So, I leave Dushanbe on May 14 on one of the most round-about flight-paths anyone is bound to embark on. Dushanbe to Baku is not very far; there is only one country (Turkmenistan) and the Caspian Sea between them (just about 1000 miles). One would think that there would be direct flights between capitol cities in the region…nope…not unlike when I traveled from Sofia (Bulgaria) to Belgrade (Serbia), when I had to go through Milan (and I calculated later that I could’ve taken the train directly in less time), the trek from Dushanbe to Baku took me basically in the shape of a giant cursive ‘e’ across Eurasia. Dushanbe to Riga to Moscow to Baku…four times the distance…in one day, mind you…
Needless to say, I was tired when I arrived in Baku…more tiring was passport control–actually, let me take a step or two back here. I knew, yes knew, that I was going to have issues with both luggage and visa/passport control in each stop…and I was right! Leaving Dushanbe, I was informed that there was a luggage fee for checked baggage (neither I nor the U.S. Embassy in Baku knew this when the tickets were purchased, so I had to go out of line to pay at a different window; luckily, they took dollars; when I did this leaving Baku, they made me exchange dollars back to Azeri manat, and go through security all over again), and proceeded to my gate–oh, I also have to say that luckily, LUCKILY, I hired a specialist through the Embassy to expedite me through passport and security in Dushanbe, otherwise I never would’ve have made my plane since I had to battle hundreds of angry migrant workers…
Riga: “Where are you going?”; “Moscow”; “Moscow? Where is your Russian visa?” “I’m transferring in Moscow to go to Baku”; “You need a Russian visa! This is a big problem!”; “No, I don’t…I am going through the International terminal, so I don‘t step on Russian soil…there is no problem”; “Are you sure?” “Yes. There is no problem”; “Where is your Azerbaijan visa?”; I don’t have one yet, I’ll get it at the Baku Airport”; “You need an Azeri visa! This is a big problem!”; “No, I can get one at the airport, this is how it works for U.S. and most European countries’ citizens”; “Are you sure?” “Yes. There is no problem.”; “You’re sure about all of this?”; “Yes…if they deport me back here, I come right to you and apologize”…then through security again because they don’t trust you coming from Central Asia…
Moscow: “Where are you going?”; “Baku”; “Baku? Where is your Azeri visa? This is a big problem!” (you see where this is going, yes?)…actually, at this point, I showed a copy of my invitation from the US Embassy in Baku (which they took; luckily, I made like 12 copies because of this probability). And it being Russia, you have to go though security a couple more times, because they believe that they do a much better job than Riga or any other country in the West.
Baku: In the airport, you see a sign that says “Do Not Purchase Visa Until You Go To Passport Control”. Long line at Passport Control. At Passport control, they told me that I needed to purchase a visa…no kidding…go back to that line, pay for the visa in American dollars, and wait for them to write it out…by hand! Then…back in line for Passport Control, again…and they stamp my passport on the very last page, where no stamps or visas are supposed to go…almost, but not quite, a problem when I left.
The main question I got from security when leaving the airport was “where are you from?”; “The United States”; “No…where are you from?”; “Um…Boston?”; “No…where are your people from?”; “Ah! My family is from Greece”; “Greece. That’s OK. You can go”. It is very important to Azeris to know your ancestry for two reasons: the first, they define you and how they react to you by your ethnicity; secondly, they want to see if there is any chance that you may have blood relations to their enemies…most notably Armenia. More on this later.
Azerbaijan. There are two things that I will remember forever about Azerbaijan. The first, and foremost, is that these are probably, en masse, the kindest, friendliest, most hospitable people I have ever met. Considering that I tend to travel in countries where hospitality is of utmost importance, this is saying a lot. The other thing that I will always remember is that these people are, without any shadow of a doubt, en masse, the worst drivers I have ever had the utmost fear in encountering…Italy, Greece, Russia, China, even other Central Asian countries…none of them compare to the absolute chaos I experienced on the roads of Baku and the regions…people crossing each other at high speeds, stopping randomly on high-speed roads, going the opposite way down highways…absolutely amazing…I was told by my host Brent Maier of the US Embassy that you have to think like a school of fish: go where the vast majority go, and you’ll be fine, even if it goes against every driving instinct that you may have…otherwise, you’ll crash into someone…Also, cars have the right of way; most of the accidents involve pedestrians in the wrong place at the wrong time…
Baku is a modern city, built with oil money. It’s the only former Soviet city that I have seen where all of the ‘Sovietness’ has been completely bled out of it. You really have no idea that this was part of the Soviet Union 20 years ago–high-rise offices and exclusive hotels surround revitalized Old City charm…and it’s more expensive than NYC, if you can imagine. Outside Baku center is a different, well hidden, story, but the main city itself is a Mecca of wealth.
My work in Azerbaijan was completely supported and organized by the U.S. Embassy in Baku, and the Cultural Affairs Officer Brent Maier. There were no ‘major’ (for lack of a better term) performances here, only lecture/performances, master classes, and outreach. I would’ve liked a big performance, but considering all of the logistics involved and also the time of year, this would’ve been very difficult to properly organize…that’s fine, I was happy to do what I did, but they owe me a big one for next time
Although I say this every time after a project like this, I will repeat myself: I am always taken by the absolute joy and happiness these audiences have for performers, most especially those (like me) who made the effort to cross half the Globe to perform for them. They most especially love American music and culture. I was honored with the fact that I was the first American musician to ever travel and perform in the Azerbaijan regions. The audiences and hosts were so incredibly giving and appreciative. It’s funny, I don’t think it mattered what I played, as long as I played. My concerts here, by the way, were very conservative–I basically played jazz standards and popular tunes (by myself) and improvised on them. Let me rephrase this: it was conservative in the fact that I was playing recognizable tunes, at least for an American (Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Amazing Grace, Paper Moon, Sophisticated Lady, etc.; you get the idea) not in the fact that I was playing these by myself and producing melody, harmony, improvisation, rhythm, and percussion, mostly at the same time. I had only the alto sax with me. Alto is the smallest, most flexible instrument that I can travel with, especially for jazz and improvisation concerts. I was going to bring a flute, as well, but decided against it literally the night before I left for Central Asia. I find tenor sax much more flexible for such things, but it can be difficult to travel with (most especially on small, domestic flights in these regions where there is a weight and space issue), and soprano, although small (but a longer case) is not very flexible in this regard, so alto it is.
Note: there will be a blog in the very near future about my instruments and what roles I use them for–this is because I have had numerous questions to this topic from both students and professionals throughout my travels.
Now, as I mentioned, my concerts here centered around outreach and education. Because of this, basically everything I did took place in an educational center or institution; the only event that wasn’t was when I was an invited guest at the Baku Jazz Center and played with the top local jazz musicians (which was fun–it’s basically a big club). I used an interpreter on many occasions, but I also had the pleasure of presenting in schools/centers with strong English language programs.
Because of the nature of what I was doing, I had both the support and distrust of the Azeri Government. This may seem like a contradiction, but it’s not really–allow me to explain: Azerbaijan has had a very interesting history this last century. Once it gained independence from the Ottoman Empire, it created the short-lived Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, which was the first democracy in the Muslim world, and even had universal suffrage a year BEFORE the U.S. did (them 1919, us 1920). It was a very progressive nation, until it was swallowed up by the Soviet Union. Now, after the fall of the Soviet Union, the country made an attempt at going back to its democratic status–again, this was short-lived due to a number of reasons (including conflicts with certain neighbors), and power went to a man named Heydar Aliyev, who was a high-ranking official in the now defunct Soviet Army. To make a long story short, Azerbaijan followed the path of other Central Asian states (although it is technically Europe) and created a presidency that is for all intent and purpose, a king. The difference here is that the Azeri loved (and still love) Aliyev. There are monuments, posters, plaques, streets, statues, buildings, everything…you name it…named after Aliyev. He was in the Azeri’s eyes the man who brought strength and pride back to them. His son (whom, I gather, is but a shade of his father) is now president. To establish his power and legitimacy, he continues to build monuments to his father. Other kings…er…I mean ‘presidents’…of the other countries post their own faces everywhere. Now, a few months back there was a Washington Post article that criticized the current Azeri president’s family for their spending habits; since then, U.S./Azeri relations have been worsening. Now, understand that the Azeris far prefer the U.S. to Russia, but they do try and keep a balance since Georgia is so pro-U.S. and Armenia so pro-Russia. And also remember that their biggest ally, Turkey, is directly to the West, and their other great threat, Iran, is directly to the South. Their other interest for keeping this balance has to do with the Nagorno-Karabakh War, of which I am not going to get into here, except to say that this is an area of armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan due to territorial disputes that began in the late 1980’s (and accounts for the Azeri’s interest in backgrounds). The international community, including the U.S. as an important force for diplomacy, has been working towards a peaceful solution. Some of our outreach programs happened near this region.
Because of this strained government relationship, and given the fact that I was an American (supported by the U.S. Embassy) giving presentations in educational institutions–many of which have teachers and programs with pro-democracy tendencies, you can see the potential here for an explosive situation. This is not Uzbekistan. People were not threatened with prison (or worse) for interacting with me and I was not harassed throughout the country–but the Azeri Government did make some things difficult, including canceling my events at certain music schools, in one case 10 minutes before I was to go on.
What bothers me the most is that the students are the ones who suffer. It’s really ridiculous…when the government actually allows an event to happen (which they closely watch), it occurs to them “oh, it’s only music…they are not criticizing us…no threat”. They seem to forget this from event to event and handle every one on a case-by-case basis. I am not here to start a riot and overthrow your presidency; I am here, as a guest of the U.S. Embassy, to promote American culture and music and to show your students that we care about them and that Americans are in fact kind and friendly people. Period.
Anyways, the events that were successful, were very successful. I have been invited back for an extended stay sometime in the near future. There are many music students who are in dire need of advanced instruction, especially in jazz concepts. I will be returning. And I will work with the students who were denied to me this last time–believe me…
After Azerbaijan, I had the honor of once again being a guest of the Latvian Academy of Music, and was supported by the U.S. Embassy in Riga. I gave a master class to the newly organized Jazz Program at the Academy which was organized by the U.S. Embassy–this was a great experience for me to see the level of jazz musicians here in a former Soviet Country. That evening, I gave a solo concert at the Academy–a concert of ‘me’ this time: I played my composition …no longer to his father…, as well as some jazz improvisations. This was organized by friend and colleague at the Academy, Rolands Kronlaks. I also received an invitation to come back there for an extended visit in the near future. This also appeals to me greatly, especially seeing how I can help positively influence the pedagogy of jazz study in Latvia…very, very appealing…
Posted by Demetrius Spaneas | Under Music, Performance
Wednesday Jun 2, 2010
Tajikistan I: Dushanbe Jazz Festival
I was able to post a little about my experiences for the Jazz Festival, mainly because the first week or so of my stay I had access to a computer. But, I do want to revisit some of what I wrote and put it more into the context of the trip as a whole.
I guess the first point of business is to talk about the actual trip there. Now, Dushanbe is not a vacation hot-spot…it is one of those places that fall into the “can’t get there from here” category. There are only two reliable (read: safe) airlines that actually go to Dushanbe: Turkish Air and Baltic Air. Neither of these are cheap, and flights from the US are around $2,000. And when I say ‘flights from the US’, I really mean flights that begin in the US. It can actually take up to 5 flights to get there. The further East one goes, the less available flights are. So…I began in Boston, went through Frankfurt, through Riga (where I switched from Lufthansa to Baltic Air–mind you, Baltic Air charges for all baggage and meals; bring snacks!) and finally to Dushanbe. I left the evening of April 26, and arrived the morning of April 28.
Tajikistan is the poorest of the former Soviet republics, and in many ways is the republic that everyone forgot. Other than it’s civil war back in the mid-90s, it has not grabbed the headlines like its more boisterous neighbors, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. It’s just trying to survive as an independent entity. There is no industry to speak of, save aluminum production and cotton, and although it shares its entire southern boarder with Afghanistan, it doesn’t seem to be an area of military interest (NATO’s main base is in Kyrgyzstan).
Strangely, this is the one place I have been where the population as a whole reminisces about the better lives they had under the Soviet Union. In a way, you can’t blame them. The Soviet Union gave them protection, great education, roads, industry, infrastructure. All of these have collapsed under progressively corrupt “elected” (don’t buy this term for a second…) officials; basically, power is handed down from father to son, like a kingship. Like in most of the former Soviet republics (Russia included), people actually have LESS personal freedom as they did under the Soviet Union–not to mention again no protection and no education system.
Even under the Soviet Union, Tajikistan was marginalized. Being under the jurisdiction of “Turkistan”, the Persian Tajiks were bullied by their Turkic neighbors. All of the other Central Asian nations are Turkic; Tajikistan is the only Indo-European entity among them: they share their basic language with Afghanistan and Iran, and are part of the Indo-European language tree. During Soviet times, Tajikistan’s main cities–Samarqand and Bukhura–where taken from them and given to Uzbekistan. To this day, the population in these cities is almost entirely Tajik. This all goes back to the Stalinist idea of ‘separate and govern’. This is the main reason why in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc there is so much ethnic violence over land claims.
The Tajik language is also interesting. Unlike it’s Turkic neighbors, the Tajik language has a very long written history. Most of the Turkic languages were never written until the Soviet Union, and they were then written in Cyrillic, whether the alphabet worked or not (usually extra letters were added). Tajik, being part of Persian/Farsi, had been used by great poets and philosophers for centuries; in fact, most students (especially men) to this day write poetry. The language is written in three scripts: Latin, Cyrillic, and Persian. Cyrillic was the most common–when I saw something written in Cyrillic that I couldn’t understand, I knew it was Tajik…
…but people speak a mix of Tajik and Russian, which is kind of like Spanglish in the US. I could follow some of it, but not always. And once you get into the regions, there are multiple dialects that have really nothing to do with Tajik or each other–I will discuss more about this in the next blog about my outreach.
Onto the Festival:
So…I land in Dushanbe at the un-Godly hour of ‘sometime just before dawn’. I get picked up at the airport by the Music Coordinator of the Bactria Cultural Center, Sergey Chutkov. Now, Sergey is a great guy, and we had a very good time together during the period of the Festival–he was my guide, and we became good friends. Like all of the staff of the BCC, Sergey is under 30, with the average age around 25. Almost all of these people were linguistics majors at the University, and speak excellent English. Not uncommonly, they are mainly ethnic Russians. Ethnic Russians seem to be the driving force behind cultural initiatives in most of these countries. In Tajikistan, before the fall of the USSR, ethnic Russians numbered 40% of the population; since then, it is now down to under 5%. The BCC is trying to bridge the cultural and education gap between the former Soviet citizens and the current Tajik population. It is an uphill battle, to say the least.
Anyways, Sergey allowed me about 2 hours of post-travel downtime before he threw me into rehearsal with Mizrob, the band that I was to collaborate with for the Festival.
I found out that Mizrob was a creation of the Bactria Cultural Centre to promote Tajik music–it’s actually a ’super band’–kind of like ‘Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young’–of superstar Tajik musicians.
The first rehearsal was basically a meet and greet–the band, in various forms, play together–maybe not all at the same time, but here we had 2 multi-string players, saxophone (soprano, a shock), bass guitar (which was a major shock…) drums, and percussion. I didn’t expect any modern Western instruments, let alone a soprano saxophone and electric bass. The two things that got me more though were the electronic drum set and the recording studio with top equipment, an Apple computer with Logic–not Garage Band or even Pro Tools–Logic!, and Mackie speakers…those of you who are composers and recording engineers will understand the oddity of such equipment in the poorest of the former Soviet republics, in the middle of Central Asia…it’s like going to a neighborhood go-kart race, and some kid shows up with a Formula 1 racer…
Anyways, come to find out that the leader of Mizrob, Ikbol Zavkibecov, actually writes for films and does a great deal of ‘modernized’ traditional music, adding more pop/rock elements like distorted guitars that are contrasting traditional instruments. It’s interesting…I’ve noticed this kind of thing in a lot of Eastern countries: taking their traditional styles and making them more appealing by adding pop/dance/film-score type elements.
So…the first rehearsal was really a run through/clean up of their piece, which I’m playing on, and my piece which, let’s be honest, they hadn’t looked at yet.
Their piece falls into this Tajik/pop style…guitar riffs in an almost classic rock mode, with soprano sax playing the more traditional melody more, um, traditionally. The riffs are a good hook–the tune, albeit simple and really meant to appeal to an audience, works. There’s not much to it since it takes basic elements from each style, but it works, and the audience will leave singing it–I am adding a voice to the melody (playing alto sax), and taking an improvised solo in, well, more of my style, which if you’ve heard me live, sounds something like the love-child of Grover Washington Jr. and Eric Dolphy…I think I frightened them just a little…
Anyways, my piece (Open Letter to Dushanbe) was difficult for them. I was right to have rewritten everything before I sent it…they don’t really read music…or at least very little, and the ones who can didn’t bother to look at it. So, I basically had to teach them the piece orally, which was also super fun because my interpreter–a sweet guy name Cyril–didn’t know musical terms.
The hardest part was explaining a Samba rhythm…I actually thought that this would be easy, and explaining the chordal structure would be hard–wrong again–Ikbol understood perfectly well my chordal structure, but the Samba rhythm…the drummer kept trying to make it rock–I’ve learned that people here play two different styles, Tajik and rock…jazz is out of the loop, and Brazilian Samba, forget it! Eventually (by the show), I got him doing something close…I don’t know how he got there, but he started playing something akin to a Calypso…I was like “Great! Fine! Close enough! Do that!”.
The other issue had been trying to get these guys to go, well, a little nuts with their playing…their playing, even in the styles they know, are very controlled and exacting…granted, traditional music tends to be this way: very conservative. My piece is a stretch for them because there is a lot of group improvisation in it, which they are not used to, and my Russian isn’t good enough to explain–and I use the proper terminology here–‘going ape-s#!t’, which is what I wanted at the end of the piece.
Eventually they got it–or at least some of them did. The final outcome was fantastic. We were the last performance on the last night of the Festival. The Festival itself was failing due to the programming and logistical organization. Putting marathon concerts inside a concert hall is death to any festival, most especially a jazz festival where people should be able to come and go as they please–I was bored, everyone was bored, the setting made it boring. This was all part of the conservative nature in which jazz (and all arts) are approached in the former USSR.
Conservatism is a key idea here. In the USSR, jazz was considered degenerate music–I’ve had to defend it many-a-time–so it was played underground. Now, it is in fear of being institutionalized. Students copy, mimic, well known players and especially specific recordings. I heard some very talented musicians, but for the most part, there was little to no actual creative improvisation. They were copying licks–if not entire passages–from other people’s solos. As I had mentioned before, this is rampant in countries once (and some still) under communist regimes. Jazz has become a study, not unlike classical music. Great musician’s improvised solos are to be learned like etudes and memorized–mimicked. I heard this from all bands–regardless of the former Soviet country of origin–throughout the Festival.
I had to finally make a stand and say something about this…
So finally, at the end of the Festival, there was a round table discussion with all (or at least representatives) of the participants. The purpose of this was supposedly to discuss the good and bad of the Festival and how to improve it. Now, one of the most unique–and downright annoying–traditions in the former Soviet countries is that when having a discussion, even if it is to figure out what went wrong, there is tremendous (and very verbose) praise given to the director and organizers and participants. Everyone who speaks does this. A meeting that should take 30 minutes takes 2-½ hours because of this–and it’s downright silly…people go off on “the grand brilliance and vision of the Director”, or the “masterful performance of ‘such and such’”, or the “great philosophy of art that was upheld”…this last one is my favorite…it’s ALL about philosophy…nothing practical. They discuss their grand philosophies and pat each other on the back (I used a much vulgar terminology at the meeting in referring to this practice, but I won’t repeat it here–for the kid’s sake, you know…you never know who may be reading this…). It’s like high court practice, addressing the nobles…
So, then it was my turn…I let them have it…with both barrels.
I told them about the state of jazz tradition and education in the West and how it would benefit them to take this approach; I told them to disregard their ‘master class’ concept of being lectured at and turn them into workshops to actually benefit the students and not so that artists can hear themselves talk; I told them that they have to include more and more Western musicians because their students are learning in a vacuum through mimicry as opposed to through real experience with someone from the tradition; I told them that if they want to succeed, they have to approach jazz for what it is, and not stick it in a concert hall (like a museum) and force people to stay for 5 hours because it’s ‘educational’ for them; and finally, I told them to stop ‘patting themselves on the back’ (insert vulgar phrase here) because they are not doing anyone any good save stroking each other’s egos…
…whoa…who let the American into the room?…
Well…as it turned out, the members of the BCC and the Swiss Corporation who was the main funder of the Festival agreed with me fully…in fact, not only do the Swiss want me to help organize and produce the festival in 2011, the BCC wants me to be the Artistic Director…see, saying what you really think in a hostile environment has its benefits sometimes…
So, this ends my first week in Tajikistan. My next blog (coming very soon) will be discussing my outreach programs in collaboration with the US Embassy in Dushanbe.
В Душанбе таджикские джазмены принимают коллег из Азербайджана, Кыргызстана и Казахстана. Здесь проходит джазовый фестиваль. Музыкальную эстафету начинают музыканты из группы “Авесто”. Синтез джазовых гармоний и восточных мотивов – изюминка их творчества. Продолжает программу джем-сейшен – свободное общение в музыке. Джазмены импровизируют в диалоге. На одной сцене музыканты из группы “Бакустик джаз”, казахская группа “Квартет” и “Соленые орешки” из Кыргызстана. К ним присоединился и специальный гость фестиваля – американский музыкант Деметриус Спанеас. Музыка Запада и Востока сливается в одну мелодию. Деметриус Спанеас – любитель синтеза музыкальных стилей. На этот раз его привлек таджикский фалак. “Музыкальное послание жителям Душанбе” он исполнил с музыкантами группы “Мизроб”.
В фестивале приняли участие и новички. Группе “ДАДЖ” нет еще и месяца. Но ребята уже смогли найти своего слушателя. Музыканты играют джаз-шашмаком. Организаторы надеются, что фестиваль станет традиционным. Это будет способствовать развитию джазовой культуры в Таджикистане.
Dushanbe, May 26, 2010 – The United States Embassy introduced residents in the farthest districts of Tajikistan to the amazing sound of American saxophone musician Demetrius Spaneas. Demetrius travelled throughout Tajikistan for two weeks and played jazz to hundreds of people from different parts of the country, many of whom had never heard this unique American art form. Demetrius also met with local government officials to encourage the formation of more U.S.-Tajik cultural and educational programs. Jazz was something new for the people of the farthest districts of the country. After each performance, the audience asked questions about jazz music, learned about improvisation, and asked Demetrius to perform his favorite songs. In return, local Tajik musicians in Dushanbe, Khorog and Murgab played traditional music for Demetrius.
From May 4–13, Demetrius gave more than ten performances in Khorog, Murgab and Dushanbe, reaching widely varied audiences. He performed at a jazz festival in Dushanbe, at the American Corners in Dushanbe and Kurgan-Teppa, and at the Bactria Cultural Center, and he also talked about and played jazz music for schoolchildren in Dushanbe and Sarband.
Since 1991, The United States Government has worked to strengthen the relationship between the people of the Unites States and Tajikistan The U.S. Embassy’s educational and cultural programs promote cross-cultural understanding through music, art, education and cultural exchange.
I wanted to give a little insight to my musical experiences here thus far, which have been interesting…
I’ve had two days of rehearsals now with the band Mizrob. What I didn’t realize–in fact found out today, before the second rehearsal–was that Mizrob was a creation of the Bactria Cultural Centre to promote Tajiki music–it’s actually a ‘super band’–kind of like ‘Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young’–of superstar Tajik musicians.
The first rehearsal was basically a meet and greet–the band, in various forms, play together–maybe not all at the same time, but here we had 2 multi-string players, saxophone (soprano, a shock), bass guitar (which was a major shock…) drums, and percussion. I didn’t expect any modern Western instruments, let alone a soprano saxophone and electric bass. The two things that got me more though were the electronic drum set and the recording studio with top equipment, an Apple computer with Logic–not Garage Band or even Pro Tools–Logic!, and Mackie speakers…those of you who are composers and recording engineers will understand the oddity of such equipment in the poorest of the former Soviet republics, in the middle of Central Asia…it’s like going to a neighborhood go-kart race, and some kid shows up with a Formula 1 racer…
Anyways, come to find out that the leader of Mizrob actually writes for films and does a great deal of ‘modernized’ traditional music, actually adding more pop/rock elements like distorted guitars that are contrasting traditional instruments. It’s interesting…I’ve noticed this kind of thing in a lot of Eastern countries: taking their traditional styles and making them more appealing by adding pop/dance/film-score type elements. The results in general have been, oh, less-than-successful in my opinion…I haven’t really heard the work that the Tajik musicians are doing save one song that we are doing together, which I’ll get to.
So…the first rehearsal was really a run through/clean up of their piece, which I’m playing on, and my piece which, let’s be honest, they hadn’t looked at yet.
Their piece falls into this Tajik/pop style…guitar riffs in an almost classic rock mode, with soprano sax playing the more traditional melody more, um, traditionally. The riffs are a good hook–the tune, albeit simple and really meant to appeal to an audience, works. There’s not much to it since it takes basic elements from each style, but it works, and the audience will leave singing it–I am adding a voice to the melody (playing alto sax), and taking an improvised solo in, well, more of my style, which if you’ve heard me live, sounds something like the love-child of Grover Washington Jr. and Eric Dolphy…I think I frightened them just a little…
Anyways, my piece was difficult for them. I was right to have rewritten everything before I sent it…they don’t really read music…or at least very little, and the one’s who can didn’t bother to look at it. So, I basically am teaching them the piece orally, which is also super fun because my interpreter doesn’t know musical terms. My Russian amazingly has come back better than expected, but I have come to find out that although most people here speak some Russian because it was part of the USSR, they don’t really speak it well…they don’t really speak proper Tajik, which is a Persian language, well either, from what I have been told. This is a challenge.
The hardest part has been with explaining a Samba rhythm…I actually thought that this would be easy, and explaining the chordal structure would be hard–wrong again–the leader of Mizrob was able to understand (mostly) my chordal structure and explain it (he even got the C+7 and the Bsus4, which are way out of any traditional music style), but the Samba rhythm…the drummer kept trying to make it rock–I’ve learned that people here play two different styles, Tajik and rock…jazz is out of the loop, and Brazillian Samba, forget it! By the end of today, I got him doing something close…I don’t know how he got there, but he started playing something akin to a Calypso…I was like ‘Great! Fine! Close enough! Do that!’.
The other issue has been trying to get these guys to go, well, a little nuts with their playing…their playing, even in the styles they know, are very controlled and exacting…granted, traditional music tends to be this way: very conservative. My piece is a stretch for them because there is a lot of group improvisation in it, which they are not used to, and my Russian isn’t good enough to explain–and I use the proper terminology here–’going ape-s#!t’, which is what I want at the end of the piece.
We have another rehearsal tomorrow, and one last one before the show–it should be OK.
I did meet some Kyrgyz jazz musicians today–these guys speak English, know their jazz history, and a couple of them have been to NYC (the bass player actually studied with Ron Carter). There is also an open jam session tomorrow evening with all of the musicians in the festival, which should be an experience…
…I hope I don’t scare them…I have to find the Russian phrase for ‘going ape-s#!t’…
More soon!
And remember, it’s not too late to lend your support!
Here is a posting on the Dushanbe Jazz Festival (in English and Russian):
Press-release
Dushanbe: 27 April, 2010
Jazz is back in Dushanbe
From April 30 through May 3 Dushanbe will host the Second Dushanbe Jazz Festival. The Festival is initiated and financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation through its Regional Art and Culture Programme, and implemented in cooperation with Bactria Cultural Centre and the Sattorov Tajik National Conservatory.
The program of the Festival consists of three gala concerts that will take place in the Mayakovsky State Russian Drama Theatre and in the Aini Tajik State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet. The Tajik National Conservatory will accommodate a Jam-session of the Festival participants, a series of workshops and a round table.
Besides Tajik musicians, the Festival will also bring together musicians from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, among which are both beginners and distinguished masters of jazz, and the guest of the festival Demetrius Spaneas from USA.
The Second Dushanbe Jazz Festival with aspirations of the First Jazz Festival held in Dushanbe last year, aims at promoting jazz music in Tajikistan in its ethno-jazz national form, through searching for original ideas, trends and styles of ethno-jazz compositions, as well as disclosing new talents who are willing to demonstrate their abilities in jazz music, which is yet to be developed in Tajikistan. The primary artistic goal of the festival to be attained by Tajik musicians lies in exploring national forms of jazz based on musical traditions of makom and falak. Other participants of the festival have also been offered to include two compositions based on Tajik makom and falak into their concert program.
Apart from the concert component the festival includes several sub-projects like contests, creative laboratory, master-class, film demonstration, round table, and production of the CD.
The organizers regard the Festival as a platform for the Central Asian regional cooperation from another angle – through music. It is also hoped that organization of the festival will eventually become a tradition that will promote the development of jazz and impromptu music in Tajikistan, foster exchange of creative experience and facilitate integration of Central Asian music cultures with those of other countries.
Tickets can be obtained at the box offices of the Mayakovsky Theater and the Opera and Ballet Theater. Price per ticket – 10 Somoni
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Program of the Second Dushanbe Jazz Festival
30th of April
11:00 – 13:00 Master-class in the Tajik National Conservatory
- Bakustic Jazz (Azerbaijan)
30th of April
18:00 – 21:00 Jam session
1st of May
9:00 – 11:00 Master-class in the Tajik National Conservatory
- Quartet of Khomenkov-Osipov (Kazakhstan)
1st of May
17:00 Gala concert in the Opera and Ballet Theater
- Bakustic Jazz (Azerbaijan)
- Akhmad Bakaev (Tajikistan)
- Khomenkov-Osipov Quartet (Kazakhstan)
- Jasur Khalilov (Tajikistan)
2nd of May
10:00 – 12:00 Master-class in the Tajik National Conservatory
- Akhmad Bakaev (Tajikistan)
- Salman Gambarov (Azerbaijan)
- Abduvali Abdurashitov (Tajikistan)
2nd of May
16:00 Gala concert in the Mayakovsky Theatre
- Saulty Peanuts (Kyrgyzstan)
- Avesto (Tajikistan)
3rd of May
10:00-13:00 Round table in the Tajik National Conservatory
3rd of May
18:00 Gala-concert in the Mayakovsky Theatre
- Dajesh (Tajikistan)
- Payvand (Tajikistan)
- JAM FIVE (Uzbekistan)
- Mizrob (Tajikistan)
- Demetrius Spanias (USA)
*****
Пресс-релиз
Душанбе: 27 апреля, 2010
Джаз возвращается в Душанбе
С 30 апреля по 3 мая 2010 года, в Душанбе пройдет Второй Душанбинский Джаз Фестиваль. Инициатором и спонсором Фестиваля выступает Швейцарское Управление по Развитию и Сотрудничеству через региональную программу искусства и культуры. Организаторами Фестиваля являются Швейцарский Офис по Сотрудничеству в Таджикистане совместно с Культурным Центром Бактрия и Таджикской Национальной Консерваторией им. Сатторова.
Программа Фестиваля состоит из трех гала-концертов, которые пройдут в Государственном Русском Драматическом театре им. Маяковского и в Таджикском Государственном Академическом театре оперы и балета им. Айни. В Таджикской Национальной Консерватории пройдет джем-сессия участников Фестиваля, серия семинаров и круглый стол.
Помимо таджикских музыкантов Фестиваль соберет музыкантов из Азербайджана, Казахстана, Узбекистана и Кыргызстана, среди которых есть как новички, так и признанные мастера этого жанра. Гостем Фестиваля будет Деметриус Спанеас из США.
Второй Душанбинский Джаз Фестиваль, в поддержку стремлений Первого Джаз Фестиваля, который прошел в Душанбе в прошлом году, ставит перед собой цель продвижения джазовой музыки в Таджикистане в его этно-джазовой национальной форме, посредством поиска оригинальных идей, направлений и стилей этно-джазовых композиций, а также путем раскрытия новых талантов, желающих продемонстрировать свои способности в джазе, которому еще предстоит развиваться в Таджикистане. Первостепенная художественная задача, поставленная перед таджикскими музыкантами, заключается в исследовании национальных форм джаза, основанных на музыкальных традициях макома и фалака. Остальным участникам Фестиваля было также предложено включить в свою концертную программу две композиции, основанные на таджикском макоме и фалаке.
Помимо концертной программы, Фестиваль также включает несколько подкомпонентов как, например, конкурсы, творческая лаборатория, мастер-класс, демонстрация фильмов, кру4глый стол и производство CD.
Организаторы Фестиваля рассматривают его в качестве платформы для регионального среднеазиатского сотрудничества с другого угла – через музыку. Они также надеются, что организация фестиваля превратится в традицию, которая будет продвигать развитие джазовой и экспериментальной музыки в Таджикистане, содействовать обмену творческим опытом и ускорит интеграцию центрально-азиатской музыкальной культуры с культурой других стран.
Билеты можно приобрести в кассах театра им. Маяковского и театра Оперы и Балета им. Айни. Стоимость билета – 10 Сомони
**************
Программа Второго Душанбинского Джаз Фестиваля
30 апреля
11:00-13:00Мастер-класс в Таджикской Национальной Консерватории
- Bakustic Jazz (Азербайджан)
30 апреля
18:00-21:00 Джем-сессия
1 мая
10:00 – 12:00 Мастер-класс в Таджикской Национальной Консерватории
- Квартет Хоменкова-Осипова (Казахстан)
1 мая
17:00 Гала Концерт в Театре Оперы и Балета
- Bakustic Jazz (Азербайджан)
- Ахмад Бакаев (Таджикистан)
- Квартет Хоменкова-Осипова (Казахстан)
- Джасур Халилов (Таджикистан)
2 мая
10:00 – 12:00 Мастер-класс в Таджикской Национальной Консерватории
- Ахмад Бакаев (Таджикистан)
- Салман Гамбаров (Азербайджан)
- Абдували Абдурашитов (Таджикистан)
2 мая
16:00 Гала концерт в театре им. Маяковского
- Соленые орешки (Кыргызстан)
- Авесто (Таджикистан)
3 мая
10:00-13:00 Круглый стол в Таджикской Национальной Консерватории
As I frantically pack and organize for my travel tomorrow, I want to say a heartfelt thank you to all of you who have supported this project. I am both honored and humbled by your support. I will do what I can to honor your faith in me–and I will do all I can to create peace through dialogue. Music may be the means, the method, but the Spirit of Peace transcends all methods…it is the message that counts most.
I also want you to know that I will be posting updates when possible on both facebook and twitter; for some reason, there are application issues that are making this cluncky (said almost as eloquently on both twitter’s and facebook’s homepages), so I’ll do what I can. I may also try to post here when I have access to my host’s computer–I haven’t attempted posting here via Blackberry yet, and I have enough difficulty using a full-size keyboard…
The next time you hear from me will be from 11 time-zones away (at least from Boston).
After a very, very stressful week of not having my computer and limited access to not only the Internet, but to any music files, I’m delighted to announce that I have finished the new composition for the Central Asian Jazz Festival, “Open Letter to Dushanbe”.
This will be the featured work at the Festival; I just sent it via email to Bactria Cultural Centre.
This is actually a newer, leaner version. I started with something far more ‘through-composed’: writing counterpoint and harmonies and exact parts almost more in a ‘classical’ style that many modern jazz composers seem to prefer. This week in an email I decided to ask whether or not the traditional musicians could read Western notation…they said they could, somewhat…
…my experiences have taught me that in such situations, adapt to them…
So, I rewrote everything last night in an expanded lead-sheet form, which really makes more sense. That way, the traditional musicians can improvise and embellish around the basic melody and chords that I wrote. As long as the form is followed, it should be quite a unique–and fun–experience!
If you’re interested in supporting this project, please visit: http://kck.st/caG86z
