Danilo Perez: Fearless Playing

By Jon Regen
Jazz pianist, composer, and educator Danilo Perez has been playing close to the edge for over two decades. From his Grammy Award-winning work with bebop pioneer Dizzy Gillespie to his recent efforts with legendary artists like Wayne Shorter and Roy Haynes, the gifted Panamanian performer demonstrates a keen ability to blend elements from Latin, jazz, and world music into a progressive style all his own.

Perez has skillfully navigated a wide array of musical formats in his recording career as a leader. From the classic piano trio sound of his 1996 release Panamonk to the Latinmeets- bebop flair of his Grammy-nominated album Motherland, his recorded solo works are as impressive for their breadth of imagination as they are for their technical mastery. He continually pushes musical boundaries aside, looking for new sonic stories to tell; in the words of Herbie Hancock, “Danilo Perez is not afraid of anything.”

Now with the release of his eighth outing as a leader, Across The Crystal Sea, Perez once again proves his skill and adventurousness. With lush string arrangements by the legendary Claus Ogerman and ace production and engineering work by Tommy LiPuma and Al Schmitt, Perez tackles the art of orchestral recording with the same pioneering spirit he brought to his previous albums. Not content to simply make a conventional record with strings, Perez floats across the bar lines as if he were a fellow string instrument himself, pushing, prodding, and lifting the arrangements to new heights. He plays with an acute awareness of space, phrasing artfully amidst the hushed tones of the orchestra. A triumph of ensemble interplay, Across The Crystal Sea is a welcome surprise from a performer with a penchant for the unexpected.

Perez calls me from his home in Boston, Massachusetts, on the evening of his departure to Panama — where he serves as artistic director and founder of the Panama Jazz Festival — to talk about his influences, his latest album, and his reputation for playing “without a net.”

You are consistently mentioned among musicians as someone who isn’t afraid to challenge conventions. Many people, including Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, and younger musicians like Aaron Parks, have all called you “fearless.” Where does that sense of adventure come from?
I think that for all of my life, ever since I was a kid, I was fearless. I started working when I was 12 years old with my father, playing at night in his band, and having responsibility. Also, the entire environment my mother and father provided me with was very adventurous — they put me into situations that were very challenging. I went to one of the toughest schools in Panama — a great school, but full of diversity as far as people’s backgrounds were concerned. My father thought that if I could survive in that environment from early on, with my parents’ guidance for support, then I’d have a lot of opportunities to work things out as I grew up.

Another really important thing is that because of Panama’s location as a country, being in the middle of the Americas, there are many different influences and cultures coming together. So I grew up with a lot of diversity. The radio in Panama at that time was called “No Format.” So you’d hear Papa Luca from Puerto Rico, and then Vladimir Horowitz, and then Marvin Gaye, and Michael Jackson. So that’s how I thought things were supposed to be normally, and I developed a love for music beyond boundaries. I played a lot of gigs in Panama, even playing accordion. I played tango, Brazilian, and salsa with my father’s band — music was always presented in a diverse way to me. So the environment was crucial, and my family and their support were crucial as well in giving me this sense of freedom and the ability to take chances and enjoy the process. Who were some of the

Who were some of the mentors that helped you refine your musical identity, and helped instill this kind of freedom in your playing?
I’m extremely grateful to my mentors. I really have been around the masters of adventure, like Dizzy, and saxophonist Lee Konitz, who I just went on the road with in November with the trio. Really, he’s so inspiring. He’s 82, and to see him on the road was amazing. He has so much energy. He gets up and practices — then we would go and play duets without a script. He has so much determination. It made me cry sometimes.

Then of course, playing with Wayne [Shorter] has converted me. This is the only way I know how to play now. Wayne taught us that struggle leads you into places that are exciting. He always says,“How can you rehearse the unknown?”

The new album Across The Crystal Sea is surprising in that the piano doesn’t dominate the soundscape. It’s an integral part of the entire ensemble, unlike many records that soloists record with orchestras. Was it difficult to assume that kind of role?
Very. What made that record so challenging for me was to do it under the eyes of what Claus [Ogerman] was seeing, to interpret the illusions he envisioned. Making that album is another example of adventure. When I heard it finished I was like, “Wow, that’s what he had in mind. Okay!”

I learned a lot through that project, because it put me in a situation that was very challenging. We didn’t record with the orchestra, so one thing I had to be very aware of was where the musical windows were — otherwise there could have been a train wreck!

So you actually recorded with just the rhythm section, and the strings were added afterwards?
Exactly. I wish people could have seen the entire process of how this project was made, because it was amazing. We had to try and read the mind of Claus the entire time. He had this thing he was hearing in his head. He told me, “Danilo, you know what I love in your playing? The immediacy of it. There’s a sense of redemption in it, in the moment.” As a matter of fact, he didn’t send me the music until the last minute. I figured out that he didn’t want me to really know it, because he wanted it to be fresh in my ears.

Did he arrange the string parts based on what you guys laid down in the initial recording sessions?
No, I think he had them ready. He didn’t want rehearsals. What he had were ideas about moods. He told me, “This is going to be very challenging. You have this many bars of open piano, and I want you to color like this.” He was describing what he wanted in a different way. For example, he asked me, “Do you know Christina Branco?” And I said, “No.” And he replied, “She’s a Portugese Fado singer. Check her out — she has redemption in her singing and playing.” He also talked about not having the solos overtake the music.

So there was a real focus on simplicity, like he wanted the music to reach more than just a jazz person or a classical person. He wanted it to have a universal effect.
Exactly.

Are there plans to tour the record with an orchestra?
This is something that is happening naturally, so I have to get myself ready for it. We had no expectations at all, but we’re getting so many requests to do it, I’m working on it now. Probably at the end of 2009 we’re going to do some dates. I’m really excited about how it happened on its own. People really want to hear the music live.

You’re teaching now at both the Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. What kinds of things are you instilling in your students?
I teach piano, ensemble, and composition to different instrumentalists, from pianists to drummers and horn players. My approach is always an individual one for each specific student. I don’t have any preset ideas of how to teach the kids. I focus on how to help each individual, and that’s how I’ve been teaching for years.

For example, I listen to somebody and focus on what they want to do, what kind of pieces they want to play. I act in a guidance role, with open feedback between the student and me. I don’t have just one system that I teach from. But I do teach things that I think are valuable to know. I always say to trust in the common tones — I like to focus on what brings us together, not what is different between us. This is something that really interests me. At one point on your

At one point on your recent Live At The Jazz Showcase album, it sounds as if, when you’re soloing, your hands are crossing each other and playing two completely independent lines. It’s totally unexpected — and I guess, totally normal for you, since you don’t think adventure is scary, but that it’s the only way you know how to move forward.
Exactly. One thing that has become clear to me that my father used to say from early on, is that music is a powerful tool, and it can help us generate a greater appreciation of the life we live.

One time we played on the West Coast, and Carlos Santana came and said something I will never forget. He said, “Danilo, you guys are the masters of the unseen. You are making something visible out of the invisible.” And I thought, wow — we all have that ability. As musicians, we are creating music on the spot, but we are also tuning into the frequencies that might actually generate communication on a very deep level. In other words, I see it as a big responsibility to be creative.

There are moments you have when you’re playing and communicating as a musician that you actually think to yourself, “If people could get along like this in real life, the world would be okay.” Is that the kind of responsibility you’re talking about?
That’s it, man. I think musicians nowadays are becoming immediately more relevant with all the struggles going on in the world. We need more of them to get involved, and teach the values that the music has taught us. You can show people the value and power of teamwork, not only in music, but in life.

A Selected Danilo Perez Discography
As a Leader
Across The Crystal Sea (Verve)
Live At The Jazz Showcase (Artist Share)
. . . ’Till Then (Verve)
Motherland (Polygram)
Panamonk (Impulse!)
Danilo Perez (Novus)

With David Sanchez
Cultural Survival (Concord)

With Wayne Shorter Beyond the Sound Barrier (Verve)
Alegria (Verve)

With Lizz Wright
Salt (Verve)

With Roy Haynes Trio
The Roy Haynes Trio (Verve)

With Dizzy Gillespie and The United Nations Orchestra
Live at the Royal Festival Hall (Enja)