Ike Sturm Helms The Merger Of Jazz With Prayer

Bassist Ike Sturm vows, “Music is at the core of my being, as is my faith, so I have never really been able to separate the two when hearing something that affects me deeply. Whether the material is overtly programmatic or sacred doesn’t change the source of my inspiration.  Composition is an extremely emotional activity that is inextricably wrapped around my mind and spirit. The question of adding to a genre is not up to me, so instead I focus on offering a dedicated and heartfelt piece.”

Released by Saint Peter’s Church, Jazz Mass is a sonic monument to the Christian faith.  Sturm shares how he became involved with the church and their musical projects.  “About six years ago, Saint Peter's Church sought a music director for their Jazz Ministry. The position, advertised in All About Jazz, spoke to me in its potential to fuse my faith with my musical vision. I had recently finished a record entitled Spirit, developing my own voice in a search for new sacred music.”

Saint Peter’s Church sponsors sessions for Jazz Vespers which Sturm and a number of other jazz musicians partake in throughout the year.  He explains, “Vespers actually means "evening prayer" and is a service in the church. Pastor John Garcia Gensel started Jazz Vespers at Saint Peter's in 1965 as a way to offer work to musicians and to forge an alternative community of worship. The idea took hold quickly as musicians found solace in a Pastor who loved them, hanging constantly in clubs and earning their trust as a friend and spiritual guide. Countless musicians have participated in services or have been memorialized at the church, including Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie and many others. The ministry continues to thrive and I am grateful to be part of a church that seeks to creatively shape life in the city.”

He reveals how his album Jazz Mass grew from his involvement with St. Peter’s Church.  “I was asked to write a setting of a mass in honor of our Jazz Pastor Dale Lind, who worked with Pastor Gensel and has been serving at Saint Peter's for 40 years. The standard parts of a mass were chosen, with the exception of the Credo, which is often not included in modern settings. I had a bit of leeway, however, in what surrounded the parts of the mass; hymns and solo interludes were shaped around the flow and form of the other movements.”

Some musicians who perform on the recording include saxophonist Loren Stillman and Donny McCaslin whom Sturm praises, “These guys are incredible. Though they have very different approaches and sounds, they played off of each other better than I could have imagined. They had written melodies, but their improvisations were completely up to their own design. I worked hard to build interesting harmonies and textures underneath them and wanted to turn them loose. I liked hearing some of the push and pull that happened with them and felt that their combination sparked new ideas in their individual voices.”

Sturm also invited world renown trumpeter Ingrid Jensen to play on the recording.  He reveals, “I first heard Ingrid with the DIVA big band when I was in high school in Rochester, New York. My best friend and I were blown away with her playing and it's hard to believe I had a chance to play and record with her only a decade later. After moving to New York City, we played in Darcy Argue's Secret Society together and I loved hearing her incredibly warm tone, vaulting lines and deep time feel.”

The chemistry between pianist Adam Benjamin and drummer Ted Poor play a large role in keeping the music in tune with the concept of Jazz Vespers as Sturm discusses, “Adam’s playing in the group, Kneebody, has always astounded me. I love his understated approach and strong groove. We went to music school together at Eastman and I was thrilled when he agreed to come out from L.A. to record with us.  Ted Poor is unlike any drummer in the world. I can’t overstate his ability to shape every group in which he plays, while making everyone around him feel at ease. Ted and I have played together for about 15 years, beginning in middle school and I feel very fortunate to have shared that time with a good friend and gifted artist. Though the material often develops simultaneously, I mostly worked soloist and accompaniment parts around the text and vocal lines sung by my wife, Misty Ann. She projects a beautiful, bell-like sound and has the amazing gift of adapting her approach to almost any context. Her clear tone rises effortlessly above the frequently dense textures of the orchestra, soloists and choir.”

Sturm reveals that Jazz Mass was a chance for him to work closely with guitarist Ryan Ferreira.  He consents that “This project was deeply shaped by Ryan’s concept. His subtle tone blended perfectly with anything I threw at him; the resonant sound of a single note added depth to all sections of the piece, in textures sparse or saturated. Ryan also engineered some of the solo recording sessions and was an incredible sounding board for me in producing the project, offering encouragement along the way.”
 
Sturm’s solo track “Interlude” acts as a bridge on the album between the spiritual versing of “Gloria“ and the self-realization of “Just As I Am“.  He tells about the tune, “’Interlude’ was really an improvisation. I had been hearing bits and pieces of the theme, but I wanted to think about connecting Gloria and Just as I am in the most natural way possible. Especially in writing for strings and voices, I became conscious of my desire for a lush and soaring aesthetic. Balancing this in the entire work called for times of rest and less refined ideas in a solo piece – reaching for something clear, but with a raw and unfinished edge.”

Some fans believe that recording songs is the hardest part to making an album, and sometimes it is choosing which songs to put on an album and which ones to leave off.  Sturm enlightens, “I had written an ‘Alleluia’ that grew out of a solo electric bass piece I had written. Though I wanted to include the song, it didn't feel right in the architecture of the other tunes and I left it out.”

Sturm produced the album which placed him in the position of worrying about the technical details.  He notes, “I thought a lot about how to give everyone space to play and considered how each part of the mass would balance with the rest. As each musician has a distinct sound and voice, many sections strongly suggested a certain soloist. Remembering to stay out of the way and giving players a chance to do what they do best is the best thing a bandleader can do.”

Adding to his rooster of duties was taking care of the string arrangements which he enthuses, “Conducting the group was a fun challenge and brought me back to my days as a student teacher, directing a 90-piece high school string orchestra. It was an incredible feeling to hear the strings and choir parts in the studio, filling the space and adding more dimension than I imagined. I liked having my hands in the thick of the process, really getting a feeling for each take and being able to respond directly to the musicians.”

He asserts, “I always hope to present innovative ideas, but I guess there is nothing truly new under the sun. The harmonies and melodies I created were my own, but sometimes it's difficult to define where your deepest influences end and your own voice begins. I was motivated and inspired by composers like Vince Mendoza, Kenny Wheeler, Ben Monder, Pat Metheny, Joni Mitchell, Arvo Pärt and many other artists. As I studied some great sacred settings, I was surprised to discover a beautiful mass by Stravinsky with woodwinds and voices. In a different vein, Bjork's Vespertine with studio orchestra and voices planted in me a desire to compose and record with voices and strings, looking for a way to generate powerful and dramatic highs and lows.”

Currently, Ike Sturm and his band have a few concert dates set up in 2011.  He cites, “We will be playing my jazz mass at the main chapel at Princeton University on Friday evening, February 25. In addition, my wife and I have been invited as guest artists to a church in Berlin, Germany and may be performing the mass there as well in April. We have been receiving lots of other requests to perform at churches and schools in the U.S. and in Europe and look forward to sharing the piece with orchestras and choirs in each city we visit. While we love playing at churches, we like bringing churchgoers into a community center or school, combining arts and social groups in new patterns.”

The live band may vary though along the tour, which he addresses, “Slight changes will be made based on the availability of the soloists. I see musicians like Ryan Ferreira and Loren Stillman, along with my wife, Misty Ann, as people that shape the piece dramatically and know they will add a lot to every performance. There may be times where we know of an exceptional soloist in a given area that we can bring into the mix, keeping the music fresh and allowing for the community to feel even more connected to the music.”

Jazz is perceived as music meant for the home, to be performed in supper clubs, at haute casinos, on cruise ships, or played during late night strolls along an island resort, but Ike Sturm offers jazz music for religious contemplation.  And though, innovative ideas might be hard to come by, making it conducive to elicit prayer is something new and rare to come by and Sturm accepts the challenge wholeheartedly.

www.ikesturm.com