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Curiosity is the Antidote
Hi, it’s me, Jonah, the baritone saxophonist. Remember?
Today, for the first time ever, I am announcing a collaborative album with another musician. A gentle and generous soul named Berke Can Özcan who I encountered in Istanbul. The album is called, “It Was Always Time”, and it will be released by We Jazz Records this fall on digital and vinyl. You can pre-order and stream the first single right now.
Now let me tell you the story.
In January 2020, I was a very happy camper. I had a solo album coming on a label I was excited about, and I was following it up with dozens of tour dates all over the world including a major EU tour in April with festivals in The Netherlands, an eight city run in Italy, stops in Germany, and my debut in Istanbul. Of course all of it cascaded out of reach as the world stopped leaving home.
Re-booking post lock downs was somewhat demoralizing. My album was suddenly two years old, my primary booking agent had moved on, the festivals wanted new lineups, and I found myself starting from scratch. Again. On top of that, I was working full time as an electoral organizer, helping recruit and run insurgent candidates for congress. I wasn’t sure where my life was going or what role music would end up playing.
In a surprising turn, the promotor of my Istanbul show reached out to me, seemingly out of nowhere, to see if I wanted to come in April 2022. He offered me the same deal, and asked if I would be willing to play with a local musician, in order to build interest. I did the math, and concluded that with a full time campaign job, and no other European tour dates to roll in, I was in effect being offered a three day weekend in Istanbul with a 0% chance of making money. At first it felt simple, not a good idea. But my curiosity got the better of me, so without any real plan, I said yes.
There have been hopeless moments in my life. Times when I wanted to give up. Months when I became such a cynical witness to our tolerance of human agony that I became certain our collective problems were impossible to solve. Days when my fear of being responsible for other people’s suffering controlled me so deeply that I chose to shut my eyes to what was in front of me. Mornings when I woke up wondering how much longer I had to keep waking up. Curiosity was the antidote.
Apathy is the certainty that there is no solution. Cynicism is the conviction that people’s motivations are selfish. Hopelessness is the conclusion that things will never get better. Polarization is the confidence that there are only two sides. What if it’s not true? I’m never sure, and I’m too curious to ever stop asking. That is how I survive.
Perhaps, instead of saying my curiosity got the better of me, I should have said that the moment I agreed to go to Istanbul was the first time I felt like myself since January 2020. It was nice to see me again.
A quick google tells me I’m definitely not the only one.
Berke must have been at least a little bit curious too, right? Why else would he have agreed to play a show with me, having never met me. He’ll have to tell you for certain, but I think curiosity is what brought us together, and its a good thing, because we get along.
From the moment we began to play together, on that first night in Istanbul, it felt like it was always supposed to happen. I don’t feel that way very often. It was overwhelming. I think we both knew it was just the beginning, and now we have a record to share!! The music on “It Was Always Time” is joyful, explosive, unpredictable, and raw. I love it. Aren’t you curious to listen?
More about the music soon. Here are some tour dates I’ve got coming up (look out for more):
September 17 – Solo at Artifact Sound Series in Brooklyn NY
w/Tatsuya Nakatani & Kirin McElwain + Alex Koi Duo
October 8 – Duo with Berke Can Özcan at Nublu in New York NY
PLAYING THE NEW RECORD w/Adnata Ensemble & Jason Nazary Solo
October 23 – Duo with Nora Stanley at Three’s Brewing in Brooklyn NY
w/Madison Greenstone + Matthew Ryals Duo
November 9 – Twin Rocks Band at Borusan Music House in Istanbul TR
This band includes Berke Can Özcan and Arve Henriksen and is in the same sound world as our new record
November 29 – Duo with Lau Nau at We Jazz Festival in Helsinki FI
w/Superposition 1+2+3
November 30 – Duo with Berke Can Özcan at We Jazz Festival in Helsinki FI
PLAYING THE NEW RECORD
Talk soon,
Jonah