JAM: June/July 2005 Issue: Feature Story

Last issue, we brought you the first part of Roger Atkinson’s article profiling the up-and-comers of the KC jazz scene, featuring Mark Lowrey and Logan Richardson. This installment concludes the piece.

Seth Lee, bass

The first time I heard Seth was at one of the Mutual Musician's Foundation Sunday morning jam sessions. He was still in high school, but already had a terrific rhythmic feel for the music. His bass lines seemed to maintain a looseness that propelled the music. The rhythm was supple, natural. Since then every band I've heard Seth with sounds fine, in no small part due to Seth's bass work on the bottom. He seems to stress the lower ranges of the instrument, not unlike the classic bassists like the late Sam Jones and Paul Chambers.

Pianist/vocalist Luqman Hamza has shared this observation with me: "The young man has big ears." The observation fits, it is apparent that Seth really listens to his partners on the bandstand.

"I am most influenced by the classic quintet sound - sax, trumpet, and rhythm", Seth told me in a recent conversation. "Take Greg Tardy's quintet, for example. The arrangements are creative and fresh, and they have that classic quintet sound."

In addition to occasionally leading a Blue Room Blue Monday Jam, Seth has appeared with most of the Kansas City regulars, including Hamza and drummer Jim Eriksen. "Playing with Luqman is a great learning experience. He just knows so many tunes, and I am fortunate for being able to play with him. And I just recorded a few things with Ahmed Alaadeen for his next CD, hopefully these will be out soon."

Such freelancing has been Seth's key development strategy. "Kansas City has so many great musicians to learn from. It has allowed me to continue to work on my fundamentals and to learn tunes. You have to just keep going - always stressing fundamentals, consistency, and technique."

"Now I feel a need to develop my sight reading, that is an area I really need to improve on." To that end, Seth is planning to attend college in the fall. "I'm not sure where I'll be yet, but definitely in the area. Either the UMKC Conservatory, or in Jim Mair's program at KCKCC."

Meanwhile, Seth has been getting some high-profile gigs, expanding his Kansas City exposure while also gaining respect with more nationally known musicians. He joined Benny Golson's quartet at their recent appearance at the Folly Jazz Series, and fit like a glove. More recently, he was a part of one of Bobby Watson's Kansas City - New York Connection gigs at the Blue Room, where he played with percussion legend Joe Chambers and trumpeter Nicholas Payton, in addition to Bobby Watson. "That was a great gig. They played some unfamiliar material, at some very fast tempos. Most of it went pretty well, though. It's a thrill to be able to play with these guys."

"I have to just keep going. No matter how far you've come, you have to keep working on the fundamentals. That's what I plan to do."

Harold O'Neal, piano

"I am now getting my own quartet together," Harold O'Neal related. "It has saxophonist Greg Osby, bassist Matt Brewer, and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts." This was the same group that Harold played with at The Jazz Gallery's New Leader series this past October in New York. I guess that the networking in New York has been fruitful.

"I attended the Manhattan School of Music. Kenny Barron was my piano instructor. He gave me a great foundation for just playing the piano. I met (pianist) Andrew Hill there, also. He sort of took me under his wing, and gave me great personal advice. He was the person who hooked me up with Greg Osby." It was with Osby that Harold made his major label debut on St. Louis Shoes.

"I had a great thrill recently when Herbie Hancock came to town for his concert at the Gem. Roy Hargrove was there, and I know him from New York. He introduced me to Herbie. He asked me to send him a tape of my music. Herbie Hancock was like my first inspiration, a universal influence, and he wants to hear me play!"

How does he make sure that it's Harold O'Neal coming out, and not these very heady influences? "You can cross relate it to other art forms. Take a screenwriter who has seen the work of other screenwriters. He'll learn from this, and you might see pieces of that influence in his work. I listen to many musicians, many different styles, keep checking them out, transcribing their work, and play my version of it. I'll listen to classical, hard bop, different things. You see the commonality of the styles; often it's just in different settings. Pieces of what you learn become part of your own voice."

"Really, I'm not listening to anything in particular right now. Mainly the radio. I keep it open; not very much popular music, though. Whatever I listen to, it's ever changing, I like to keep it fresh."

"Over the next year, I want to get my own band out there. I'll continue to move between Kansas City and New York. Do some freelancing. I want to get a recording completed and released."

Harold continues to be visible locally. He was at the Alaadeen recording session and on the Joe Chambers gig with Seth Lee.

Like the rest of this class, watching Harold's continuing maturity has been one of the pleasures of following jazz in Kansas City in recent years. Harold has a rich harmonic sense, plays with dense chords that are full of color, and his rhythmic intensity can be breathtaking.

Matt Hopper, guitar

When you think about it, Kansas City's depth of jazz guitar talent is rather amazing. On the local scene on any given night one can hear the likes of Danny Embrey, Rod Fleeman, Charlie Gatschet, Brian Harmon, Jake Blanton, Ervin Brown, and when he is occasionally in town from his Count Basie gig, Will Matthews.

Matt Hopper is getting increasing attention around town, too, due to his regular gig with organist extraordinaire Everette DeVan. I caught up with Matt during a recent gig with Everette at Bobby's Hangout, one of the new rooms that have opened on Broadway.

"I have the normal influences," Matt shared, "George Benson, Wes Montgomery, Grant Green. Also Peter Bernstein, who you may have heard with Larry Goldings. And Rodney Jones. Plus, of course, Charlie Parker.

"I studied with Danny Embrey for two years. Danny teaches John Elliott's approach to the guitar. He's a great teacher. I also attended UMKC, and studied with Bobby Watson and Rod Fleeman there.

"Playing with Everette is just huge. He really encourages you to figure things out on the bandstand. It forces your ears to develop. Watch him, he doesn't really announce tunes, he just starts into them. It may be something that you haven't played before, or have rarely played. It's just a great learning experience.

"My original inspirations were more R&B and blues players. I loved the Meters, James Brown, Ray Charles, B.B. King. Then I heard Stevie Ray Vaughan, and he seemed to be on a different level with his improvisation.

"I started to play jazz, actually, to become a better blues player. But I wound up sticking with jazz."

When not with Everette, Matt plays with violinist Adam Galblum and bassist Jeff Harshbarger, featuring the music of Django Reinhardt. They play at Le Fou Frog in the River Market.

"I just want to keep playing with the great musicians we have in Kansas City, keep developing. As long as I can do this, I will be happy to remain in town."

Ryan Howard, piano/organ

Ryan Howard seemed to find a new voice one night at the Blue Room a few years back. Everette DeVan was leading the Blue Monday Jam, and Ryan decided to sit in not on his normal piano, but on Everette's Hammond B-3. I was there, and he attacked the keys like he was a wily vet, while in fact it was the first time he had ever played the instrument.

After this, it seemed that Ryan took advantage of every opportunity to play the organ. DeVan led a Monday jam at Jilly's on Broadway for a time; Ryan was a regular. At Ken Lovern's most recent night at the helm of the Blue Monday Jam, Ryan was there again.

"My organ influences are Everette, of course, and Jimmy Smith and Joey DeFrancesco," Ryan shared during our chat. "But Larry Dunn, who played organ in Earth, Wind, and Fire, was my first idol.

But organ gigs aren't possible when you don't have one. That should be rectified soon, however. I was at the Piano Room late last year chatting with guitarist Doc Fuller. Doc mentioned visiting a friend in Kansas, and found that the friend had an old Hammond B-3 with two Leslie sound cabinets just sitting in the barn. Doc suggested he sell it. I told him that I may know a buyer, and sure enough Ryan was interested, and is in the process of completing the acquisition.

"That will really get things going. I am planning a trio with Matt Hopper and Gogo Ray on drums; classic organ trio.

In the meantime, Ryan has been attending Penn Valley ("it's hard to go back, but I was afraid if I didn't I'd never get around to it") and has been playing electric piano in a funk/R&B oriented band called Karma. They have played throughout the region including Wichita and Branson. Prior to this, he played with the old school funk group Cameo ("I played the horn section of keyboards!"), which gave him a long taste of life on the road, including both coasts plus England, Switzerland, and the Caribbean. "Lots of egos and competition between bands, I didn't like that, and travel can be a hassle. In London, for example, our work permits were sent to the wrong airport terminal. And you don't have time for that stuff on tour."

Like his buddies, Ryan has gotten solid support from the start. "My grandmother was my number one mentor, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, every way. She died when I was 16; that was hard. She taught me to have an independent mind, to follow my path. I dedicate everything to her."

"Everett Freeman has been a great help, sharing musical information and especially life skills, like how to handle myself. Everett made me into his nephew! Then there's my real uncle, Mark Gilmore, he plays guitar; I've played with him, too. Mike Warren and Gerald Dunn have also been good friends. Lisa Henry, too; she taught me how to book gigs, how to set expectations with folks, and make a good impression. You want to make people smile, that's why they go out to hear you.

"I'm a people person. I like to make people feel good about themselves. When I can do that, I've accomplished something."

Another "I suppose"

There is another "I suppose", too. I suppose this could be about a totally different group of players. This is the amazing "I suppose". The article could have just as easily been about pianist John Brewer (and son of bassist Tim Brewer), who recently returned to Kansas City after university training in that other city of deep jazz drafts, New Orleans. Or drummers Sam Wiseman and Phil Wakefield. Or Justin Freeland, another drummer, attending college in Philadelphia. Or Bobby Randolph, a trumpeter now attending UMKC. Or trombonist Phil Eagle. Then there is bassist Solomon Dorsey, also in New York, as is vocalist Krystal Warren. And then there's pianist Oscar Williams, currently working with David Basse. The list goes on.

And as far as I can tell, the drafts are still deep. Take saxophonist Matt Carrillo, for example. Matt is now on a talented roster of students at the UMKC Conservatory. He's also currently the wailing tenor in Everette DeVan's quartet at Bobby's Hangout alongside Matt Hopper, and lights a fire on the bandstand with every solo.

Jazz has not been a popular music for decades, and one that is not close to the scene could conclude that the musicians that would keep the music fresh and growing will dry up. The evidence would tell you that this is not happening. Jazz education has become a regular part of musical education in high schools and universities around the world, and continues to attract many very creative young musicians. It is clear that we have a deeply talented new generation of players. They are here, and they are ready to keep Kansas City at the top of the list of the great jazz cities.






	Search our site:		Last issue, we brought you the first part of Roger Atkinson’s article profiling the up-and-comers of the KC jazz scene, featuring Mark Lowrey and Logan Richardson. This installment concludes the piece. Seth Lee, bass The first time I heard Seth was at one of the Mutual Musician's Foundation Sunday morning jam sessions. He was still in high school, but already had a terrific rhythmic feel for the music. His bass lines seemed to maintain a looseness that propelled the music. The rhythm was supple, natural. Since then every band I've heard Seth with sounds fine, in no small part due to Seth's bass work on the bottom. He seems to stress the lower ranges of the instrument, not unlike the classic bassists like the late Sam Jones and Paul Chambers. Pianist/vocalist Luqman Hamza has shared this observation with me: "The young man has big ears." The observation fits, it is apparent that Seth really listens to his partners on the bandstand. "I am most influenced by the classic quintet sound - sax, trumpet, and rhythm", Seth told me in a recent conversation. "Take Greg Tardy's quintet, for example. The arrangements are creative and fresh, and they have that classic quintet sound." In addition to occasionally leading a Blue Room Blue Monday Jam, Seth has appeared with most of the Kansas City regulars, including Hamza and drummer Jim Eriksen. "Playing with Luqman is a great learning experience. He just knows so many tunes, and I am fortunate for being able to play with him. And I just recorded a few things with Ahmed Alaadeen for his next CD, hopefully these will be out soon." Such freelancing has been Seth's key development strategy. "Kansas City has so many great musicians to learn from. It has allowed me to continue to work on my fundamentals and to learn tunes. You have to just keep going - always stressing fundamentals, consistency, and technique." "Now I feel a need to develop my sight reading, that is an area I really need to improve on." To that end, Seth is planning to attend college in the fall. "I'm not sure where I'll be yet, but definitely in the area. Either the UMKC Conservatory, or in Jim Mair's program at KCKCC." Meanwhile, Seth has been getting some high-profile gigs, expanding his Kansas City exposure while also gaining respect with more nationally known musicians. He joined Benny Golson's quartet at their recent appearance at the Folly Jazz Series, and fit like a glove. More recently, he was a part of one of Bobby Watson's Kansas City - New York Connection gigs at the Blue Room, where he played with percussion legend Joe Chambers and trumpeter Nicholas Payton, in addition to Bobby Watson. "That was a great gig. They played some unfamiliar material, at some very fast tempos. Most of it went pretty well, though. It's a thrill to be able to play with these guys." "I have to just keep going. No matter how far you've come, you have to keep working on the fundamentals. That's what I plan to do." Harold O'Neal, piano "I am now getting my own quartet together," Harold O'Neal related. "It has saxophonist Greg Osby, bassist Matt Brewer, and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts." This was the same group that Harold played with at The Jazz Gallery's New Leader series this past October in New York. I guess that the networking in New York has been fruitful. "I attended the Manhattan School of Music. Kenny Barron was my piano instructor. He gave me a great foundation for just playing the piano. I met (pianist) Andrew Hill there, also. He sort of took me under his wing, and gave me great personal advice. He was the person who hooked me up with Greg Osby." It was with Osby that Harold made his major label debut on St. Louis Shoes. "I had a great thrill recently when Herbie Hancock came to town for his concert at the Gem. Roy Hargrove was there, and I know him from New York. He introduced me to Herbie. He asked me to send him a tape of my music. Herbie Hancock was like my first inspiration, a universal influence, and he wants to hear me play!" How does he make sure that it's Harold O'Neal coming out, and not these very heady influences? "You can cross relate it to other art forms. Take a screenwriter who has seen the work of other screenwriters. He'll learn from this, and you might see pieces of that influence in his work. I listen to many musicians, many different styles, keep checking them out, transcribing their work, and play my version of it. I'll listen to classical, hard bop, different things. You see the commonality of the styles; often it's just in different settings. Pieces of what you learn become part of your own voice." "Really, I'm not listening to anything in particular right now. Mainly the radio. I keep it open; not very much popular music, though. Whatever I listen to, it's ever changing, I like to keep it fresh." "Over the next year, I want to get my own band out there. I'll continue to move between Kansas City and New York. Do some freelancing. I want to get a recording completed and released." Harold continues to be visible locally. He was at the Alaadeen recording session and on the Joe Chambers gig with Seth Lee. Like the rest of this class, watching Harold's continuing maturity has been one of the pleasures of following jazz in Kansas City in recent years. Harold has a rich harmonic sense, plays with dense chords that are full of color, and his rhythmic intensity can be breathtaking. Matt Hopper, guitar When you think about it, Kansas City's depth of jazz guitar talent is rather amazing. On the local scene on any given night one can hear the likes of Danny Embrey, Rod Fleeman, Charlie Gatschet, Brian Harmon, Jake Blanton, Ervin Brown, and when he is occasionally in town from his Count Basie gig, Will Matthews. Matt Hopper is getting increasing attention around town, too, due to his regular gig with organist extraordinaire Everette DeVan. I caught up with Matt during a recent gig with Everette at Bobby's Hangout, one of the new rooms that have opened on Broadway. "I have the normal influences," Matt shared, "George Benson, Wes Montgomery, Grant Green. Also Peter Bernstein, who you may have heard with Larry Goldings. And Rodney Jones. Plus, of course, Charlie Parker. "I studied with Danny Embrey for two years. Danny teaches John Elliott's approach to the guitar. He's a great teacher. I also attended UMKC, and studied with Bobby Watson and Rod Fleeman there. "Playing with Everette is just huge. He really encourages you to figure things out on the bandstand. It forces your ears to develop. Watch him, he doesn't really announce tunes, he just starts into them. It may be something that you haven't played before, or have rarely played. It's just a great learning experience. "My original inspirations were more R&B and blues players. I loved the Meters, James Brown, Ray Charles, B.B. King. Then I heard Stevie Ray Vaughan, and he seemed to be on a different level with his improvisation. "I started to play jazz, actually, to become a better blues player. But I wound up sticking with jazz." When not with Everette, Matt plays with violinist Adam Galblum and bassist Jeff Harshbarger, featuring the music of Django Reinhardt. They play at Le Fou Frog in the River Market. "I just want to keep playing with the great musicians we have in Kansas City, keep developing. As long as I can do this, I will be happy to remain in town." Ryan Howard, piano/organ Ryan Howard seemed to find a new voice one night at the Blue Room a few years back. Everette DeVan was leading the Blue Monday Jam, and Ryan decided to sit in not on his normal piano, but on Everette's Hammond B-3. I was there, and he attacked the keys like he was a wily vet, while in fact it was the first time he had ever played the instrument. After this, it seemed that Ryan took advantage of every opportunity to play the organ. DeVan led a Monday jam at Jilly's on Broadway for a time; Ryan was a regular. At Ken Lovern's most recent night at the helm of the Blue Monday Jam, Ryan was there again. "My organ influences are Everette, of course, and Jimmy Smith and Joey DeFrancesco," Ryan shared during our chat. "But Larry Dunn, who played organ in Earth, Wind, and Fire, was my first idol. But organ gigs aren't possible when you don't have one. That should be rectified soon, however. I was at the Piano Room late last year chatting with guitarist Doc Fuller. Doc mentioned visiting a friend in Kansas, and found that the friend had an old Hammond B-3 with two Leslie sound cabinets just sitting in the barn. Doc suggested he sell it. I told him that I may know a buyer, and sure enough Ryan was interested, and is in the process of completing the acquisition. "That will really get things going. I am planning a trio with Matt Hopper and Gogo Ray on drums; classic organ trio. In the meantime, Ryan has been attending Penn Valley ("it's hard to go back, but I was afraid if I didn't I'd never get around to it") and has been playing electric piano in a funk/R&B oriented band called Karma. They have played throughout the region including Wichita and Branson. Prior to this, he played with the old school funk group Cameo ("I played the horn section of keyboards!"), which gave him a long taste of life on the road, including both coasts plus England, Switzerland, and the Caribbean. "Lots of egos and competition between bands, I didn't like that, and travel can be a hassle. In London, for example, our work permits were sent to the wrong airport terminal. And you don't have time for that stuff on tour." Like his buddies, Ryan has gotten solid support from the start. "My grandmother was my number one mentor, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, every way. She died when I was 16; that was hard. She taught me to have an independent mind, to follow my path. I dedicate everything to her." "Everett Freeman has been a great help, sharing musical information and especially life skills, like how to handle myself. Everett made me into his nephew! Then there's my real uncle, Mark Gilmore, he plays guitar; I've played with him, too. Mike Warren and Gerald Dunn have also been good friends. Lisa Henry, too; she taught me how to book gigs, how to set expectations with folks, and make a good impression. You want to make people smile, that's why they go out to hear you. "I'm a people person. I like to make people feel good about themselves. When I can do that, I've accomplished something." Another "I suppose" There is another "I suppose", too. I suppose this could be about a totally different group of players. This is the amazing "I suppose". The article could have just as easily been about pianist John Brewer (and son of bassist Tim Brewer), who recently returned to Kansas City after university training in that other city of deep jazz drafts, New Orleans. Or drummers Sam Wiseman and Phil Wakefield. Or Justin Freeland, another drummer, attending college in Philadelphia. Or Bobby Randolph, a trumpeter now attending UMKC. Or trombonist Phil Eagle. Then there is bassist Solomon Dorsey, also in New York, as is vocalist Krystal Warren. And then there's pianist Oscar Williams, currently working with David Basse. The list goes on. And as far as I can tell, the drafts are still deep. Take saxophonist Matt Carrillo, for example. Matt is now on a talented roster of students at the UMKC Conservatory. He's also currently the wailing tenor in Everette DeVan's quartet at Bobby's Hangout alongside Matt Hopper, and lights a fire on the bandstand with every solo. Jazz has not been a popular music for decades, and one that is not close to the scene could conclude that the musicians that would keep the music fresh and growing will dry up. The evidence would tell you that this is not happening. Jazz education has become a regular part of musical education in high schools and universities around the world, and continues to attract many very creative young musicians. It is clear that we have a deeply talented new generation of players. They are here, and they are ready to keep Kansas City at the top of the list of the great jazz cities. RETURN TO JUNE/JULY 2005 MAIN INDEX © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2005. All rights reserved.