A Chat with Jazz Pianist Hank Jones From Jacob Teichroew, former About.com Guide Ads: Interview Jazz Saxophone Music Jazz New York City Jazz Blues Piano Music "A Chat with Jazz Pianist Hank Jones" Michael Buckner / Getty Images Ads Learn Jazz Improvisationwww.ImproviseForReal.comA simple daily practice that wil l make YOU an expert improviser! Smooth Jazz Europewww.smoothjazzeurope.euOrganizer of Europe's only Smooth Jazz Festivals. Join us Perfect Interview Answerswww.JobInterviewTools.comHow to Answer Any Question an Interviewer Could Ever Throw at You See More About hank jazz jazz jazz Ads See Your Investment Growwww.greenwood-management.comMake 7-24k in 5-8 years. Wit h Forestry Investments in Brazil Zenk, gyjtknekwww.facethemusic.huUSA import lemezek nagy vlasztka: Bakelit, CD, SACD, DVD, Blu-ray Pianist Hank Jones has been swinging since the dawn of modern jazz. When Charlie Parker and Ella Fitzgerald were at their peaks, Jones was right alongside them. He has played with virtually every jazz star one can think of, from Coleman Haw kins in the 1940s to Joe Lovano in the '90s. At 90 years old, he is still one of the top pianists in jazz, and he continues to perform and record. Not surprisin gly, he has recently been awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Mr. Jones was kind enough to answer some questions I emailed him, and the below interview was carried out and transcribed by his manager, Jean-Pierre Leduc, on January 7th, 2009. Jacob Teichroew: How do you think it turned out that, with a father who thou ght jazz was evil, you and two of your brothers turned out to be world famous ja zz musicians? Did you have to be sneaky about learning and performing the music? Hank Jones: My father was a devout Christian, and its true he thought jazz wa s evil, but he did support the taking of lessons. My mother and father were both supportive of the learning process. My father liked that I played piano in chur ch. I had to be less open about playing jazz to my father, but Elvin and Thad we re not so restricted as I, being the eldest, had already broken the ice, if you wi ll. I had a lot of respect for my father and so did my brothers. jones piano history interviewsJT: You grew up in Pontiac, Michigan, close to Detroit. Detroit is, of cours e, known for Motown in the 1960s, and blues guitarist John Lee Hooker lived ther e in the '40s and '50s, but was there a thriving jazz scene there in the 1930s, when you were beginning to perform? HJ: I wasnt aware of Hooker. Although Detroit is 25 miles south, in those day s that was a distance. I played in Flint and a few other towns in Michigan, but not the big city, so I wasnt really that familiar with Detroit as a jazz centre. When Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan and others were coming up, I was, of course, a lready in New York City. JT: Were the seeds of Motown evident at that point? HJ: No. But I do know that Barry Harris went to school with Berry Gordy! JT: When you moved to New York, the focus was transitioning from swing to be bop. Were you attracted to bebop artistically, or did you feel pressure to learn the style in order to work? HJ: I didnt feel any pressure. I was attracted to it, as it embodied a sophis ticated and inclusive harmonic approach. The lines were directly related to the harmony and often complicated. JT: In the late '40s, you briefly played in Andy Kirks Orchestra, as well as Norman Granz Jazz at the Philharmonic (JATP). It seems that a common figure in yo ur work with those bands was trumpeter Fats Navarro. Was that a coincidence, or was your career strongly tied to his? Which of those groups would you say did mo re to launch your career? HJ: Actually Fats was not in Kirks band, to my knowledge. I played some gigs with Fats in New York. One time with Fats, at the new Cotton Club, I was there w hen Fats jumped down from the upper tier of the bandstand. He came down to play his solo, but fell through the floor! The audience was in stitches and Fats neve r stopped playing! My career was not tied to his, and our association was intermittent. I playe d with him in the Billy Eckstine band. With JATP, I started in 1947, and certain ly that association helped my early career, and it continued up to 1951. Note: according to www.jazzdisco.org, Hank Jones and Fats Navarro played wit h Andy Kirk's orchestra on a 1946 Decca recording. The same website lists severa l more recordings of Andy Kirks orchestra that include Navarro. JT: When you were performing with them, did you have a sense of how importan t Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker would be to jazz? HJ: It would have been impossible for me to predict at the time, but I can s ay that I had heard of them in Pontiac, so it was certainly a thrill to be able to work with guys like that. Today, I, of course, consider them icons. JT: Who were your major musical influences when you were first developing as a musician? Did the pre-bebop masters influence your bebop playing? Who did you listen to in order to learn bebop on the piano? HJ: Long before bebop, there was Fats Waller, Teddy Wilson and Earl Hines. T hese players were a big influence. Art Tatum, who, of course, came up later, is my all-time favorite player. I dont believe in the term bebop, Id rather just call it modern music or contemporary jazz. Even the term jazz I think unnecessarily pi geonholes what we do. Having said this, regarding what they call bebop, I listen ed to Bird, Bud Powell & Monk. I think Bird influenced Bud.Pr