The Doug Largent Trio

Doug: Frank, we’ve known each other for about 10 years, and I’ve noticed that there’s nothing that you can’t do. You’re a professional level pianist and trombone player. You also play drums and bass very well. You were a church choir director, and participate in an improvising opera company. You designed and produced corporate websites from the ground up. You designed and built a recording studio in New York City, and deftly manifested a parking space out front in the loading zone. You have written and arranged albums for singers, and ran a top-notch rehearsal space.

A few months ago, you moved from Brooklyn, NY to Cary. As a North Carolina native, it makes me very proud that someone like you would choose to move here! Why did you choose North Carolina to live, and what are your goals, musical and otherwise?

Frank: Wow, well first let me let the swelling go down in my head so I can hold it upright enough to look at the screen.

I am humbled indeed to receive such accolades from such an accomplished colleague as yourself. (Seriously, picking up organ inside of 2 years from bascially scratch and playing it well? Pretty amazing.) As for some of those accomplishments, lets just say I used to be a pretty good trombone player (trying to pick it back up), and can do all right on a kit but wouldn’t think of picking up a bass without some serious shedding (and never in your presence).

There are several reasons for moving to the great state of North Carolina after living in New York for 24 years. First, I just think 24 years was long enough. Spending all my time hustling to make enough money to live there and not having time to actually play music was beginning to take its toll. This is something all aspiring musicians who are considering a move to New York or a major metroplis should consider. Make sure you don’t have to completely shift your focus away from your art just to live in a particular place. That goes for anyplace obviously, but particulary New York these days.

Next, I’m orginally from the South and although I never lived in North Carolina, this area has always appealed to me. The countryside is beautiful, there are actual seasons, and there seems to be a nice population of forward-thinking people. I’m closer to my family in Alabama and Georgia as well. Also the notion of living in a place where there are actual driveways and parking places was enormously appealing to me. I always had a car in the city and it was usually a huge pain.

From a personal standpoint it was really just time to start over in another place. I was divorced in 2008 after being married for 21 years and am now in a new relationship with the beautiful and talented Angela Bingham – a wonderful jazz singer in her own right. It was acutally her suggestion that we move down here in the first place. She has a life-long friend living her and the possibility of living near her was a definite plus.

In addition to that connection, I must say that knowing you were living back down here and obviously thriving was a great incentive to get back to the homeland. Almost immediately I started playing out more than I EVER did in New York – and with some of the best musicians I’ve ever worked with (you included of course). I find myself wishing I had done this years ago, but I guess everything in its own season.

My professional goal is to really get back on track with my music. Performing, writing and working with this great population of musicians that seems to be everywhere down here is really stimulating.

I am very much looking forward to this next part of my life living and working in my new home. Thanks for hipping me to it man, I really appreciate it!

Frank

Doug: Tedd, I enjoyed hearing you play at the Blue Note Grill jazz jam! When we spoke for a minute, you were describing your practice routine. As a dad, I especially enjoyed the fact that you prefaced it with “Before I had kids….”! I think that a lot of people who listen to a musician at your level probably have no idea how much work you had to do to get there. Could you describe a typical daily practice routine, perhaps including what you would typically work on and why?

Tedd Baker: “Before I had kids….” yup, that phrase really changes a multitude of things in life…especially practice!! Doug, I really dig your practice routine. Early and uninterrupted!(ed. note: I practice every morning from 4:30 to 7:30am) During that conversation, we talked about a time in my life that I felt I had a strong regimen and a ton of growth. Back then, I started practicing as soon as I woke up. Then I would eat breakfast, handle some business- then back to the shed. Then get cleaned up and dressed for the day- then back to the shed. My intent and my aim was clear: by lunch I wanted to be ready and able to hit. Then I would go teach or do a rehearsal or gig. At night if I didn’t have a gig, I would try to sit in somewhere (usually Wally’s in Boston), or practice again. Each time I practiced I would try to learn new tunes, review tunes to keep them in memory, work on technique, some classical etudes, transcribe as many solos as possible, play along with albums on tunes I was working on, and try to come up with new approaches to licks, harmony. I kept trying to play new material as much as possible…to try new things out and sink or swim. This has carried through to today.

However, now is a different story with a family. I try to keep the same routine whenever possible. I have attained a certain level in my playing and writing, yet I can clearly see how much further I can go and sometimes it can be frustrating, but most of the time its a motivator!! Its cliche but very true- the further you go, the more you realize you’ve just begun (the rabbit hole scenario). I am thankful for whatever talent I have been blessed with and for being inspired by so many greats and so many of my peers. It is truly humbling and inspiring together. Many of my peers have really taken off, and I know they had hardcore routines- such as Nick Russo, Warren Wolf, Walter Smith, Miguel Zenon, Jeb Patton, Aaron Goldberg, Jason Palmer, and sooo many others. On the other hand, I have also heard people practice all day and not really improve. The main thing is to be the best you can be! This takes work, some planning, and for me…lots of prayer!! I learned in NY (from Todd Williams, Michael Mossman, and Sir Roland Hanna) to manage my time better. Now with a family those concepts have really hit home.

When I practice there may be tunes I need to know for a specific performance, so those tunes take priority. I hammer those a little a day until they are down. If the performance is like the next day and I just found out what the music is, I knock them down as fast as possible. Then I get to my routine. Pretty much everything I practice is timed now. Here’s a current routine in about 2hrs: 10-15 warm up, 15 min on a new tune; 15 min technique; 15 min classical; 10 min review a tune or transcription; 10 min for another, and another, and another; 15 min long tunes/ harmonics/ tuning etc. I keep a mental note of what I had done previously and I hit something else. I have to make time to transcribe, compose, arrange outside of this. Another real important part of a daily routine is actively listening to and dissecting as much music as possible.

Doug, like we talked about at the Blue Note Grille, once you start practicing and getting in there- time flies by!

Recently I had a chance to interview Nick Russo via email:

Doug:
Nick, for musicians it is a technical goal to be able to play music with solid, steady time. Most musicians will practice music and etudes with a metronome. Over the years that you and I have played together, I’ve noticed that you have an impeccable sense of time, but it also goes beyond that. You seem to have a fluid feel which humanizes the time feel of the music, and opens up so much more expressive possibility. Is this something you have worked on consciously, and if so, what is your concept of it, and how did you work to acheive it?

Nick:
Over the years, I have played and continue to work with a lot with
different drummers and musicians that have great time and feel,
especially in NYC, including Victor Lewis, Joe Ascione, Ari Hoenig,
Willard Dyson, Harvey Wirht, Ralph Peterson, Don Williams (when I was
in Jimmy McGriff’s group), Jonathan Blake, David Pleasant, Lee
Pearson, Alvin Akinson, Jr., Alvester Garnett, Quincy Davis, Grisha
Alexiev, Chris Higginbottom, Chris Benham, Shinnosuke Takahashi, Kevin
Dorn, Pandit Samir Chatterjee (tabla player) and many others. I
learned so much from them, especially doing trio gigs with vocalist,
Miles Griffith and a drummer or a Brasilian vocalist and a
percussionist, without a bassist. In these situations I have to lock
up with the drummer on each and every beat, playing the role of the
bassist.

Working with a metronome, clicking on different parts of the
beat, including triplets, quintuplets, and septuplets has been helpful
and meditative in deeping my groove. I also feel it’s most important
to play along with recordings of musicians that have a deep pocket and
groove. I listen to a lot of African drumming, North Indian Classical,
Brasilian, Afro-Peruvian, Afro-Cuban music, and jazz.

I also learned and gained a tremendous amount working as a
sideman in Joe Ascione’s group with Frank Vignola, Malika Zarra’s
group with Harvey Wirht and Brahim Fribgane, Issa Cabera’s group with
Emiliano Valerio on percussion, in Miles Griffith’s New Ting with
David Pleasant, Jon Burr’s group(s) and Victor Jones’ Culturversy with
bassist, Kim Clarke. Victor has a project with Black Velvet, where we
play all the music of James Brown.

Recording myself and listening back as well as a lot of studio
work I do has helped me improve as a musician. Talking openly about
music with the musicians I play with has also been helpful to improve
my musicianship, sense of time and feel. For example, hanging and
talking after a gig with close musician friends, such as Doug Largent,
Harvey Wirht, Willard Dyson, David Pleasant and Miles Griffith has
been insightful to my own personal growth.

In my humble opinion, I believe the way great musicians carry
themselves emotionally, their personalities, jokes and stories they
tell and sensitivities are often (but not always) linked to their
solid time feel as musicians. For example, I know the cats that are
well adjusted, relaxed, sincere, making everyone around them feel
comfortable often (but not always) have a solid sense of time and
feel.

Thanks so much for listening! I hope to read what other musicians
(on Doug’s blog) say about time and feel.