Jason Stein - Sunday Interview ~ The Free Jazz Collective

Sunday, October 6, 2024

Photo by Peter Gannushkin

What is your greatest joy in improvised music?

My greatest joy as a player is the experience of connection and communication with the people I’m playing with and having the opportunity to contribute to that communication. Being a musician has always been a social enterprise for me. When I was young I wanted to be able to play well partly just because I wanted to hang around the musicians in my environment who were great players.
What quality do you most admire in the musicians you perform with?

I admire openness and the willingness to experience new things and new moments and unfamiliar territory and let that newness envelop you and to be able and willing to work from that place.
Which historical musician/composer do you admire the most?

Lester Young, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk. Too difficult to narrow it down further.
If you could resurrect a musician to perform with, who would it be?

John Coltrane. When I was around Charles Gayle a lot at Bennington he had what seemed like an ongoing internal conversation with himself about whether or not he could reasonably share the stage with Trane. He talked about it. He’d say “yeah man you know I really think that these days if I had to perform with Trane I could hold my own I really think I could.” Charles was such a powerhouse and of course Trane would have been absolutely enamored with his playing but it was striking that Charles used the imagining of what he’d have to bring to the stage in order to reasonably perform with Trane as a tool to cultivate a playing standard for himself. It was a creative exercise in imagination and appeared to fuel a life long orientation towards development. I admire that a ton. This question reminds me of Charles. But all that said, my answer is Trane. If you asked who I'd most want to hear (and not perform with) I think I’d say Bird. I’m so curious what he actually sounded like in a room and how his playing vibrated the walls and everyone’s bodies.
What would you still like to achieve musically in your life?

I have a lot of music in me. I want to keep practicing and to continue to develop on my horn. And I want to keep working and performing and touring. I love playing. I want to keep at it for a long time.
Are you interested in popular music and - if yes - what music/artist do you particularly like?

Sometimes songs will catch me and I’ll listen to the same song over and over. It’s kind of random. With popular music I tend to attach to a song rather than to a particular artist.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I’ve been trying to prioritize sleep.
Which of your albums are you most proud of?

I’m definitely most proud of my most recent album, Anchors. This record is more personal and nuanced than anything I’ve ever done and required more imagination and more of a comprehensive sense of what I’m able to do on my horn in order to access certain ideas and feelings.
Once an album of yours is released, do you still listen to it? And how often?

Very rarely. I tend to look ahead and focus on the future.
Which album (from any musician) have you listened to the most in your life?

There are a few. Hard to say which one.

John Coltrane Stellar Regions

John Coltrane Interstellar Space

Evan Parker Chicago Solo

Lee Konitz Motion

Jimi Hendrix Axis Bold As Love

Sonny Rollins Live at the Village Vanguard

Miles Davis Nefertiti
What are you listening to at the moment?

Elvin Jones Live at the Lighthouse. I've been working on learning some of Steve Grossman’s solos on that record.
What artist outside music inspires you?

Herman Hesse