Interview with pianist Lawrence Fields. An interview by email in writing.

Dear readers, get to know more about our US/EU Jazz – Blues Festivals and the activities of our US/EU Jazz – Blues Association in the capitals of Europe, we will soon publish program for 2024, enjoy in the August – Brussels, Berlin, Prague, Warsaw, Sofia, new addreses this year, also in Amsterdam, Budapest.

Jazz Blues: – First, let’s start out with where you grew up, and what got you interested in music. How exactly did your adventure take off? When did you realize that this was a passion you could make a living out of?

Lawrence Fields: – I grew up in St. Louis! I had a unique childhood, skipped a couple of grades (from the end of 6th grade to 9th grade the following year), and was always interested in music, but never thought about pursuing it for a career until Cyrus Chestnut visited my highschool. Cyrus invited me to a jazz club for the first time, and the revelation that followed is something that changed my life completely.

OUR US/EU Jazz and Blues Festivals 2023

It took a while for this to take root career-wise — I was following a different path, working as a software developer. But the allure of music and the excitement of practicing and playing with others led me to Berklee, and has lasted till this day.

JB: – How has your sound evolved over time? What have you been doing to find and develop your own sound?

LF: – My sound has gone through a lot of evolution, growth and change, mostly influenced by people I was around, and things I was listening to. I’ve always soaked up pieces of different musical experiences, and I can track the progression from the first band I joined in high school and what they were listening to, to the people in my local St. Louis scene, to friends at Berklee, and a number of bandleaders including Nicholas Payton and Joe Lovano. Touch and sound are very important to me! And those are things I’ll be working on refining well into the future.

JB: – Have you changed through the years? Any charges or overall evolution? And if so why?

LF: – I am growing every day! I definitely feel that I continue to absorb a lot of new perspectives from all of my friends, from other people that I interact with or have a chance to speak with on the road, and from my family. I’m always working to examine my motivations, and to become a better person as I learn more.

There could be talk or advertising about your CD

JB: – In your opinion, what’s the balance in music between intellect and soul?

LF: – It’s a 1:1 correlation. The music that has the biggest impact on us usually has that kind of balance; you can love it without understanding it, and then when you understand it, you might love it even more.

JB: – There’s a two-way relationship between audience and artist; are you okay with delivering people the emotion they long for?

LF: – I think emotion is the most critical part of performance! When you go home at the end of the day after seeing a show, that’s what you’re left with. Some of the details may fade away, but the raw emotional imprint remains; and in some cases, it’s something you may never forget. So I’m always striving to stay in touch with this, and I hope that’s evident in the album as well.

JB: – How can we get young people interested in jazz when most of standard tunes are half a century old?

LF: – I’ve had to remind myself that musicians in this scene in the 50s were covering popular music that they were only 5-15 years removed from in many cases. When you look back through the history of how some of the greatest improvising musicians of our time reached a broader audience, that thread is there. So to extend the music into the future, it’s important not to forget that template — and also to not be afraid of it, because in some sense, that *is* the tradition.

OUR US/EU Jazz and Blues Association 2023

JB: – If you could change one single thing in the musical world and that would become reality, what would that be?

LF: – If I could change one thing, it would be to better compensate artists for the incredibly hard work that they put in. Similarly to how teachers serve a critically important role, but often receive less tangible reward for it, creatives provide inspiration and fuel that helps boost people through different periods of their lives.

JB: – Whom do you find yourself listening to these days?

LF: – Lately I’ve been listening to everything from Erroll Garner to Bill Withers. Trying to solve that mystery of what exactly good music is.

JB: – Let’s take a trip with a time machine: where and why would you really want to go?

LF: – Probably the 1960s, since it was a formative time for so many different things.

 

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Interview by  Elléa Beauchêne