Internationally acclaimed jazz guitarist Albare (aka Albert Dadon) performs with his band at the Astor Lounge this Thursday, October 23. BOB GORDON asked him a few questions.
How would you characterise your relationship with the guitar over the years?
It’s a love affair.
How has it evolved?
I received a guitar on my eighth birthday. But I only felt the love a couple of years later when I discovered that guitar was the symbol of long hair, freedom and rock’n’roll. The rest is history.
I’ve read you are more influenced by instruments other than guitar. What do you draw from them?
I tend not to listen to other guitarists precisely because I want to avoid being influenced by them. It’s important to keep some originality and have your own voice. My favourite instrumentalist to this day is Miles Davis. What he had to say was always elegant with the right choice of notes and right amount the chops. He was a class act.
I believe you’re also inspired by street sounds. Can a walk down the street become relatively symphonic for you?
Yes, any noise is a note. When you pay close attention to any noise sometimes it’s amazing to find beauty, or the opposite.
Two Decades Of Jazz is exactly that. What story does this selection of tracks over 25 years tell?
It’s actually 25 years of jazz. But you could not say two-and-half-decades of jazz because it’s a mouthful. The tracks are fully representative of my body of work.
You’ve always been very supportive of upcoming jazz artists. Is it inspiring to witness jazz musicians grow, the flourish?
Education is very important.
Given the retrospective nature of the Two Decades Of Jazz release, what do you have planned for your next album?
Two Decades Of Jazz is a bit of pause and reflection for me. I have learnt to take one project at a time.
