Category Archives: Percussionist interviews

Bruce Katz is a legendary keyboardist (Hammond B3 & Piano) who has released 12 albums as a leader and has appeared on over 75 other CDs with the likes of John Hammond, Delbert McClinton, Ronnie Earl, Little Milton, Butch Trucks, Duke Robillard, David “Fathead” Newman, and countless others. He has also had a strong musical connection with the Allman Brothers Band, and was a member of Gregg Allman’s band for 6 years, Jamoe’s Jasssz Band (2010-2015), Butch Trucks’ Freight Train Band & Les Brers (2015-2017). Bruce also occasionally toured with the Allman Brothers as well. Of course he has been nominated and received many accolades in his illustrious career. He is a unique player/composer who combines Blues & American Roots music with elements of jazz, and improvisational rock music that creates a signature sound that is all is own. Bruce was an Associate Professor at the Berklee College of Music for 14 years (1996-2010), teaching Harmony, Hammond organ labs, Blues History & Private Piano Instruction. Bruce began playing piano at age 5 and has a lengthy background in classical piano. After hearing a Bessie Smith record when he was 10, he started teaching himself blues and early jazz on the piano. He then heard boogie-woogie & swing music and continued his musical journey into more aspects of jazz and American roots music. Bruce attended Berklee College of Music in the mid-1970s, studying Composition & Performance. For the next 15 years, he performed with many of the leading musicians in New England, and played “on the road” for long stretches of time. In the early 1980s, Bruce played with Big Mama Thornton on her East Coast tours and this experience revived his desire to play Blues Music as a primary focus. After a particularly long stint of touring in the late ’80s with Barrence Whitfield and the Savages, he decided to come off the road and enrolled at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where he earned a Master’s degree in Jazz Performance and studied with Geri Allen, Paul Bley, Cecil McBee, & George Russell. It was during this time that he conceived of and started writing music that became the Bruce Katz Band. In 1992, he met Ronnie Earl, who soon invited him to join his band, The Broadcasters. During his nearly 5-year stint with Earl, he toured the world and performed on 6 albums, writing & co- writing many of the tunes, such as “The Colour of Love,” “Ice Cream Man,” & “Hippology.” The album “Grateful Heart” (Bullseye) won the Downbeat Critics Poll for Best Blues Album of 1996. Also in 1992, Katz debuted his 1st solo album, “Crescent Crawl”, on the AudioQuest label. He released “Transformation” the following year. Just before the release of “Mississippi Moan” in 1997, his 3rd solo album, he left the Broadcasters to concentrate on a solo career. At that point, the Bruce Katz Band began touring the U.S. & Europe, and has been his ongoing focus, in addition to his many other projects. In these years, Bruce played with Duke Robillard (2001-02), John Hammond (2005 – 2014, Gregg Allman (2007-13), Delbert McClinton (2011-2014) and many other high profile roots, blues, & rock performers, while continuing to tour and record with his own band. His albums have consistently appeared high on the national & international radio play charts and have garnered critical & popular acclaim, still to this very day.

I had the pleasure of catching up with Bruce ahead of the December 10th event in Madison at the Red Rooster. We got into what soeone could expect from this trio in the live setting and het introduced to his bandmates, Aaron Lieberman & Liviu Pop. He leaves us pretty well informed on the who and what of it all. The music will range from blues to rock and root but there will be moments where we go for an unknown ride, unknown to the entire room. I look forward to this ride. We dive into the latest release from his own label, Dancing Rooster Records, ‘Back In Boston Live’ and hear how the plan took shape and how they ended up selecting the tracks they did – this album, which dropped this Summer, will certainly give an idea of what to expect form the trio live. When I asked if there was anyone making a name for themselves today he’d like to receive a call from to play with, he could not think of anyone off the top of mind, but this led to great stories (more stories) of how he landed the Delbert McClinton job, Gregg Allman being head over heels for a chance to meet Ringo Starr and Gregg not letting Roger Daltrey on stage (say what?) during a Michael J. Fox fundraising event! During some of the story time of the past, we get to know some of the things he learned from the many collabs and bandmates over the years. This is a classic convo with a classic guy.

Formed over two decades ago, the funk six-piece The Motet have always strived to work as an interlocking unit, with each member bolstering one another towards the best creative output. This symbiosis has led to a unique style and cohesive musical chemistry, as seen in the band’s immaculate and energy sharing live performances and their seamless blend of funk, soul, jazz, and rock. With a fervent fanbase in tow, The Motet have sold out shows across the nation, performed six headlining slots at Red Rocks and sets at festivals such as Bonnaroo, Bottlerock, Electric Forest, Bumbershoot, Summer Camp, and High Sierra. But even after their 20+ years of accolades and recognition, the legendary outfit are still exploring new sonic ideas and finding new ways to showcase each other’s skill sets. The band released their 10th studio album, ‘All Day’, in January 2023 – an eclectic instrumental voyage threaded by the infectious grooves and immaculate, layered arrangements that The Motet have become known for. Now with vocal powerhouse Sarah Clarke deep in the mix, the band continues their journey with new songs and fresh arrangements of Motet classics and a new album which just dropped on November 15th of 2024.

Dave Watts / drums
Joey Porter / keys
Garrett Sayers / bass
Drew Sayers / keys & saxophone
Ryan Jalbert / guitar
Sarah Clarke / vocals

I had the opportunity to catch up with Dave Watts ahead of the November 23rd show at The Majestic Theatre with Ethno (Jeffrey James Franca). We get into what the event could shape up like since they are heading here just as the new album ‘Love Time’ drops. We dissect one of the tracks from the new album, getting into how it was created since they’ve added Sarah to the mix and how the chemistry, which seems to be one of the key facets of this group, was easily attained when she began getting her Motet on. There are clue in moments in our conversation about their set(s), how much new material they already have for the next album (maybe they’ll try one of those on for size here in Madison or wherever you catch them?), what band Dave drove seven hours to go see recently and a set-list is built. Open mind, body and sou as the Motet have a fun path into all three.

For friend of the proGram, Scott Amendola, the drum kit isn’t so much an instrument as a musical portal. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist & capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Scott applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings. His closest musical associates include guitarists Charlie Hunter, Nels Cline, & Jeff Parker, Hammond B-3 organist Wil Blades, violinist Jenny Scheinman, saxophonist Phillip Greenlief, clarinetist Ben Goldberg, bassists Trevor Dunn, & Todd Sickafoose, all players who have each forged a singular path within and beyond the realm of jazz. While rooted in the San Francisco Bay Area scene, Scott has woven a dense & far-reaching web of bandstand relationships that tie him to influential artists in jazz, blues, rock and new music. A potent creative catalyst, the Berkeley-based drummer is the nexus for a disparate community of musicians stretching from Los Angeles and Seattle to Chicago and New York. Whatever the context, Amendola possesses a gift for twisting musical genres in unexpected directions. Over a career spanning more than 3 decades, he has forged deep ties across the country, and throughout the world. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist, and capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Mr. Amendola applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings.

Ben Goldberg played jazz on the saxophone and classical music on the clarinet. While getting a B.A. in music from the University of California at Santa Cruz, studied clarinet with Rosario Mazzeo, the dean of 20th century clarinet teachers. Mr. Goldberg started playing and studying klezmer music, which has a virtuosic clarinet tradition. He pondered how to use the clarinet in jazz & improvised music as he was getting tired of the search for “authenticity” through note-for-note reconstructions of old recordings. In Sweden he met Ziya Aytekin, a traditional zurna player from the Caucasus and felt/heard how much his music had in common with, for example, the late work of John Coltrane. He wondered if he could use klezmer music to explore this connection between the traditional and the “avant-garde.” One day he got together with some cats with whom he’d often played traditional klezmer music with and he suggested they take a familiar tune and cut loose on it to see where it might go. The result was exhilarating and had a powerful, lasting effect on him. It was his first taste of music as a transformative, liberating force. This was the beginning of his creative musical path; in the years since then, Mr. Goldberg continued to work with and cultivate the musical forces that were present at that time – research, education, musical fundamentals, diligence, attention to detail, and a relentless pursuit of truth.

Todd Sickafoose is a Tony & Grammy award-winning composer, producer, arranger, orchestrator, bandleader & double bassist. He has performed on hundreds of recordings, toured internationally, appeared at music venues/festivals from Carnegie Hall to New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and played on national television & radio programs including the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with Conan O’Brien, The Artists Den, & NPR’s Mountain Stage. He is known known as a musical cross-breeder who stretches across genres. In 2004, he began performing/recording in a duo format with folk poet, activist & cultural icon Ani DiFranco. Their relationship has developed for nearly 2 decades and have made 7 albums, 2 concert DVDs, and performed over 1000 shows together. In 2007, he began working on Anaïs Mitchell’s folk opera, ‘Hadestown’, as arranger/orchestrator & music producer. After years of development and regional productions, the show opened at the Walter Kerr Theater on Broadway in 2019 and won 8 Tony Awards, including Best Musical & Best Orchestrations for Mr. Sickafoose and collaborator Michael Chorney. He produced the Hadestown Original Broadway Cast Recording which won a 2019 Grammy for Best Musical Theater Recording. ‘Hadestown’ continues to run both on Broadway and a North American Tour. Straddling the worlds of folk, indie rock, jazz & chamber music, his own band Tiny Resistors has performed at the North Sea Jazz Festival, Stern Grove Festival, Angel City Jazz Festival and been featured on many “Best-Of” lists including the Village Voice & JazzTimes. Writing for Tiny Resistors, he recently composed Bear Proof, a long-form chamber jazz hybrid commissioned by the Doris Duke Foundation.

I had the chance to catch up with Scott ahead of the November 9th record release event here in Madison at the North Street Cabaret. We get into how much he enjoys coming to Madison and specifically playing a spot that has an audience that’s there for it! I have to dsay, it does me/us good to know how welcoming some of our hometown haunts are to people doing the hard work out there of traveling and sharing their art. We get into the new record of course. On ‘Here to There’, Ben Goldberg, Todd Sickafoose, & Scott Amendola play music inspired by the bridges of Thelonious Monk compositions. We dissect one of the tracks that really called me into it. We will hear things off this record for sure, other things (including anything new one of these minds may have brought to the team before the show) and improv. Scott and I also compare/contra=st this project to another recent project with the group SticklerPhonics and I think there’s more room for more projects of Scott’s to come to Madison and play with us.

Photo by Lenny Gonzales

During his kaleidoscopic quarter-century as a professional jazz musician, pianist Orrin Evans has become the model of a fiercely independent artist who pushes the envelope in all directions. Evans upholds that reputation on his 20th album, Magic of Now (Smoke Sessions), on which he helms a multi-generational A-list quartet through an eight-piece program that exemplifies state-of-the-art modern jazz. From first note to last, the members, convening as a unit for the first time, display the cohesion and creative confidence of old friends, mirroring the leader’s predisposition for finding beauty in the heat of the moment. Although he’s never had the support of a major label, Evans has ascended to top-of-the-pyramid stature on his instrument, as affirmed by a #1-ranking as “Rising Star Pianist” in the 2018 DownBeat Critics Poll. Grammy nominations for the Smoke Sessions albums The Intangible Between and Presence, by Evans’ raucous, risk-friendly Captain Black Big Band, cement his bona fides as a bandleader & composer. Mr. Evans bedrocks his speculative sensibility with virtuoso command of the piano and deep assimilation of the fundamentals. A deft tune deconstructor, he commands vocabulary across a broad timeline of swinging, blues-infused hardcore jazz and spiritual jazz/avant garde jazz dialects, as well as the Euro-canon, and conveys his stories with the intuitive spontaneity of an ear player. He projects an instantly recognizable sound, sometimes creating flowing rubato tone poems, sometimes embodying the notion that the piano comprises 88 tuned drums. His stylistically polyglot compositions – influenced by the expansive, individuality-first Black Music culture of his native Philadelphia and by a decade playing Charles Mingus’ beyond-category music in the Mingus Big Band – similarly postulate an environment of “structured freedom” that instigates the personnel to push the envelope in all his multifarious leader and collaborative projects. These include the Eubanks Evans Experience (a recent venture w/eminent guitarist Kevin Eubanks); the recently-formed Brazilian unit Terreno Comum; Evans’ working trio with bassist Luques Curtis & drummer Mark Whitfield; Jr.; & Tar Baby (a collective trio of 20 years standing with bassist Eric Revis & drummer Nasheet Waits). One of Tar Baby’s two 2022 releases will be released on Evans’ imprint, Imani Records, which he founded in 2001 and relaunched in 2018. An influential educator, Evans is devoted to passing the torch to new generations. His students include the outstanding young alto saxophonist & Blue Note artist Immanuel Wilkins, and the prodigious, Grammy-nominated teenage pianist Brandon Goldberg.

I had the honor of spending some time with Mr. Orrin Evans ahead of his headlining set on June 15th at the University of Wisconsin Terrace as part of the 2024 Madison Jazz Festival. We first took care of business and got to know each of his bandmates for the event and how he looks forward to being able to create music with these folks in a spot he has hear a lot about as a beautiful place to play. Who could argue? Mr. Evans goes back in time and reflects on how some form of the arts was going to be a part of him always, he was never discouraged from doing things he enjoyed and wanted to try, which has seemed to translate into the way he goes about creating/leading/teaching within the arts. The question ‘What are you listening to?’ leads to some interesting words and it seems on a good day, we and many may have a certain sound in common. We talk about how his 2023 album, ‘The Red Door’ came together and how he got to work with so many folks he always wanted to on that record and why not build a setlist? Man, after that I wanna go over and hang with him and have a listening party.

25-year-old Julius Rodriguez dares to imagine a future of new standards and sonic excitement, which has earned him a reputation of an “interesting, fresh sound” (NPR Music). His versatility as an artist has led to a variety of unique projects: he played organ for Me’shell Ndegeocello and the hip-hop production duo Brasstracks; played piano on Carmen Lundy’s Grammy-nominated vocals album, Modern Ancestors; contributed to recordings for artists such as Morgan Guerin & friend of the proGram Kassa Overall; and led his own jazz group in clubs around New York. Having studied jazz since childhood, attending its prominent youth programs & learning institutions while developing a playing dexterity and a composer’s ear for its blues/spirituals, and ballad-related cornerstones, Julius recognizes jazz’s cultural value and the processes that further its prestige as America’s classical music. His music dares to imagine a future of new standards & sonic excitement. This vanguard was raised in an atmosphere where pop & hip-hop & dance influenced their approaches to melody & harmony & rhythm, so no doubt it is part of their improvisational DNA. Alongside jazz, Stevie Wonder and the Beatles were always around the Rodriguez family stereo; and as Julius devoured the Internet for musical discoveries, he heard jazz pianists like Jacky Terrason & The Bad Plus’ Ethan Iverson spin their own version of contemporary repertoire, pop & otherwise. He started listening to James Blake, Sampha & Solange; and at the Masters School, began participating in an annual concert students would produce by recreating a classic album, learning everything about Michael Jackson’s Thriller & U2’s Joshua Tree. His jazz professors also encouraged him to keep stretching out, as that was when he was introduced to Shuggie Otis. Rodriguez was always playing with singer-songwriters and other musicians outside his youth jazz circles. When he got to Juilliard, he began playing with music students from other New York universities; and with his old friend Isaiah Barr’s Onyx Collective, whose Lower East Side reputation as a young group equally comfortable with indie-rock and hip-hop, with standards & rare grooves, made fans of downtown jazzers like Roy Nathanson & Marc Ribot, but also A$AP Rocky. (The platinum rapper hired them as his band on a 2018 tour, which made Julius take a semester off of Juilliard and precipitated his leaving school). By early 2019, the breadth of Julius’ work pointed towards eclecticism: he played organ for Me’shell Ndegeocello and the hip-hop production duo Brasstracks; piano on Carmen Lundy’s Grammy-nominated vocals album, Modern Ancestors; contributed to recordings by other top of the line non-traditionalists; and led his own jazz group in clubs around town. Additionally, his working musician acumen was getting sharper. Even within the jazz community, he’d recognize how clubs and their patrons differentiated the music. Everything kept growing in the way he thought of, and made music.

I had the honor of catching up with multi-instrumentalist and mulit-genrelist, Julius Rodriguez (Orange Julius) ahead of the March 14the event in Madison at the Wisconsin Union Theater’s Play Circle. Orange Julius helps me to put words into what could be going on on the stage with and for us doing this event. It is a wide array of everything form both what he will be playing for instruments but also stylist, where the music will be taking us along for the journey. He mentions how the big part of that shared energy of a crowd is really important to him and how they band works the room. We talk about how he developed such an eclectic spirit and how he uses technology to help create albums that show off the ‘what’ that can happen with the tools we are lucky to have. It’s not only the music, but it is the people he gets to associate with and create together with. We talk about the track ‘Gift Of The Moon’ in both senses of a visual experience and a sonic exploration. But the best time for me is when we talk about where he is at as he gets deep into a tune, or a moment and that went well with our discussion about working with Kassa Overall. Before we let him go, Orange Julius builds a setlist and once again, he would be given the keys to the kingdom and well enjoyed by the listeners.

85 years ago on January 6, 1939, a German-Jewish immigrant and passionate Jazz fan named Alfred Lion produced his first recording session in New York City founding what would go on to become the most iconic and longest-running Jazz label in the world. For 85 years Blue Note Records has represented The Finest In Jazz, tracing the entire history of the music from Hot Jazz, Boogie Woogie, and Swing, through Bebop, Hard Bop, Post-Bop, Soul Jazz, Avant-Garde, and Fusion, and—after being relaunched by Bruce Lundvall in 1984—has remained the leading label dedicated to documenting today’s vibrant and creatively thriving Jazz scene under the leadership of current President Don Was, who took the helm in 2012. A concert celebrating the 85th anniversary of the longest-running jazz label in the world, called Blue Note Records, will come to Madison, Wisconsin, on Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m. as part of the Wisconsin Union Theater’s (WUT’s) Jazz Series. The 90-minute Blue Note Records 85th Anniversary Tour event at Shannon Hall in Memorial Union will feature a collective of jazz stars that includes pianist and musical director Gerald Clayton, alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, vibraphonist Joel Ross, drummer Kendrick Scott, and bassist Matt Brewer. The collective’s tour performances around the country celebrate the label, which has a history that includes many music styles – including hot jazz and blues to cool jazz, bebop and fusion – and that built the bridge into today’s avant-garde jazz. “Blue Note has been such a wonderful home for the community for incredible musicians, for creativity for all these years,” Clayton said.

The visionary young voices of jazz have long been the lifeblood of Blue Note Records, and The Blue Note Quintet continues the tradition of rising stars of the roster joining forces to celebrate the label’s unparalleled legacy including Out of the Blue, Superblue, New Directions, The Blue Note 7, and The Blue Note All-Stars.

Mr. Gerald Clayton joined Blue Note in 2020 and has released two albums—Happening: Live At The Village Vanguard and Bells On Sand—as well as performing on Blue Note albums by Charles Lloyd, Ambrose Akinmusire, & Bill Frisell.

Mr. Kendrick Scott signed with Blue Note in 2015 and has released three albums for the label—We Are The Drum, A Wall Becomes A Bridge, and Corridors—and appeared on Blue Note albums by Terence Blanchard, Walter Smith III, & the Blue Note All-Stars.

Mr. Joel Ross came to Blue Note in 2019 with the release of KingMaker and has since released Who Am I? and The Parable Of The Poet with his latest album nublues due out in February 2024. He’s been featured on Blue Note albums by Makaya McCraven, Johnathan Blake, Joshua Redman, & Meshell Ndegeocello.

Mr. Immanuel Wilkins released his Blue Note debut Omega in 2020 followed by The 7th Hand in 2022. He is a member of Joel Ross Good Vibes & Johnathan Blake Pentad and was part of the Leonard Cohen tribute band Here It Is.

I had the honor of checking in quick with Mr. Clayton about this historic event and what someone in attendance will be in community with in Madison on January 26th at the Wisconsin Union Theater. We took a walk through how these artists will be working together as they play original tunes, some versions of Blue Note artists works and ‘surprises’ that will be welcoming individuals to feel this music. As good as the concept of this show sounds, I firmly believe this is a group that is poised to be discussed well after the fact as an event that united people with shared stories of records they used to spin and new music they are now going to seek. I would have been remiss not to talk a little about how spending time with and working with both Mr. Roy Hargrove & friend of the program Mr. Billy Childs added some new edges and ideas, as well as friendship. This is the kind of thing that will also be felt here in Madison on the 26th. Digg.

Hailed by American Songwriter for their “mind-bending musicality,” moe.is treasured for their mesmerizing musical synergy, unfettered showmanship, & smart, resonant songcraft. For 3 decades, the band has corralled diverse musical forms on a truly original journey. Fueled by an impassioned fan base, moe. has spent much of those 30 years on the road, encompassing countless live performances marked by eclectic wit, deep friendship, & exploratory invention. Having built an enduring legacy with hard work and a confirmed commitment to creativity and community, moe. seem as surprised as anyone to find themselves at such a significant landmark. The more the band traveled, the more they grew creatively, evincing a remarkable willingness to progress as they went along. moe. quickly became part of a burgeoning scene centered around NYC’s Wetlands, a grassroots revolution that embraced freewheeling genre fusion – spanning funk & free jazz, country & classic rock, prog, new wave, calypso, pop & everything else under the sun – fan interaction, & unrestrained improvisation. moe. widened its reach across America, earning new fans and national attention with their ingeniously imaginative interplay and a regularly growing catalogue. The band spent almost as much time in the studio as they did on the road. As if all that weren’t enough, the moe. canon – released largely through their own Fatboy Records, as well as via two label deals, one major, the other independent – further includes a wide range of archival live releases (including 2000’s L), a Christmas album, even a re-recorded collection of greatest hits. moe. is truly a live band, rightly adored by a fervent following for their epic concert performances, each one imaginatively improvisational, rhythmically audacious, and utterly unique. Indeed, the band has spent much of its 30-year career on the road, including innumerable headline tours, international festival sets from Bonnaroo to Japan’s famed Fuji Rock, music-themed cruises, and sold-out shows alongside such like-minded acts as the Allman Brothers Band, Robert Plant, members of the Grateful Dead, Dave Matthews Band, The Who, Gov’t Mule, & Blues Traveler, to name but a few. As if that weren’t enough, moe. has both promoted and headlined at multiple festivals of their own, including snoe.down and moe.down. That illustrious career path has been supported and nourished by the band’s ever-growing legion of devoted fans and followers, known lovingly as moe.rons. With their astonishing prolificacy and awe-inspiring longevity, moe. is among the rare bands that somehow manage to transcend time and trend to be passed down from one generation to the next. Impossible to pigeonhole as anything other than simply moe., this one-of-a-kind band has never been easily categorized, their sonic adventurousness and tongue-in-cheek humor distinctly and undeniably their own. Despite current circumstances, moe. is celebrating their milestone anniversary with characteristic self-deprecation and wistful optimism. Here’s to the next 30.

I had the pleasure of catching up with Drummer of moe., Vinnie Amico ahead of the band’s arrival back in Madison on September 29th at The Barrymore Theater. We got into what someone new to the scene can expect from the live experience, which is really what this group of artist seems to live for. We talk about how, after thirty years, things are feeling as good and fresh as ever. This is one of those bands that gets into that (as Vinnie said), the music at times starts to play the band, so of course we talk about that in the moment spirt and energy between band members, the fans and the music. Once again, this is a band that has an idea or a map to what should go down once the how begins, but it is that shared moment of this is now happening, and here we go, makes each song, each setlist a unique to you experience. Being a big fan of Al’s writing, we find out a little bit about what happens when he walks into the studio and presents a song he’s working out. It’s a classic answer about process, discussion and family style working through.

Portraits by friend of the proGram Jay Blakesberg