Writing from Milan, Italy. In the middle of a two week tour with the Yellowjackets. A real gift to be playing every night again. Getting the chops back to where they should be. I feel so grateful to be in a band where you can try things, write music that stands for what you believe in musically and philosophically, and really experience that beautiful interplay that comes with familiarity of the other players in an improvisatory setting. The band has a vast repertoire to draw from as well as the current music from our Lifecycle CD. Keeps things interesting to change up the nightly set list.

Things are going well in Los Angeles. The local farmers markets are really amazing for getting local produce. The fruits and vegetables are fresh, flavorful, and plentiful. A different scene from New York. The weather is pretty much the same every day. Sunny and optimistic. Can’t go wrong there. We’ve been hanging with our various friends in Los Angeles , and have heard the L.A. philharmonic play a few times at Disney Hall. Great orchestra and a wonderful venue to hear music in.

The scene at USC is moving along nicely. The big band has done two performances so far. The first was at the California Club in downtown Los Angeles. Buzz McCoy, the gentleman responsible for my position at USC, and a real fan and patron of music and the arts sponsors a jazz concert series here. We played for an appreciative audience, and the band sounded terrific. We played music from the Homage to Count Basie cd, and all had a great time. The next performance was last week at the Jazz Bakery in Culver City. John Clayton and I shared the bill, taking turns conducting and playing with the band. Again, the students played with a true sense of professionalism and maturity well beyond their years. I very much enjoyed watching John work with the band, and was happy to have the students check out his perspective on big band playing. John is one of several guest conductors that will work with the band this year.

I’ve got to do a series of masterclasses on Tuesday nights at USC that have been great for addressing a variety of subjects. The first one was done with the faculty quartet: Peter Erskine, John Clayton, Alan Pasqua, and myself. We had the opportunity to play and talk a bit about our individual ad collective quartet approaches. I learned an awful lot hearing what the others had to say! The next masterclass was a duo performance with Russell Ferrante and I. We played a lot and discussed playing in the duo setting as well as our compositional approaches to this setting as well as composition as a vehicle for our playing in a variety of ensembles. Great to get Russ’ take on a variety of subjects. The following masterclass I played duo wit the great drummer Roy McCurdy (Canonball Adderly, Sonny Rollins, Art Farmer, Nancy Wilson). We played and discussed issues pertaining to rhythm, form, interplay, and general musical and professional issues. Roy is an encyclopedia of information having to do with the jazz life.

On this current European trip the Yellowjackets had the opportunity to do a masterclass as a band at a great music school in London. This is always an interesting endeavor, considering the “strength in numbers” concept. It’s always great to get 4 perspectives on a given subject. The question we are inevitably asked has to do with how one makes the entry into the music scene, and how a band sustains a career for 3 decades. The answer to this question is pretty much always the same. Work hard on your own musicianship, keep writing, searching, studying, and keep an open mind to whatever may come down the road. It is so very important to play in bands as a means of gaining valuable experience. One way to get into a prominent band is to thoroughly study that band’s music, learn several of their tunes, and then go and sit in with them. It’s amazing what kind of impact this can make on band members or on the band leader. Doing this gives the impression that you are a serious musician who is prepared to go to any length to make the music work well. At the workshop one of the students sat in with us. He had learned one of our songs, and tore it up. It made a great impression on all of us, and the audience as well.

By the time you read this column the elections in the United States will have taken place. We’re all hoping for a good outcome. It’s been a remarkable ride leading up to the election, where the truth has been stretched so thin by the Republican party in such a devious and desperate way. If it weren’t so important in terms of the future of our country, it would be comical. The John Stewart and Colbert shows have been totally hilarious lately, in great part due to the juicy material they both have to work with. I don’t watch the news much any more. The Daily Show and Colbert Report give a better picture of what’s going on.

See ya down the road!