Guitarist & composer Ella Zirina in conversation with Pablo Held.

Producer, composer, singer, and songwriter Ethan Gruska in conversation with Pablo Held

Percy Pursglove is not only an incredible trumpet player, he’s also an adventurous composer and educator, a great musical mind, a great bassist and… he’s also my friend. I’ve been a fan of him ever since we first met during a little tour with Chris Potter in 2013. We bonded right away and a few years later we started playing together in many different musical scenarios:

We’ve worked together in my Buoyancy Band, with my trio, my big ensemble GLOW, with our mutual friend Michael Gibbs, in the NDR BigBand and many more one-off situations.

When we’re together we often get into deep discussions about the music and our relationship to it. I always looks forward to these conversations as much as I look forward to playing with him. I feel like we can work so well together because we are so honest with each other.

This episode is basically like one of those conversations on the road together. Thanks for joining us.

( side note for context: we recorded this in 2021 during one of the covid lockdowns )

The album Portals, Vol 1: Mourning was my entry point into the wonderful music by saxophonist & composer Caroline Davis. It was exactly what the title entails: I felt transported right away! It led me to check out so many other beautiful albums, videos and articles, which impressively show Caroline’s exceptional talent and vision. My personal favorites are Portals, Alula, her live videos from Smalls on YouTube and her fascinating lecture on Jazz & Gender.

I had a great time talking to Caroline about some of my favorite tunes from her, gender equity, lessons learned working with personal heroes like Geri Allen or Lee Konitz, leading a band, Mary Lou Williams, self doubt, Connie Crothers and much more.

Saxophonist Charles McPherson is a living legend, a musician of the highest order. I’ve learned a lot by listening to him play (and speak!) over the years. When I got the chance to interview him as part of the Mingus100 Festival at the Stadtgarten in Köln, I was delighted! Since this happened in between sets, time was limited. Still, we managed to talk about lots of different topics like his time with Charles Mingus, the secret behind great art, the influence of Charlie Parker and his “linear sense of logic” and what he expects from his fellow musicians.

I’m so happy that this happened and that we got to do this in front of a live audience as well. Thank you Charles and thank you to my friends Denis Gäbel & Robert Landfermann for this opportunity!

It was a dream come true to talk with master bassist & composer John Patitucci. Easy going, inspiring and deep! Plus he played lots of bass, some piano and we went through several of his compositions- as you know, I always hope for these things to happen and John was totally open for it. I think we cover a lot of ground in this conversation, where John generously shares his experiences and insights from his exciting life in music and I’m in total fan-boy mode.

A little side note- of course it’s evident that John is an absolute pro in music, but he was also so well prepared for this interview: he had good mics set up for his voice AND his bass and he came in early (15 minutes before our scheduled time) two make sure everything worked. Can’t ask for more!

Jason Seizer brings people together. As saxophonist and bandleader, but also as a producer & engineer of 100+ albums for the great German label Pirouet Records. He has big ears and an open heart, a personal sound on the saxophone and a distinct vision for the music.

Jason and me go way back. What started as a producer-musician relationship quickly became a deep friendship. With each album we made together we grew closer together. I turn to Jason for advice on musical things, but also about life in general. He’s my friend and I owe him a lot!

But I’m not alone with this. Under the banner of Pirouet Records, Jason has given so many of my heroes and my close friends a musical home, helping us all to realize musical dreams.

In our conversation we reflect on Jason’s life in music, taking lessons with Joe Lovano & Ferdinand Povel, the development of his quartet, what he needs from his fellow musicians and the importance of “the hang”.

I first noticed David Virelles’ name in 2011. I was checking out which bands were playing at the Village Vanguard, which is when I saw that Chris Potter had a new pianist in his group. I had been following Chris’ music heavily for quite some time back then, so naturally I was curious about a change in his line up. Since I don’t live in New York, I asked a friend of mine who lived there at the time to go and secretly record a set for me.

I was struck by David’s unique style, which to my ears brought something new to the table compared to what was considered en vogue that time. It became quite noticeable how David quickly influenced a new generation of musicians, making important contributions to the music of today. I’m happy I could include David in this series of interviews.

Topics include David’s relationship to his mentors Henry Threadgill and Barry Harris, leaving space, practice routines, warming up, material that David has been working on recently, the process behind a couple of his own albums, Andrew Hill, playing with Paul Motian and much more.

Pianist Danilo Perez is one of my biggest heroes. Ever since I first heard the magical album “Footprints Live” by the Wayne Shorter quartet two decades ago I became an instant fan. I still remember having NO clue what these guys were doing. They played the songs I thought I knew, but in a way that I had never heard before. I began trying to get every record, every bootleg, every interview, every video, every book that could help me understand and study this music more deeply. And with this interview I finally got the chance to ask some of the questions I’ve had for years.

This episode is everything I hope for with this podcast- and much more! A dream come true, really.

Madison Cunningham is a natural. A master singer/songwriter with incredible abilities on the guitar and a singular voice. To me, everything she does sounds effortless and passionate at the same time – that’s a rare combination! I just love her music and I’m thrilled that I got to talk to her.

Madison generously shared insights into her compositional process, stories behind my favorite songs, and, to my great delight, even played a couple of them for me. We also talked about performing in front of Joni Mitchell, dealing with social media, her favorite Judee Sill song, and much more.

I’m glad I get to share this conversation with you, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.