Carlos Niño is from Los Angeles, and has been a vital part of that city’s music scene for almost 30 years. He started out as a radio DJ when he was still a teenager, and expanded from that into putting on shows, releasing records, producing sessions for artists, performing and doing just about everything else that a life in music will eventually drop in someone’s lap. He’s developed really long creative relationships with two other people who’ve been on this podcast in the past, vocalist Dwight Trible and percussionist Adam Rudolph, both of whom work at least part of the time in the area that’s currently governed by the term spiritual jazz.If you look around, you’ll see Carlos’s name on a lot of really fascinating projects. He makes records as Carlos Niño and Friends, which is a good way of summarizing his methods and his aesthetic — he gets together with people who he considers friends and kindred spirits, they make music together, and he assembles it all. But the people he calls friends are some of the most fascinating musicians around right now. He’s worked with Shabaka Hutchings, with Kamasi Washington, with Makaya McCraven, with Laraaji, and right now he’s very involved with André 3000’s New Blue Sun project. He was one of the leaders of the sessions that produced the album, and he’s also part of Andre’s live band.Carlos has a new album coming out later this month called Placenta. It’s his third release for International Anthem, following a previous Carlos Niño and Friends album and a duo release with South African pianist Thandi Ntuli, and it features a ton of guests, including frequent collaborators like Nate Mercereau and Surya Botofasina, as well as saxophonist Sam Gendel, drummer Deantoni Parks, Adam Rudolph, André 3000, and many, many others. It’s a mix of live recordings and studio sessions, some of which go as far back as 2018, and they’ve all been reconstituted and overdubbed and collaged with vocals, field recordings, and all kinds of sound design into something really unique and kaleidoscopic. Although it’s got elements of jazz and elements of New Age music, it’s really hard to describe or categorize and it’s not the kind of thing you can just put on in the background and chill with. It demands your attention. When it comes out, I recommend you sit with it and see what you get out of it. I think you’ll find it very rewarding.I’m really glad I had the chance to talk to Carlos Niño. He’s a really interesting guy with a very open and optimistic creative philosophy that I think will be inspiring to those of you who make art yourselves, whether it’s music or something else, and even to those of you who are just interested in art and creativity generally. Thanks as always for listening.

<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Carlos Niño&lt;/strong&gt; is from Los Angeles, and has been a vital part of that city’s music scene for almost 30 years. He started out as a radio DJ when he was still a teenager, and expanded from that into putting on shows, releasing records, producing sessions for artists, performing and doing just about everything else that a life in music will eventually drop in someone’s lap. He’s developed really long creative relationships with two other people who’ve been on this podcast in the past, vocalist &lt;strong&gt;Dwight Trible&lt;/strong&gt; and percussionist &lt;strong&gt;Adam Rudolph&lt;/strong&gt;, both of whom work at least part of the time in the area that’s currently governed by the term spiritual jazz.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;If you look around, you’ll see Carlos’s name on a lot of really fascinating projects. He makes records as &lt;strong&gt;Carlos Niño and Friends&lt;/strong&gt;, which is a good way of summarizing his methods and his aesthetic — he gets together with people who he considers friends and kindred spirits, they make music together, and he assembles it all. But the people he calls friends are some of the most fascinating musicians around right now. He’s worked with &lt;strong&gt;Shabaka Hutchings&lt;/strong&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Kamasi Washington&lt;/strong&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Makaya McCraven&lt;/strong&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Laraaji&lt;/strong&gt;, and right now he’s very involved with &lt;strong&gt;André 3000&lt;/strong&gt;’s &lt;i&gt;New Blue Sun&lt;/i&gt; project. He was one of the leaders of the sessions that produced the album, and he’s also part of Andre’s live band.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Carlos has a new album coming out later this month called &lt;i&gt;Placenta&lt;/i&gt;. It’s his third release for International Anthem, following a previous &lt;strong&gt;Carlos Niño and Friends&lt;/strong&gt; album and a duo release with South African pianist &lt;strong&gt;Thandi Ntuli&lt;/strong&gt;, and it features a ton of guests, including frequent collaborators like &lt;strong&gt;Nate Mercereau&lt;/strong&gt; and &lt;strong&gt;Surya Botofasina&lt;/strong&gt;, as well as saxophonist &lt;strong&gt;Sam Gendel&lt;/strong&gt;, drummer &lt;strong&gt;Deantoni Parks&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Adam Rudolph&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;André 3000&lt;/strong&gt;, and many, many others. It’s a mix of live recordings and studio sessions, some of which go as far back as 2018, and they’ve all been reconstituted and overdubbed and collaged with vocals, field recordings, and all kinds of sound design into something really unique and kaleidoscopic. Although it’s got elements of jazz and elements of New Age music, it’s really hard to describe or categorize and it’s not the kind of thing you can just put on in the background and chill with. It demands your attention. When it comes out, I recommend you sit with it and see what you get out of it. I think you’ll find it very rewarding.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;I’m really glad I had the chance to talk to &lt;strong&gt;Carlos Niño&lt;/strong&gt;. He’s a really interesting guy with a very open and optimistic creative philosophy that I think will be inspiring to those of you who make art yourselves, whether it’s music or something else, and even to those of you who are just interested in art and creativity generally. Thanks as always for listening.&lt;/p&gt;
</description>

Phil Freeman talks to percussionist and producer Carlos Niño.

Carlos Niño

Kenny Garrett has been playing for more than 40 years. Originally from Detroit, he joined the Duke Ellington Orchestra in the late 70s, when it was being run by Ellington’s son Mercer. He also played with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, and with Donald Byrd, Woody Shaw, and Freddie Hubbard. He was a member of a young lions group put together by Blue Note Records in the 80s called Out Of The Blue that also included the late drummer Ralph Peterson, and he was already recording as a leader when he was invited to join Miles Davis’s band in 1987. He played on the album Amandla, and was part of the Davis band all the way until the end of Miles’s life in 1991. Miles Davis even made a very rare guest appearance on one of Garrett’s albums, Prisoner Of Love, from 1989.Kenny Garrett’s discography as a leader has taken him in a lot of really interesting directions. His 1995 album Triology, with Brian Blade on drums and either Charnett Moffett or Kiyoshi Kitagawa on bass, is a really intense, high-energy record that kind of marries bebop language to post-Ornette Coleman freedom, but the real key to the whole thing is the way he executes these really complex melodies on tunes like John Coltrane’s "Giant Steps," Wynton Marsalis’s "Delfeayo’s Dilemma," and Mulgrew Miller’s "Pressing The Issue." It’s a tremendous showcase for his technical command of the saxophone. But the album that first got me interested in his work was Beyond The Wall, a 2006 release that was a collaboration with Pharoah Sanders that also featured Mulgrew Miller on piano, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Robert Hurst on bass, Brian Blade on drums, and on some tracks there were strings and harp and Chinese instruments and a six-member vocal ensemble. It’s not spiritual jazz in the way that term is used now, and it’s not world music, it’s entirely its own thing, and it’s particularly fascinating because you might not think of Kenny Garrett and Pharoah Sanders having that much in common, artistically speaking, but they really did. They also recorded a live album together that came out in 2008. Garrett talks about Pharoah a lot in the interview you’re about to hear.And Kenny Garrett’s latest album is going to surprise a lot of people. It’s called Who Killed AI, and it’s a collaboration with Svoy, an electronic music producer. Garrett plays alto and soprano sax on it, and all the rest of the music is made with synths and programmed drums. Even the horns are multi-tracked and fed through effects at times. It’s structured as kind of a suite — the first track is called “Ascendence,” and there are also pieces called “Transcendence,” “Divergence” and “Convergence.” But there’s also a really beautiful version of “My Funny Valentine,” which lays the ballad melody over these kind of shimmering keyboard sounds and a hard drum 'n' bass beat. It’s not at all what I was expecting when I was told that there was a new Kenny Garrett album on the way.I’m really glad I had the chance to talk to Kenny Garrett. We discussed his history with Miles Davis and with Woody Shaw, his early musical upbringing, his work with Pharoah Sanders, his approach to synthesizing genres and musics from around the world, and much more. I think you’re going to enjoy this conversation.

<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt; has been playing for more than 40 years. Originally from Detroit, he joined the &lt;strong&gt;Duke Ellington Orchestra&lt;/strong&gt; in the late 70s, when it was being run by Ellington’s son &lt;strong&gt;Mercer&lt;/strong&gt;. He also played with &lt;strong&gt;Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers&lt;/strong&gt;, and with &lt;strong&gt;Donald Byrd&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Woody Shaw&lt;/strong&gt;, and &lt;strong&gt;Freddie Hubbard&lt;/strong&gt;. He was a member of a young lions group put together by Blue Note Records in the 80s called &lt;strong&gt;Out Of The Blue&lt;/strong&gt; that also included the late drummer &lt;strong&gt;Ralph Peterson&lt;/strong&gt;, and he was already recording as a leader when he was invited to join &lt;strong&gt;Miles Davis&lt;/strong&gt;’s band in 1987. He played on the album &lt;i&gt;Amandla&lt;/i&gt;, and was part of the Davis band all the way until the end of Miles’s life in 1991. &lt;strong&gt;Miles Davis&lt;/strong&gt; even made a very rare guest appearance on one of Garrett’s albums, &lt;i&gt;Prisoner Of Love&lt;/i&gt;, from 1989.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt;’s discography as a leader has taken him in a lot of really interesting directions. His 1995 album &lt;i&gt;Triology&lt;/i&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Brian Blade&lt;/strong&gt; on drums and either &lt;strong&gt;Charnett Moffett&lt;/strong&gt; or &lt;strong&gt;Kiyoshi Kitagawa&lt;/strong&gt; on bass, is a really intense, high-energy record that kind of marries bebop language to post-&lt;strong&gt;Ornette Coleman&lt;/strong&gt; freedom, but the real key to the whole thing is the way he executes these really complex melodies on tunes like &lt;strong&gt;John Coltrane&lt;/strong&gt;’s "Giant Steps," &lt;strong&gt;Wynton Marsalis&lt;/strong&gt;’s "Delfeayo’s Dilemma," and &lt;strong&gt;Mulgrew Miller&lt;/strong&gt;’s "Pressing The Issue." It’s a tremendous showcase for his technical command of the saxophone. But the album that first got me interested in his work was &lt;i&gt;Beyond The Wall&lt;/i&gt;, a 2006 release that was a collaboration with &lt;strong&gt;Pharoah Sanders&lt;/strong&gt; that also featured &lt;strong&gt;Mulgrew Miller&lt;/strong&gt; on piano, &lt;strong&gt;Bobby Hutcherson&lt;/strong&gt; on vibes, &lt;strong&gt;Robert Hurst&lt;/strong&gt; on bass, &lt;strong&gt;Brian Blade&lt;/strong&gt; on drums, and on some tracks there were strings and harp and Chinese instruments and a six-member vocal ensemble. It’s not spiritual jazz in the way that term is used now, and it’s not world music, it’s entirely its own thing, and it’s particularly fascinating because you might not think of &lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt; and &lt;strong&gt;Pharoah Sanders&lt;/strong&gt; having that much in common, artistically speaking, but they really did. They also recorded a live album together that came out in 2008. Garrett talks about Pharoah a lot in the interview you’re about to hear.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And &lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt;’s latest album is going to surprise a lot of people. It’s called &lt;i&gt;Who Killed AI&lt;/i&gt;, and it’s a collaboration with &lt;strong&gt;Svoy&lt;/strong&gt;, an electronic music producer. Garrett plays alto and soprano sax on it, and all the rest of the music is made with synths and programmed drums. Even the horns are multi-tracked and fed through effects at times. It’s structured as kind of a suite — the first track is called “Ascendence,” and there are also pieces called “Transcendence,” “Divergence” and “Convergence.” But there’s also a really beautiful version of “My Funny Valentine,” which lays the ballad melody over these kind of shimmering keyboard sounds and a hard drum 'n' bass beat. It’s not at all what I was expecting when I was told that there was a new &lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt; album on the way.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;I’m really glad I had the chance to talk to &lt;strong&gt;Kenny Garrett&lt;/strong&gt;. We discussed his history with &lt;strong&gt;Miles Davis&lt;/strong&gt; and with &lt;strong&gt;Woody Shaw&lt;/strong&gt;, his early musical upbringing, his work with &lt;strong&gt;Pharoah Sanders&lt;/strong&gt;, his approach to synthesizing genres and musics from around the world, and much more. I think you’re going to enjoy this conversation.&lt;/p&gt;
</description>

Phil Freeman talks to saxophonist Kenny Garrett.

Kenny Garrett

I first learned about Arushi Jain three years ago, when most people who are aware of her work did. Her 2021 album Under The Lilac Sky was extremely beautiful, six tracks of droning, pulsing synth music with her vocals kind of floating in the middle like she was singing from the middle of an isolation tank. It was entirely created with a modular synth rig that she constructed and programmed, but the compositions were based on ragas from the Indian classical tradition, including the fact that the album was meant to be heard at a specific time of day, while the sun was setting. Under The Lilac Sky was described as her first full-length album, but she had also put out a four-song EP, Just A Feeling, in 2018, documenting the earliest stages of developing her sound, and another four-track release, With & Without, in 2019, where each track was inspired by a specific raga, although with that one, she says on the album’s Bandcamp page, “I didn’t always follow the rules of the ragas, I’m sure those who know this art can hear that, and maybe purists won’t approve.”There’s also a companion release, With & Without (Golem Version), which features two remixes of tracks from the original album for some kind of virtual reality dance piece, and then a 46-minute soundtrack to the piece.Her music is still evolving. At the end of March, she’s putting out a new album, Delight, on which she’s not working just with the modular synth. She’s also gotten people to play flute, saxophone, classical guitar, cello and marimba and sampled those parts and incorporated them into the tracks, which are also much more conventionally song-like than her previous work. And the vocals and lyrics are much more up front as well. Delight isn’t a pop album, but it’s absolutely more directly communicative than her previous work.We had a really interesting conversation. We talked about her background singing Indian classical music with her family, how she came to electronic music when she arrived in America to go to college, how modular synths actually work, which I’m still not 100 percent sure I understand, how her live performances have evolved, and even a little bit about her visual presentation and how the music she makes relates to her Indian identity – or doesn’t. So on that note, here’s my conversation with Arushi Jain.

<description>&lt;p&gt;I first learned about &lt;strong&gt;Arushi Jain&lt;/strong&gt; three years ago, when most people who are aware of her work did. Her 2021 album &lt;i&gt;Under The Lilac Sky&lt;/i&gt; was extremely beautiful, six tracks of droning, pulsing synth music with her vocals kind of floating in the middle like she was singing from the middle of an isolation tank. It was entirely created with a modular synth rig that she constructed and programmed, but the compositions were based on ragas from the Indian classical tradition, including the fact that the album was meant to be heard at a specific time of day, while the sun was setting. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;i&gt;Under The Lilac Sky&lt;/i&gt; was described as her first full-length album, but she had also put out a four-song EP, &lt;i&gt;Just A Feeling&lt;/i&gt;, in 2018, documenting the earliest stages of developing her sound, and another four-track release, &lt;i&gt;With &amp; Without&lt;/i&gt;, in 2019, where each track was inspired by a specific raga, although with that one, she says on the album’s Bandcamp page, “I didn’t always follow the rules of the ragas, I’m sure those who know this art can hear that, and maybe purists won’t approve.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;There’s also a companion release, &lt;i&gt;With &amp; Without (Golem Version)&lt;/i&gt;, which features two remixes of tracks from the original album for some kind of virtual reality dance piece, and then a 46-minute soundtrack to the piece.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Her music is still evolving. At the end of March, she’s putting out a new album, &lt;i&gt;Delight&lt;/i&gt;, on which she’s not working just with the modular synth. She’s also gotten people to play flute, saxophone, classical guitar, cello and marimba and sampled those parts and incorporated them into the tracks, which are also much more conventionally song-like than her previous work. And the vocals and lyrics are much more up front as well. &lt;i&gt;Delight&lt;/i&gt; isn’t a pop album, but it’s absolutely more directly communicative than her previous work.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We had a really interesting conversation. We talked about her background singing Indian classical music with her family, how she came to electronic music when she arrived in America to go to college, how modular synths actually work, which I’m still not 100 percent sure I understand, how her live performances have evolved, and even a little bit about her visual presentation and how the music she makes relates to her Indian identity – or doesn’t. So on that note, here’s my conversation with &lt;strong&gt;Arushi Jain&lt;/strong&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
</description>

Phil Freeman talks to electronic musician Arushi Jain.

Arushi Jain

Rufus Reid is an extremely important but under-recognized figure in modern jazz. He’s always been someone who’s had one foot in the mainstream and one in the avant-garde — he did a lot of work with soul jazz and jazz-funk saxophonist Eddie Harris in the early 1970s, before joining Dexter Gordon’s band when Gordon made his famous US comeback after years in Europe. He was also part of Andrew Hill’s band in the late ’80s, and has done a ton of straightahead records. But he was also a member of Jack DeJohnette’s Special Edition in the early ’80s, and he was one of the four bassists on Henry Threadgill’s X-75 album, and he played on Muhal Richard Abrams’ Things To Come From Those Now Gone, and he played with Anthony Braxton on the two Seven Standards 1985 albums with Hank Jones on piano and Victor Lewis on drums. He was also a member of the World Bass Violin Ensemble, which was a group of six bassists that made an album for Black Saint in 1984. Reid has also done a lot of work as a leader. He’s made a string of albums in collaboration with drummer Akira Tana and various other musicians; he’s done bass duo albums with Michael Moore; and he’s led the Out Front trio with pianist Steve Allee and drummer Duduka Da Fonseca. In 2014, he released Quiet Pride: the Elizabeth Catlett Project, an album that featured a total of 19 instrumentalists and a singer all paying tribute to a sculptor whose work focused on the Black female experience in America. Reid is also an educator and the author of The Evolving Bassist, a book originally published in 1974 that’s still a standard text for bassists. In this interview, we talk about Reid’s work with Eddie Harris, with Dexter Gordon, with Henry Threadgill, and with his own ensembles. We talk about a six-CD set he made with Frank Kimbrough a few years ago, recording all of Thelonious Monk’s compositions. We talk about his approach to the instrument, his influences, and about his new album, which is a duo collaboration with pianist Sullivan Fortner. This was a really enjoyable and informative conversation, and I think you’ll come away from it with a new or perhaps a renewed appreciation for someone who’s been a major figure in jazz for 50 years and isn’t stopping yet.

<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Rufus Reid&lt;/strong&gt; is an extremely important but under-recognized figure in modern jazz. He’s always been someone who’s had one foot in the mainstream and one in the avant-garde — he did a lot of work with soul jazz and jazz-funk saxophonist &lt;strong&gt;Eddie Harris&lt;/strong&gt; in the early 1970s, before joining &lt;strong&gt;Dexter Gordon&lt;/strong&gt;’s band when Gordon made his famous US comeback after years in Europe. He was also part of &lt;strong&gt;Andrew Hill&lt;/strong&gt;’s band in the late ’80s, and has done a ton of straightahead records. But he was also a member of &lt;strong&gt;Jack DeJohnette’s Special Edition&lt;/strong&gt; in the early ’80s, and he was one of the four bassists on &lt;strong&gt;Henry Threadgill&lt;/strong&gt;’s &lt;i&gt;X-75&lt;/i&gt; album, and he played on &lt;strong&gt;Muhal Richard Abrams&lt;/strong&gt;’ &lt;i&gt;Things To Come From Those Now Gone&lt;/i&gt;, and he played with &lt;strong&gt;Anthony Braxton&lt;/strong&gt; on the two &lt;i&gt;Seven Standards 1985&lt;/i&gt; albums with &lt;strong&gt;Hank Jones&lt;/strong&gt; on piano and &lt;strong&gt;Victor Lewis&lt;/strong&gt; on drums. He was also a member of the &lt;strong&gt;World Bass Violin Ensemble&lt;/strong&gt;, which was a group of six bassists that made an album for Black Saint in 1984. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Reid has also done a lot of work as a leader. He’s made a string of albums in collaboration with drummer &lt;strong&gt;Akira Tana&lt;/strong&gt; and various other musicians; he’s done bass duo albums with &lt;strong&gt;Michael Moore&lt;/strong&gt;; and he’s led the Out Front trio with pianist &lt;strong&gt;Steve Allee&lt;/strong&gt; and drummer &lt;strong&gt;Duduka Da Fonseca&lt;/strong&gt;. In 2014, he released &lt;i&gt;Quiet Pride: the Elizabeth Catlett Project&lt;/i&gt;, an album that featured a total of 19 instrumentalists and a singer all paying tribute to a sculptor whose work focused on the Black female experience in America. Reid is also an educator and the author of &lt;i&gt;The Evolving Bassist&lt;/i&gt;, a book originally published in 1974 that’s still a standard text for bassists. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this interview, we talk about Reid’s work with &lt;strong&gt;Eddie Harris&lt;/strong&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Dexter Gordon&lt;/strong&gt;, with &lt;strong&gt;Henry Threadgill&lt;/strong&gt;, and with his own ensembles. We talk about a six-CD set he made with &lt;strong&gt;Frank Kimbrough&lt;/strong&gt; a few years ago, recording all of &lt;strong&gt;Thelonious Monk&lt;/strong&gt;’s compositions. We talk about his approach to the instrument, his influences, and about his new album, which is a duo collaboration with pianist &lt;strong&gt;Sullivan Fortner&lt;/strong&gt;. This was a really enjoyable and informative conversation, and I think you’ll come away from it with a new or perhaps a renewed appreciation for someone who’s been a major figure in jazz for 50 years and isn’t stopping yet.&lt;/p&gt;
</description>

Phil Freeman talks to bassist Rufus Reid.

Rufus Reid

Welcome back to the Burning Ambulance Podcast! To find out about upcoming episodes, as well as all things Burning Ambulance, <a href="http://burningambulance.substack.com" target="_blank">sign up for our free weekly newsletter</a>.It’s been a long time since I’ve done one of these. In fact, the last episode was released in December of 2022. I talked then to film critic Walter Chaw about his book on the work of director Walter Hill. Since then, a lot’s been going on. Most notably, I wrote a book of my own, In The Brewing Luminous: The Life And Music Of Cecil Taylor, which will be released this year. It’s the first full-length biography and critical analysis of Taylor, who is not only a hugely important jazz musician – along with Ornette Coleman, Albert Ayler and others, he was one of the pioneers of free jazz and really pushed the music forward in undeniable ways – but is also, I believe and argue in the book, a brilliant and under-recognized American composer whose work spans a much broader range than many people realize.Ethan Iverson is also a really interesting American composer. You could be reductive about it and call him a synthesist of old and new pop and jazz styles, but he has a strong and recognizable voice that becomes easy to hear the more of his music you listen to. There are chords and types of melodies that he favors that set him apart from his peers, and he’s got a real attraction to big hooks, which manifested in the Bad Plus’s work in a number of ways and shows up in his solo work too. The Bad Plus developed a reputation for piano trio covers of pop songs that people often seemed to think were ironic, but were in fact performed from a perspective of real love for compositional form. A great tune is a great tune. And it’s worth remembering that they also recorded Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, which is an avant-garde landmark but also has some really kick-ass and highly memorable melodies. After all, it was originally written for dancers.Ethan’s new album, Technically Acceptable, is his second record for Blue Note and he’s doing some things on it that he’s never done before. First of all, he’s playing with two different rhythm sections that are made up of musicians more or less his own age, even younger than himself. Until now, he’s tended to record with older players, legends like Jack DeJohnette, Albert "Tootie" Heath, Billy Hart, Paul Motian, Ron Carter, etc. This is his first time post-Bad Plus making an album entirely with musicians of his own generation. Also, it includes a solo piano sonata – three movements, fifteen minutes, a through composed classical piece that still manages to fit under the umbrella of jazz in a George Gershwin meets Fats Waller kind of way. This album is a real showcase for him as a composer.Ethan and I talk about Cecil Taylor in the interview you’re about to hear. We also talk about his work and how it’s evolved over the years, the economics of surviving as a jazz musician in the 21st century, and we talk about other piano players of his generation like Jason Moran, Aaron Diehl, Aaron Parks, Jeb Patton, and Sullivan Fortner. We talk about diving into the music’s history, and about how there’s as much to learn and draw from in the music of the 1920s and 1930s as in the music of the 1960s and afterward, and about the increasing movement toward composition in current jazz. This is his second time on the podcast – a couple of years ago, I interviewed him alongside Mark Turner, because they’d made a duo album together. But this time it’s a one on one conversation, and I hope you’ll find it as interesting as I did.

<description>&lt;p&gt;Welcome back to the Burning Ambulance Podcast! To find out about upcoming episodes, as well as all things Burning Ambulance, &lt;a href="http://burningambulance.substack.com" target="_blank"&gt;sign up for our free weekly newsletter&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;It’s been a long time since I’ve done one of these. In fact, the last episode was released in December of 2022. I talked then to film critic &lt;strong&gt;Walter Chaw&lt;/strong&gt; about his book on the work of director &lt;strong&gt;Walter Hill&lt;/strong&gt;. Since then, a lot’s been going on. Most notably, I wrote a book of my own, &lt;i&gt;In The Brewing Luminous: The Life And Music Of Cecil Taylor&lt;/i&gt;, which will be released this year. It’s the first full-length biography and critical analysis of Taylor, who is not only a hugely important jazz musician – along with &lt;strong&gt;Ornette Coleman&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Albert Ayler&lt;/strong&gt; and others, he was one of the pioneers of free jazz and really pushed the music forward in undeniable ways – but is also, I believe and argue in the book, a brilliant and under-recognized American composer whose work spans a much broader range than many people realize.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Ethan Iverson&lt;/strong&gt; is also a really interesting American composer. You could be reductive about it and call him a synthesist of old and new pop and jazz styles, but he has a strong and recognizable voice that becomes easy to hear the more of his music you listen to. There are chords and types of melodies that he favors that set him apart from his peers, and he’s got a real attraction to big hooks, which manifested in the &lt;strong&gt;Bad Plus&lt;/strong&gt;’s work in a number of ways and shows up in his solo work too. &lt;strong&gt;The Bad Plus&lt;/strong&gt; developed a reputation for piano trio covers of pop songs that people often seemed to think were ironic, but were in fact performed from a perspective of real love for compositional form. A great tune is a great tune. And it’s worth remembering that they also recorded &lt;strong&gt;Igor Stravinsky&lt;/strong&gt;’s &lt;i&gt;Rite of Spring&lt;/i&gt;, which is an avant-garde landmark but also has some really kick-ass and highly memorable melodies. After all, it was originally written for dancers.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Ethan’s new album, &lt;i&gt;Technically Acceptable&lt;/i&gt;, is his second record for Blue Note and he’s doing some things on it that he’s never done before. First of all, he’s playing with two different rhythm sections that are made up of musicians more or less his own age, even younger than himself. Until now, he’s tended to record with older players, legends like &lt;strong&gt;Jack DeJohnette&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Albert "Tootie" Heath&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Billy Hart&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Paul Motian&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Ron Carter&lt;/strong&gt;, etc. This is his first time post-&lt;strong&gt;Bad Plus&lt;/strong&gt; making an album entirely with musicians of his own generation. Also, it includes a solo piano sonata – three movements, fifteen minutes, a through composed classical piece that still manages to fit under the umbrella of jazz in a &lt;strong&gt;George Gershwin&lt;/strong&gt; meets &lt;strong&gt;Fats Waller&lt;/strong&gt; kind of way. This album is a real showcase for him as a composer.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Ethan and I talk about &lt;strong&gt;Cecil Taylor&lt;/strong&gt; in the interview you’re about to hear. We also talk about his work and how it’s evolved over the years, the economics of surviving as a jazz musician in the 21st century, and we talk about other piano players of his generation like &lt;strong&gt;Jason Moran&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Aaron Diehl&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Aaron Parks&lt;/strong&gt;, &lt;strong&gt;Jeb Patton&lt;/strong&gt;, and &lt;strong&gt;Sullivan Fortner&lt;/strong&gt;. We talk about diving into the music’s history, and about how there’s as much to learn and draw from in the music of the 1920s and 1930s as in the music of the 1960s and afterward, and about the increasing movement toward composition in current jazz. This is his second time on the podcast – a couple of years ago, I interviewed him alongside &lt;strong&gt;Mark Turner&lt;/strong&gt;, because they’d made a duo album together. But this time it’s a one on one conversation, and I hope you’ll find it as interesting as I did.&lt;/p&gt;
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Phil Freeman talks to pianist and composer Ethan Iverson.

Ethan Iverson

The Burning Ambulance Podcast features interviews with musicians from the worlds of jazz, metal, modern composition, noise, and whatever else piques host Phil Freeman's interest.

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