By Filipe Freitas
Andrew Rathbun, 2017. Photo by © Clara Pereira
Name: Andrew Rathbun
Instrument: saxophone
Style: post-bop, straight-ahead, contemporary
Album Highlights: Sculptures (FSNT, 2002); True Stories (FSNT, 2000); Atwood Suites (Origin, 2018).
You are nominated - and not for the first time - for a JUNO Award with your new quintet (album Semantics). What does this represent to you?
It’s always nice when your work is recognized! I’ve been doing this a long time, and this is my 20th recording as a leader. There are some really great Canadian jazz musicians, and so it’s really encouraging to be included in those circles. I’m just happy to be in the mix, and I know full well that there is just so much subjectivity that goes into these things.
Tell us about the four other members of your quintet. When did you play with each of them for the first time and what are their musical qualities you like the most?
Rich Perry has been one of my favorite musicians for a really long time. His lyricism, his sound, his patience as an improvisor, has always been a big inspiration for me. I thought it would be interesting to do a project with him and try to act as both a foil and as a compliment to what he brings to the table. Gary Versace is one of the most incredible musicians and piano players I’ve ever worked with. He is always surprising, and he adds so much to my compositions. He has this ability to hone in on the intent, digest the harmony, then put his own spin on everything. Bassist John Hébert is the musician that I’ve known the longest, he is the bassist on my very first record from 1998. I love his sound, his vibe, his pulse, and his freedom. He dances and glides through everything he plays, and like Gary, brings beautiful surprise to everything he touches. Billy Drummond is someone I’ve always wanted to play with, and John suggested him for this date. He has such an engaging feel, that’s loose but feels so fantastic. Some of the pieces had specific “drum parts” and Billy took all of those to the next level, sometimes layering other ideas and rhythms on top of what was there, creating a totally new vibe. He’s a master musician and playing with him couldn’t have been any easier.
Name your main jazz influences and a favorite record for each of them.
I always struggle with this question. I feel like whenever I answer this, it’s dependent on the day.
Right now, I am devouring the new Sonny Rollins biography (which is EXCELLENT, go get it RIGHT NOW!) so I’ve been going back thru all of his discography as they appear in the book, and it’s been fascinating. I’ve learned so much from reading it, and it’s been great to revisit all of those classic records. His development as an artist and his commitment to constantly searching for something is inspirational.
As for some other influences, the only other one that I care to mention at this particular time is Wayne Shorter. He’s had a massive influence on me as a player and as a writer. I have included a Wayne tune on most of my last few records (we played “Etcetera” on Character Study) and it’s hard to quantify just how much I love his music. He had a huge influence on my soprano playing. The philosophy that he had for both his art and his life is also deeply thought provoking.
It’s really tough to single out just one record form either of their discographies, but I’ll choose Speak No Evil for Wayne, because it was the first record of his I bought and listened to, and The Bridge for Sonny because that’s where I am in the book and the latest one of his that I revisited.
Do you listen to any non-jazz music style? If yes, any recommendations?
Sure, I listen to lots of different things all the time. One of the many benefits of being a teacher is that the students bring things that they are listening to so I get exposed to things that I might not have come across on my own. I am also part of this group called Jazz Composers Present and each month they do a listening roundtable, and I get to check out records from a really wide variety of idioms, as it’s not just limited to “jazz’ per se.
One of my favorite non-jazz artists is Sting, and we are headed to hear him in a few weeks. The Police and all his solo records are amazing.
I’ve been listening to some recordings of Lewis Spratlan, a great composer who I met at the Atlantic Center for the Arts. He recently passed away, and I’ve been going back through some of his recordings.
Name two persons whom you've never collaborated with but you'd like to.
I’d love to play with Brian Blade, and I’d love to collaborate on a project with the Metropole Orkest in the Netherlands.
In your perspective, what needs to change in the current jazz scene?
I don’t have anything new to add to this. It’s been said many times over; artists need to be better paid for their “content” (a term I hate because it reduces people’s life’s work to a commodity). The streaming model is here to stay, and we have to figure out how to operate in this sphere, but the compensation for artists by the streaming services is absurd.
It all comes down to what we all decide we want to place our “value” on, and what that really means.
Although this is not directly a comment on the jazz scene, I feel that we need to support music education in primary and secondary education, as we've seen many programs being reduced or eliminated. And speaking of value, this type of education should be seen in the same light as any academic pursuit, rather than seen as “extra-curricular.”
7 - If you weren't a musician, what would you have been?
That’s a really tough one…..I can’t really see myself doing much else, especially at this point in my life! I do enjoy reading about politics and history, so maybe something in public policy? Although I’m not sure I’m patient enough for a gig like that!
8 - Projects for the near future?
I have a new record coming out in September called The Speed of Time that features John Hébert, Gary Versace and Tom Rainey. I’m involved with a project called NODES that has a heavy electronic component, and we have a project in the can that we are hoping to release in the fall. It’s the follow up to our Incubated Dilemma Machine release that came out last year on Koshkill Records.
I’m headed to The Vermont Center for the Creative Arts this week, to try and complete a new large ensemble project. I look forward to a few days of uninterrupted writing!