even imagined, & which are pure poetry.
In the meantime, he’s playing in trio with Michel Benita(b) & Peter Erskine, recording on Michel Portal’s new album with Ralph TOWNER (g), & working with Ornette COLEMAN on one of his contemporary music pieces, Freedom Statue. In June 95 he’s invited by WDR Big Band in Azure Moon, with the YELLOWJACKETS & Vince Mendoza. In July 95, in Stuttgart Festival, he’s one of the guest guitar players to celebrate the Universe of Jimi Hendrix, alongside Trilok Gurtu, Terry BOZZIO, Cassandra WILSON, Jack BRUCE, Vernon REID, David TORN, Victor BAILEY, Pharoah SANDERS… Recently he has been playing with John McLaughlin, Michel Petrucciani, Markus Stockhausen, Enrico Rava, Ray Anderson, Kenny Wheeler, John Taylor, Dave Douglas, Wolfgang Puschnig…
In April 96, Nguyên Lê creates “TALES FROM VIÊT-NAM” (ACT 9225-2), a project on Vietnamese music, with a 8-piece band blending jazz & traditional musicians. With stage director P. J. San Bartolomé, he starts Of the Moon & the Wind , a complete show where traditional & contemporary Vietnamese dancers are integrated to the “Tales from Viêt-Nam” orchestra. The CD has received a great welcoming from international critics: Diapason d’Or, Choc du Monde de la Musique, Choc of Year 1996 Jazzman, 2nd best CD 96 for “JAZZTHING” (Germany), Best CD 96 on radio TRS 2 (CH), a minor masterpiece JAZZTIMES (USA).
On 4/97 Nguyên Lê releases his 5th CD, “3 TRIOS” (ACT 9245-2), with Marc Johnson / Peter Erskine, Dieter Ilg / Danny Gottlieb & Renaud Garçia Fons/ Mino Cinelu. JAZZIZ Magazine USA says : « At times, jazz guitar can sound staid – but not in the case of N. Lê. He’s forever breaking boundaries for our benefit ». He has recorded 2 CDs with Paolo Fresu’s quartet : « Angel » (2/98) & « Metamorfosi » (4/99).
On 5/98, 6th N. Lê record : MAGHREB & FRIENDS (ACT 9261-2). an exploration of Maghreb musical traditions & a deep collaboration with Algerian musicians. « Far from a false world music, N. Lê simply touches, with force & intensity, to universality » F. Medioni. N. Lê produced the 1rst CD of Huong Thanh, Moon & Wind (ACT 9269-2), entirely done in his home studio. He also has been nominated for the « Victoires de la Musique 1999 » award. His last CD, “BAKIDA” (ACT 9275-2), based on his regular trio with Renaud Garçia Fons (b) & Tino di Geraldo (perc, dr) plus guests from all over the world like Kudsi Erguner, Chris Potter, Carlos Benavent… This CD has been voted best jazz album of the year by CD Compact (Spain). ELB, a new trio CD has just been recorded in Rainbow studios, Oslo, with Peter Erskine & Michel Benita. He’s touring with Terri Lyne Carrington’s band, with Geri Allen, Matt Garrison & Gary Thomas & plays with Maria Schneider. Sept 2002 : 2nd CD of Huong Thanh “Dragonfly” (ACT 9293-2). In June 2002 he’s invited by the Metropole Orchestra (NL) to play his music arranged by Vince Mendoza. “PURPLE” (ACT 9410-2), an album celebrating Jimi Hendrix is released in sept 2002. In Sept. 2002 it’s n° 1 on the charts of UK magazine Jazzwise. Mangustao (ACT 9423-2), Huong Thanh’s 3rd album, released in Jan. 2004, is awarded as Choc de la Musique by French magazine Le Monde de la Musique.
With his old friends pianist Art Lande, woodwind player Paul McCandless and percussionist Jamey Haddad he releases in March 2005: “WALKING ON THE TIGER’S TAIL” (ACT 9432-2): “A universe where the alliance between acoustic and electric, improvisation and writing, inner delicacy and virtuosic expressivity reach the ideal balance.” (Le Monde)
For his latest album “HOMESCAPE” (ACT 9444-2) he invited his friends, the trumpet player Paolo Fresu and singer and oud-player Dhafer Youssef to his home studio. The duos express the multiple musical experiences and influences of the artists and are mixed with electronic sounds created by Nguyên himself.

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Monthly Archives: October 2006

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