To explore strange new worlds…
To boldly go where no man has gone before”
Introduction to the Sci-Fi TV Show STAR TREK
IF THERE WERE A REUNION OF THE MEMBERS OF THE SAXOPHONE FAMILY, THE SOPRANO SAX WOULD PROBABLY BE THE LAST ONE INVITED, AS IT IS THE MOST UNFORGIVING.
BADDA BOOM!
MANY HAVE ASPIRED, BUT FEW HAVE ATTAINED MASTERY OF IT.
WHICH MAKES JANE IRA BLOOM ALL THE MORE FASCINATING AS AN ARTIST.
NOT ONLY HAS SHE CARVED OUT AN IMPRESSIVE CAREER CREATING A FRESH SOUND WITH THE STRAIGHT SAXOPHONE, BUT SHE HAS USED IT IN A WIDE VARIETY OF ENVIRONMENTS. MS. BLOOM IS PROBABLY THE FIRST ONE TO MELD THE SAXOPHONE WITH ELECTRONICS THROUGH THE YEARS, AND NEVER MAKING IT SOUND LIKE A GIMMICK OR NOVEL.
COMFORTABLE IN STRAIGHT AHEAD OR FREE FORM, HER LATEST ALBUM 2.23.23 IS A COLLECTION OF SPONTANEOUS CONVERSATIONS DONE IN REAL TIME OVER THE COMPUTER WITH TWO OF HER LONG TIME COMPATRIOTS, BASSIST MARK HELIAS AND DRUMMER BOBBY PREVITE.
MS. BLOOM WAS GRACIOUS ENOUGH TO GRANT US AN INTERVIEW TO GIVE US SOME INSIGHT TO HER MUSICAL WORLD VIEW
YOU ARE A TEACHER. WHAT ARE THE MAJOR THINGS YOU EMPHASIZE TO YOUR STUDENTS?
It’s better to do it than to talk about it.
There should be a less academic approach, (this is) from someone who is out there doing it.
When you’re out there trying to get a concept across, whether it is improvising or composing, the best teacher in the world is to ‘do it’.
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“It’s better to do it than to talk about it. When you’re out there trying to get a concept across, whether it is improvising or composing, the best teacher in the world is to ‘do it”
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VERY FEW MUSICIANS PLAY ONLY THE SOPRANO SAX. WHAT DREW YOU TO IT? ALSO, WHY DIDN’T YOU ALSO DOUBLE ON THE CLARINET, AS SO MANY SOPRANO PLAYERS DO?
I never did play clarinet.
I started off very young playing the alto sax.
I have to credit my teacher who I was learning to play from. I lived outside of Boston, and I studied with a master teacher when I was quite young.
If you talk to saxophone players, the will recognize the name, Joe Viola. He taught many, many saxophone players that are out there in the world right now.
But Joe loved the soprano, and when I’d go in for lessons, we’d play duets. When I heard the way he sounded on that instrument, I thought “I want what he’s having” (laughs) That’s when I fell in love with the instrument.
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“When I heard the way (Joe Viola) sounded on that instrument, I thought ‘I want what he’s having’”
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WAS THERE A MAJOR DECISION TO PLAY STRAIGHT AS OPPOSED TO CURVED?
There was no choice on that; curved ones weren’t even around. The straight horn was it.
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST THING THAT HE EMPHASIZED TO YOU?
How to have a sound. It’s all about a sound.
Of all of the members of the saxophone family (and all of the instruments have their own issues), the soprano has a particular issue with playing in tune. It requires a smaller window of accuracy.
To get your own sound to come through that instrument takes some time to finesse and work your way through the instrument. So, the instrument won’t be playing you, but you play the instrument and your voice comes through it. Having a sound is it.
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“It’s all about a sound”
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DO YOU DEVELOP A SOUND MORE THROUGH WRITING, PRACTICING, TRYING TO SOUND LIKE SOMEONE, OR SOMETHING ELSE?
It’s time. Just playing the instrument and finding your style. It’s a lonesome trial.
It takes a long time, and you just have to be patient with yourself.
Keep on the path, and be inspired by other sounds and instruments.
For me, it wasn’t just listening to other soprano saxophones; I was listening to vocalists, trumpet players and tenor saxophone players! I was listening to all kinds of things, even violin. You get your ideas where you can get them.
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“Just playing the instrument and finding your style. It’s a lonesome trial”
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I FIND IT INTERESTING THAT THERE ARE SO MANY FEMALE SOPRANO SAX PLAYERS IN JAZZ. ANN PATTERSON, ROXY COSS, ANAT COHEN, JANE BUNNETT, ETC. DO WOMEN HAVE MORE PATIENCE THAN MEN?
I haven’t got the answer to that questions! (laughs) More power to us!
WHAT DID YOU LEARN STUDYING FROM GEORGE COLEMAN?
I learned so much from him. I need to give him a call.
When I first came to NYC, fresh out of New Haven, CT, George was the one who invited me to sit in at the clubs and showed me the world that he knew.
When we studied, he is an incredibly detailed harmonic thinker, in viewing that sense of harmony at often rapid tempos, he was able to communicate some of the hard work and detail that is involved in hearing all of that harmony in your playing.
He’s a master, being able to play anything in all twelve keys, no matter what. He’s brilliant, and also a great guy. He found something that he was able to communicate with a young musician like myself, who was at a very young age at the time. He really helped me along.
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“It takes a long time, and you just have to be patient with yourself”
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WHAT GAVE YOU THE FASCINATION WITH ELECTRONICS TO MIX IT IN WITH YOUR PLAYING? 854
When I studied music, I listened to electronic music in the New Music/Contemporary Music world.
In those days, electronics was like a Moog synthesizer that was the size of a refrigerator. (chuckles)
But it did give me a grounding in sound, and how it is constructed, how to analyze sound and attack it. It gave me a kind of warmth for an Old School of electronic type of sound; an analog sound. It’s not digital; it’s an Old School way of thinking about electronics, like the sound score to Forbidden Planet. That kind of electronic sound.
MOST ARTISTS DO EITHER ACOUSTIC OR ELECTRONIC, BUT NOT BOTH TOGETHER, AS YOU DO.
My whole thought about it was that I was interested in those sounds, but I only wanted it to augment the saxophone sound. I didn’t want to eliminate it.
So, I used my breath and my improvisational ability to trigger those electronic sounds in combination with my acoustic sound. That’s why I was trying to always get a warm electronic sound to result from that.
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“I only wanted it to augment the saxophone sound. I didn’t want to eliminate it”
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WHAT WAS THE FIRST ELECTRONIC MUSIC THAT YOU LISTENED TO?
Silver Apples On the Moon by Morton Subotnick. That album comes to mind; I can see the cover of the album
WHAT ATTRACTED YOU TO IT?
I’ve always been a Space Cadet.
From the minute the space program began in the sixties, I’ve watched every launch, every landing. I was always interested in space exploration. Anything, whether it was Sci-fi or Real-Sci. (laughs)
It was just a matter of time, that when I got to a certain level in my compositional thinking, that I realized that this interest that I had in space could intersect with my compositional interest in music.
At first I thought they were separate things, but then I let them perfect one another.
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“I’ve always been a Space Cadet. From the minute the space program began in the sixties, I’ve watched every launch, every landing. I was always interested in space exploration. Anything, whether it was Sci-fi or Real-Sci”
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DID THE OTHER MUSICIANS YOU WORKED WITH SHOW RESISTANCE, OR DID THEY CATCH YOUR VISION RIGHT AWAY?
I play with some pretty hip folks, so they were interested in it right away. However, the traditional jazz voice first said “What the heck is she doing?” when I came out on Columbia (Modern Drama) with all of these live electronics on it. And yet, people still thought that there was still a lot of humanity in the sounds, so it was confusing for those folks.
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN, YOU’VE WORKED A LOT WITH FRED HERSCH BACK IN THE DAY.
Fred and I go back so far, back to 1979.
I can remember walking into Bradley’s (jazz club) in 1979, hearing Fred Hersch doing a duet with Charlie Haden. After I heard that I said to myself “That’s the guy I want to play with”. The rest has been a wonderful set of collaborations with Fred over the years.
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“After I heard (Fred Hersch) I said to myself ‘That’s the guy I want to play with’”
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YOU ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN POETRY. HOW DOES THAT EFFECT YOUR PLAYING?
I’m an abstract thinker. Abstract words and abstract notes kind of line up, whether it is Emily Dickenson or a spare evocative melody.
YOU HAVE ALBUMS THAT ARE BOTH ABSTRACT AND STRAIGHT AHEAD. DO YOU MENTALLY CHANGE GEARS FOR THESE TYPES OF THINGS?
Whatever inspires me at the time, just be true to the idea.
If it is something from The American Songbook, say it. If it’s something inspired by outer space, go there too! It’s about being true to the idea.
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“just be true to the idea”
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WINGWALKER IS STANDARDS AND STRAIGHTAHEAD 1525
Some of it is, but there are also some pretty fun melodies out there! That was with Dawn Cement on piano, Mark Helias (bass) and Bobby Previte (drums). It’s an ensemble that I’d played with for quite a long time, so there’s a lot of chemistry inside that group.
AN ALBUM BEFORE THAT WAS A SUITE, LIKE SONG, LIKE SILVER
With that one, the electronics came to the fore. Lots of inspiration from having grown up having listened to Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter. Lots of influences affected that record.
Collaborating with keyboardist Jamie Saft brought a whole different dimension to the sound of the rhythm section. That was a very special one, too.
WHEN YOU GO FROM DIFFERENT STYLES OF MUSIC, DO YOU HAVE TO CHANGE REEDS OR MOUTHPIECES?
As one saxophone player to another, I can tell you in all honesty that I have been playing the same horn, the same mouthpiece and the same reeds my entire career. It’s all the same.
It’s what’s behind the mouthpiece that has been changing! (laughs)
THAT IS THE OPPOSITE OF GUITARISTS, WHO HAVE SEEMINGLY DOZENS, AND THEN THEY HAVE A DOZEN PEDALS TO PLAY WITH AS WELL. BUT YOU ARE SAYING THAT IT’S WHAT INSIDE OF YOU THAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE
SO MANY MUSICIANS FALL INTO THAT VORTEX OF A TRAP, THINKING, “IT MUST BE THE REED, OR THE MOUTHPIECE, OR THE THIS OR THE THAT”.
The setup that I use as a saxophone player very unextraordinary; it’s very middle of the road. It’s a “D” opening Selmer model classic rubber mouthpiece. Nothing fancy, very boring.
It’s how you get your sound through it is all that matters.
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“It’s what’s behind the mouthpiece that has been changing…It’s how you get your sound through it is all that matters”
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IT TAKES HUMILITY TO REALIZE THAT YOU DON’T NEED SOME GIMMICK. I REMEMBER AL COHN TELLING ME HE PLAYED A 1.75 TENOR SAX REED.
That is a thin reed! The wind could blow it!
WHAT WAS THE IMPETUS ABOUT YOUR RECENT ALBUM, 2.3.23, WITH BOBBY PREVITE AND MARK HELIAS?
The pandemic.
In a very interesting way, connecting with musicians with whom I’ve been collaborating for years and years. And here, I’m playing remotely with them! In real time!
We’re not talking about sending music, it’s in real time!
My relationship with bassist Mark Helias over the pandemic deepened so much. We had so many projects, and were playing so much with each other into other projects. This final one, called 2.3.23, had us add our friend Bobby Previte to the mix.
It was like old friends; it was like we’d never gone anywhere.
We played remote.
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“we were so desperate to play with each other that we were filled with improvisational spontaneity. It just felt so good”
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WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT PART ABOUT PLAYING REMOTE?
It was the setup.
We were playing over the internet, and sometimes the bandwidth would get crowded, so you’d have problems connecting.
It had nothing to do with the software; it just had to do with how many people are using the internet that day. We finally got used to it.
WAS IT HARDER TO BE SPONTANEOUS IN THAT ENVIRONMENT?
No, because we were so desperate to play with each other that we were filled with improvisational spontaneity. It just felt so good.
DO YOU EVER LISTEN TO YOUR OLD RECORDINGS?
Not much. I try to look forward.
YOU ARE TEACHING, YOU HAVE WON A GRAMMY, YOU WERE AWARDED A GUGGENHEIM FELLOWSHIP. DO YOU EVER FEEL THAT YOU’VE ARRIVED?
Never.
No musician thinks about what they did; they’re always thinking about wishing to do another thing. “I just haven’t gotten there yet”
People forget that when you record, they are just moments in time. They are slices in time. The finality people give to recordings is not where the artists are when they make them.
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“No musician thinks about what they did; they’re always thinking about wishing to do another thing”
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PEOPLE FORGET THAT THE WORD “RECORD” MEANS “A RECORD” OF WHERE THAT PERSON IS RIGHT NOW
Exactly; It’s a little cross section of where I am at this moment in time. You’re always moving; that is the way that I always think of it.
WHAT FUTURE PROJECTS AND GOALS WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACCOMPLISH?
That’s a good question and the pandemic has put a damper on my imagined thinking. I used to have a lot of thoughts like that. Now I don’t even think about it.
I’d love to write for and play with an ensemble of improvisors, both of “world” musicians, and improvisors from the new contemporary jazz tradition. All in one ensemble, with many, many women. (laughs)
I know so many fantastic virtuosi, with instruments in both the Western canon and in world music, that I can imagine putting them all together in one ensemble. That could be a knockout.
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“People forget that when you record, they are just moments in time. They are slices in time. The finality people give to recordings is not where the artists are when they make them”
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ANY SPECIFIC MUSICIAN POP INTO YOUR HEAD FOR THIS PROJECT?
In my head, unfortunately, is someone who sadly passed away, who I wish was still here for me to play with, a great South Indian singer and vena player named Gheetha Ramanathan Bennett. I think about her often.
We used to play together occasionally. She lived out in Covina, California. I miss her.
I play with many other musicians, but she’s one that stands out in my mind.
WHAT DO YOU LISTEN FOR WHEN YOU HEAR A SOPRANO SAX PLAYER, AND WHAT IS YOUR PET PEEVE?
Playing in tune. I just can’t help it.
My ear just tells me “play the thing in tune!!” (laughs)
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“the pandemic has put a damper on my imagined thinking”
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WHAT MUSICIAN, LIVING OR DEAD, WOULD YOU PAY $1000 TO SEE PERFORM?
Oh, if I could just see Sonny Rollins play again! That would make my heart sing!
The kinesthetic rhythm inside of his body; there’s nobody like it. There never will be, and he continues to inspire me.
HE DID NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH THE SOPRANO SAXOPHONE. HE SAID IT WASN’T HIM
No, the tenor is his voice. Just like the soprano is mine. I wouldn’t even pick up a tenor; it wouldn’t sound right.
WHAT PERSON IN WORLD HISTORY, LIVING OR DEAD, WOULD YOU LOVE TO SIT DOWN FOR AN EVENING AND PICK HIS OR HER BRAIN?
Emily Dickinson. She was a musician! She was also an improvisor of words but she was a musician at heart.
Across generations, across time, I feel somehow connected with the way she thought about words and the way jazz musicians think about notes.
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Across generations, across time, I feel somehow connected with the way (Emily DIckinson) thought about words and the way jazz musicians think about notes
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WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU READ THAT YOU THINK EVERYONE SHOULD READ?
I’m not good at “shoulds”
Probably To Kill A Mockingbird. I really didn’t understand all of the insight, and who Harper Lee was, and what it was all about. It was actually later in life that I learned about Harper Lee.
But there was something in that book that took me deep.
WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE SOMEONE HAS GIVEN YOU?
Be patient. It takes time; it really takes time.
If you’ve been around for awhile, you realize how long it takes.
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“Be patient. It takes time; it really takes time…If you’ve been around for awhile, you realize how long it takes”
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MOST PEOPLE WANT THE GOAL, WHEN THE PROCESS IS ACTUALLY THE GOAL.
It is life long.
And, moving along farther on the trajectory here (laughs), you realize that it takes time for this stuff to develop.
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“Oh, if I could just see Sonny Rollins play again! That would make my heart sing!”
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DO YOU HAVE ANY PHILOSOPHY, WORLD VIEW OR RELIGION THAT HELPS STEER YOU IN LIFE?
I have been a practitioner of the Chinese Healing Arts. I’ve been focusing on Qigong, actually, during the years of the pandemic and prior to that I studied Tai Chi.
I find that it helps give me center and calm in a very turbulent world. That’s my way of working through things.
I’ve always been a physical person, and those practices have helped me a great deal
WHAT GIVES YOU THE MOST JOY?
Playing in the zone. More than anything, there’s nothing like it
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“I know so many fantastic virtuosi, with instruments in both the Western canon and in world music, that I can imagine putting them all together in one ensemble. That could be a knockout”
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LIKE THE GREATEST OF THE ASTRONAUTS, JANE IRA BLOOM HAS EXPLORED WORLDS UNKNOWN. WHETHER IT BE THROUGH CREATING NEW SOUNDS THROUGH ELECTRONICS OR FREE IMPROVISATIONS, SHE HAS DONE HER OWN “SPACE EXPLORATION”, IN THAT HERS IS THROUGH THE SPACE OF SOUNDS. IT’S BEEN A CAREER THAT HAS SUCCESSFULLY TAKEN THE LISTENERS ON TO NEW FRONTIERS, AND THE TREK HAS BEEN, AND CONTINUES TO BE A SUCCESSFUL QUEST THROUGH THE GALAXY OF MUSIC.