Classicism: an interview with jazz pianist Michael Arbenz
Many jazz pianists have sought to blend classical music with jazz. Several have succeeded. Pianist Michael Arbenz is one of the rare few who possess such command of both styles that the resulting creations become musical hybrids that are organically natural and stunning.
Classicism: A Point of View celebrates what’s best in both classical and jazz styles of music. Throughout this recording Arbenz fearlessly treats these classical pieces as harmonic material and expands them in directions completely unexpected but deeply satisfying. Nothing is forced. He makes no gratuitous choices and he never loses a sense of respect for the original material. His tasteful reharmonization choices make each composition both recognizable and brand new.
Arbenz is a pianist’s pianist. His virtuosic playing is elegant and is hallmarked with expressive pianism, phrasing, and a singing musical touch. He has masterful command of both the classical and jazz elements and is one of the few pianists I’ve heard who can convincingly combine a classical rubato with a rock solid sense of pulse. It is an honor to speak with him about his music and to feature him on No Dead Guys.
When did you first begin music training and what inspired you to study the piano?
My parents both are classical musicians. Music and musicianship was always present in my life. There was a lot of singing and music was a sort of a toy as a young kid. My father is a classical pianist; he started to teach me little by little. That’s where it all started. The decision to study music and to become a professional player came much later, but since music was always present, it was a natural process.
At what age did you choose to pursue jazz and who or what most influenced this decision?
My parents had a collection of jazz recordings. These recordings fascinated me from a very early age. Jazz was always present in my life and I always played both styles simultaneously, although I only had lessons in Classical music. It was always clear for me that jazz fit my personality very well. The freedom of improvisation, the combination of technical skills, harmonic and rhythmical complexity and the element of groove gave me the possibility to express myself on different levels at the same time. Although I love Classical music a lot, it was always clear to me that I can reflect my inner world in the idiom of Jazz in a perfect way.
What composers and pianists most inspire you and why?
This is a very hard question since there are way too many. It’s a concious decision from my side not to follow one aesthetic but to be influenced by many different styles. I love classical piano music like Schumann, Brahms, Chopin, Scriabin, Rachmaninov, and of course Bach. And in Jazz, I’m fascinated by the very early players as Earl Hines and Fats Waller, then of course all the greats like Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett…I have a very eclectic taste. As long as there is an element which touches me or fascinates me, it’s also influencing me in one way or another.
As a pianist who’s virtuosic in both classical and jazz traditions, how do you feel each style of music compliments and enriches the other?
I feel that the difference between the styles is not as big at the piano as for other instruments. If you look at the great jazz piano players, they all had a very close connection to classical music. Earl Hines was classically trained, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, Brad Mehldau…as a pianist, you can take many elements of classical aesthetics to your jazz playing, although it’s a different idiom of course. I take a lot of inspiration from classical aesthetics to my playing, from tone colour to textures up to structures in compositions or improvisations.
I understand that in addition to your performing and recording career you are a piano lecturer at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences in Switzerland. Given your interest in both classical and jazz music, do you encourage your students to specialize in one or the other or to study both styles of music?
My students are studying jazz piano. But I imply some elements of classical aesthetics and technique in my lessons. And of course, if I see that the students have interest in Classical music or that studying Classical music will benefit their playing, I’ll encourage them to do it! But this is highly individual. I also value aesthetics which are contradictory to the classical sound world.
Most of your extensive recordings have been done as a member of your trio, VEIN. What made you choose to begin releasing solo albums?
Above all, it’s a big challenge to create everything by your own imagination, by your own thinking and by your own playing. Playing solo requires very different skills from playing in a group and from a pianistic point of view, it’s more difficult and complex for sure. This challenge and the possibility to grow with it was a big reason for sure.
Congratulations on the release of your latest album, Classicism—a Point of View. What inspired you to use famous classical pieces as starting points for these jazz compositions?
This is a concept we already used for some VEIN-albums (“VEIN plays Ravel” or “Our Roots”). With my musical background, it was always very natural to merge these two worlds. When I started to develop the music for this album, I saw that a piano solo setting is much closer to the classical world than a trio setting with bass and drums. This blending of the styles, which can be done in a more subtle way with a piano solo setting, was particularly interesting to me.
Tell me about your decision to expand the piano’s range with electronic effects. What do you feel this effect brings to these pieces?
I always considered the piano to be an orchestra. My playing concepts are many-layered and my imagination of sounds are very orchestral. By expanding the piano sound with electronic effects, I could get more variety of sounds which is serving my imagination. At the same time, it’s expanding the general sound world of a solo recording which gives it more variety and keeps it fresh in my opinion.
How did you choose the classical pieces represented on Classicism—a Point of View?
I chose compositions with which I have a personal relation. From this point of view, it’s a very personal album, because I have a personal story with each of the pieces and I know them all very well. This close relation, which is always linked with memories and feelings gave inspired me how to use the musical material in my own way.
One of the things I found most impressive about this recording is how you never cheapened the musical integrity of the original compositions while creating something brand new with them. How difficult was it to see this music without the lens of classical interpretation?
It was my main goal to create something which is not worse than the original piece of music. Although this is difficult with these masterpieces which I took for the album. I try not to just make an arrangement of the original composition, but create something new out if it. In this way, the tunes on the album are compositions which have a certain reference to classical works. And these references are used in different way and in different layers.
One of my favorite pieces on this recording is “Brilliant Moon,” your elegant jazz reimagining of Debussy’s famous “Clair de Lune.” Can you expand a bit on the way you worked both within Debussy’s chord structure and around it with elegant re-harmonizations?
For this composition, I used different motifs of Debussy’s “Claire de Lune.” I used the very beginning as the beginning of the tune, because it’s iconic. And I tried to imagine a different way of continuing…that’s the idea of the first part of the tune. Then I used the motif of the second part of “Claire de Lune” and put a different rhythmical structure on it. I used it as a comping pattern and added a melody. The rest of the composition are variations of these ideas.
Another favorite track is the limpidly beautiful “Nicolayevich”, which feels drenched in Russian romanticism. What can you tell me about your inspiration for this piece and your choice to play it with a classical feel?
This composition is a reference to Scriabin’s Prelude Op.11. No 5. A big part of the composition uses Scriabin’s original score. And I added some improvised parts. The idea was to be very close to the original but extend it with improvisation.
“Riding For a Fall”, your barn-burner of a piece inspired by Hindemuth’s “Clarinet Concerto" not only showcases your classical and jazz musicality, but also your formidable technique and expressiveness. Why did you feel this concerto was the best source material from which to form a bravura piano piece?
I like Hindemith’s music. And I was fascinated by the fact that it was written for Benny Goodman. This is an early example of the great connection between the classical- and the jazz-world. Also, the harmonically open material of this concerto gives a lot of hooks to create something new out of it.
One of the many things I was impressed with in your playing is how rooted you are in the pulse of each piece. Given how much rubato is used in classical performance practice, how difficult was it to create jazz with these works without sacrificing the inherent musicality of the works?
Most of the compositions on the album have a steady pulse, or a groove. It’s very common in jazz music to play rubato over a steady pulse. In this way, it was necessary to change the classical concept of playing rubato by stretching the pulse to the idea to play it over a steady pulse. Like this, the expression isn’t lost and the groove is there at the same time.
Will there be any sheet music for these pieces? If so, where might we purchase it?
At the moment, I didn’t plan to publish any sheet music of it. Maybe at a later time.
What advice can you offer to young musicians who are seeking to establish careers for themselves in music?
I think that authenticity is the highest good in art. And, although it is necessary to develop a lot of skills, the intensity of expression should always be a priority.
Michael Arbenz has played countless concerts and tours throughout Europe, North America, South America and Asia. He is also a founding member of the Swiss trio VEIN and has worked with Greg Osby, Glenn Ferris, Dave Liebman, Marc Johnson, Wolfgang Puschnig and Andy Sheppard, among others.