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Dave Douglas improvises, digitizes, proselytizes |
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Dec 01, 2006 at 08:30 AM |
The improvisational spark of jazz, soufully played and telepathically linked, is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the impact of the microchip on music.
The digital age has profoundly morphed the musical arts, especially in the astounding depth of programming capabilities, the recording "studio" itself--which might be your own laptop---and distribution of tuneage via the Internet.
Some musicians have taken full advantage of one of the new technology's powerful tools---recording a live performance and quickly turning it into a downloadable file or packaged CD. For example, I attended a UB-40 show at the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip earlier this year that was "taped" and ready for commercial release via the band's Website the day after the concert. So was every other show on the group's tour.
So what does this have to do with jazz? Dave Douglas, ace trumpeter/bandleader/ composer/community activist, came to my attention in the late '90s. I have several of his albums and have seen him perform twice, once with his quintet at the RegattaBar in Cambridge near Boston and also with his electric group at Yoshi's in Oakland. (btw, both gigs were free-time fringe benefits during business trips for MICRO.) I consider Dave to be one of the more talented and intriguing figures pushing jazz forward in the new millennium.
Dave Douglas (photo by Jimmy Katz)
Turns out Dave is also embracing the potential of the new technology when he and his quintet take the Jazz Standard stage next week in New York City. Both hourlong sets performed during each of the six nights during their Dec. 5-10 run will be recorded and mastered in Pro Tools HD. We're not talking the same set recorded over and over---Dave plans to record 40 compositions, chosen from new works as well as his previous albums. Greenleaf Music, the independent record label run by Dave and partner Michael Friedman, will then offer each set for preview and download within 24 hours at the label's online music store, musicstem.com. A few days after the end of the run, the entire series of shows will also be available.
In the press release announcing the project, Dave mused: "Blogging, streaming, downloading, linking, and all of these technological advances are changing the way an artist can interact with people all over the globe that are interested in the music. This new recording project is directly in line with that change, and I couldn't be more excited and challenged to record this set of performances."
For more info on Dave Douglas, check out the Greenleaf site.
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