Plus, as a special feature, the entire Bay Street Bounce Mp3 (6 megs) is freely available for download directly from About.com! (copyright rant1997 - all rights reserved) |
The Future....
Much of your own music stands in contrast to some of the more traditional type playing required for playing with artists like George Shearing and Diana Krall. Do you ever find yourself having to harmonically censor your playing in those situations?
Not at all. I feel that I have a tremendous amount of freedom in both those situations. To me an improvisation has to grow out of the sound of whatever tune or composition you're playing at the time. The challenge for me is to try to get past what I've heard or played before on a specific tune; to be relaxed and courageous enough to play new ideas. Sometimes my "outside" and "inside" playing seem quite separate. I'm always looking for ways to try to integrate them more.
Do you ever find yourself still getting nervous before a gig? Do you have any specific ways of dealing with that?
Sometimes. I try to focus on the task at hand -- to support the other performers or to communicate with the audience -- and to realize that being nervous is not going to help.
Are you playing on any high profile gigs coming up that you'd like to mention?
I'll be touring with Diana Krall for a few weeks in July and with George Shearing in November/December. I'll be playing a concert at the Glenn Gould Theatre (Toronto) in March, 2000 with the Dave Young Trio and Gary Burton as a special guest. I've got some other gigs coming up with Dave Young, Peter Appleyard and the Dave McMurdo Jazz Orchestra.
Any plans for new recordings, either as a leader or a sideman?
I've been working on a project with Jeannette Lambert, Michel Lambert and Jonnie Bakan: a band with 6 horns, rhythm section and voice. I'm trying to do some writing for that. Hopefully we'll be able to do a recording and some gigs soon.
Well, thanks Reg, for taking some time out of your hectic schedule to grant an interview. Best of luck with the recording projects. Hopefully, we'll be seeing and hearing even more from you very soon.
It's always a pleasure speaking with you, Dan. Thanks for your support.
To learn more about Schwager, visit the Central Park North website, to listen to his music, download a transcription, and see a lead sheet of one of his compositions.
