Russell Thorpe

Next up I've got an interview with a very important part of BHIC: Russell Thorpe. Russell has been involved since the beginning and actually helped me write up the initial proposal for the CSF. Russell has been an inspiring source of quality, forward-looking music, and great playing on several different horns. He's also my ride and a great friend.

How do you practice improvising? 

With the metronome on.. sometimes by trying to transcribe, but to be honest i usually dont have the patience for transcription, so i'm really not the player i could be if i had more patience. usually its been a matter of being really terrible at something until i get a lightbulb moment. and having the patience to repeat something until you couldn't possibly play it wrong helps too.

Where have you studied music?

OSU, UNCG, at home in my living room with recordings and scores. I should probably start taking horn lessons again. 

Do you think that formal music education is a good way to produce a thriving music scene? 

In ways yes, in ways no. it is helpful to be able to draw on pool of players whom all have the same vocabulary in common, but sometimes the best musicians in a scene are the ones who never went to school and play completely by ear. That being said, the divide between "amateur" and "educated" musician is often hard but easy to spot. I myself probably have way too much education, and it interferes with being a good player, because knowing what won't work colors the choices I make a lot more than knowing what will work.

And in terms of scene-building I'm not sure it really matters whether players are educated or not. what ultimately matters is how people react to what you are doing. Authenticity probably doesn't hurt either, but that term is fraught with such baggage I am reluctant to use it. But I guess my main point is, if the music is good, then everything else should fall into place, and that is the hardest part, making sure the music is good. 

Who is your favorite musician that plays your instrument and why? 

I dont really know. Probably Tim Berne, because he doesn't go for the stunt playing that all of us who at one point in time have been under the thrall of Zorn seem to find so influential. No squeaks or boops, no teeth scrapes, just good, thought-out melodic playing. Skerik would probably be second, by dint of his commitment to playing at a high level regardless of the ensemble or situation. 
 
What do you hate to hear/see whenever you see live music? 
 
Audience members who don't pay attention. But I don't get out much, so maybe that really only happens in my mind. I want to believe that everyone who goes out is there to listen but I've got to be realistic. So I guess I should be happy that people actually took the time to come out at all, especially considering the average attention span these days. 

What do you love to hear/see whenever you see live music? 

Musicians on stage with their eyes closed, so deep in the shit that it doesn't matter whether they play for 200 people or 10 people, they are living it. Fans who get that it takes a lot out of a person to let all hang out on stage and accordingly treat the players with respect. People who have strong emotional reactions to what they hear, be it a good or bad reaction, at least they are moved. 
 
What living musician would you most like to play with?  

Bjork, Reed Mathis, Brian Blade, Mike Hosty, 

How do you feel about Wynton Marsalis? 

Well, my opinion doesn't really count when it comes to Wynton Marsalis. I'm a middle class white guy who still has to shed his parts, Wynton can play anything. I could say I don't like his attitude as represented in the media, but all that shit is calculated. He knows what he's doing, he knows what he's saying. He is an awesome composer and always has top-notch players working for him. Maybe one day I will meet with as much success but I doubt it. Until then I can just keep working on my tools until I approach the next short/long-term goal and then start setting newer loftier ones.

One thing is for certain though, he is not a slouch. He doesn't slack off when it comes to his music, and that is probably the most important lesson I can learn from a man I will never meet. 

If you went back in time and could start all over, what instrument would you play? 

Drums. 

What aspect of your playing do you feel needs the most work? 
 
My articulation. My phrasing, my melodic choices, my rhythmic acuity. Its a Sysiphus thing man, you get that boulder all the way up the hill, thinking you take a break when you get to the summit but the instant you let up, it rolls right back down to the bottom. Right now I just wish I could devote 2 hours a day to each instrument. As it stands I'm lucky to get 2 hours face time on each instrument per week.

You made reference to the influence of Zorn. I have to say that it seems like most young sax players, myself included, discover Zorn and go through a period of Zorn idolatry. Why do you think that is?

I'm not sure.. I think initially for me it was a situation where I was like " yes.. finally someone gives legitimacy to non-traditional playing techniques. that means I can use them" And after a while (and quite a big investment in his discography) it became "woo hoo.. I got another Zorn record. And look, he's playing... oh.. just like Zorn" and that became boring. Dont get me wrong, the man can play, and compositionally he is going to go down as one of the most diverse, prolific ones in the book, but by year 5 of my Zorn obsession it got kind of stale. And as a player, there are only so many "noise" solos you can take in one night before you suffer from repetitive equine abuse syndrome. So anymore I tend to shy away from anything new from him, preferring to stick with Masada when I'm jonesin, which is a rarity since I've listened to so much of his stuff

How do you approach composition? 

Lots of different ways. Sometimes I start with a title or an idea, sometimes its a lick I just played on my horn that is like "that would make a good melody", sometimes i start at a piano and try to ind good changes. Sometimes I am thinking about who I am writing for and what instruments I have at my disposal.

I've been playing with you for the past few years and have noticed a tremendous amount of growth in your compositions. To what do you attribute that?

When I was 18 and first trying to write I would always approach it from a "see what it sounds like" point of view, wherein I would mark notes on a score in a haphazard sort of way hoping they would sound cool when it was all said and done, usually to spectacular failure. The last couple of years I have matured into a "hear what it looks like" sort of writer. I can hear what I am writing now so much easier than when I was younger. That and having a bunch of people around who are willing to play my crazy time-change-every-4 bars stuff. like anything, the more you do it the better you get at it.

I know that you have a great interest in brain science and work with children. How does that affect how you approach music?

The brain is the most complex thing in the known universe, with 10 power 15 possible connections between all your mental real estate. My work has made me realize that its all about hard work, and knowing how to get maximum gain from maximum effort. Music is a cognitively unique event, wherein 5 different perceptual/feedback mechanisms are in play. The brain can be trained to accomplish just about anything, just look at the Kwisatz Haderach. Its all a matter of your own self perceptions and willingness to put the hard work in.

I guess it affects my approach to music in that I have a lot more patience with my own development as a player and composer. As long as I never quit I know I'll get there.