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Blog post by Chris Maskell

The partnership between jazz singer Theo Bleckmann and drummer John Hollenbeck has taken many forms over the years. One month, they may be touring with Prof. Hollenbeck鈥檚 Large Ensemble, while not much later, a listener might find them improvising mind-bending duets in front of a rapt audience. Next week, they are set to explore yet another new musical setting during their performance at the Schulich School of Music with McGill鈥檚 Jazz Choir.

As a pair, the two are a creative force, but their individual musical output is equally as impressive. Bleckmann鈥檚 many awards (including top-five spots in Downbeat Magazine vocalist polls and a Grammy nomination) are paired with a who鈥檚-who list of other collaborators 鈥� this year alone, he鈥檚 appeared with Meredith Monk, Ben Monder, Shai Maestro and Uri Caine.

Evidently, a successful music career such as this doesn鈥檛 appear out of nowhere, and Bleckmann charted its evolution while discussing his origins. 鈥淚 grew up in a tiny town in North-West Germany. As long as I can remember I was always singing: as a soloist in children choirs, by myself, along with records and in every other possibly context. Using my voice has been very natural and joyful. At 6 years old, I learned to play guitar, first in folk music later in classical music. At the age of 10 I started taking classical piano lessons as well. After my voice break, I took some jazz voice lessons.鈥�

鈥淚n 1987 I met the wonderful Sheila Jordan at a jazz workshop and she encouraged me to come to the US, something I had already dreamed about. I really wanted to get out of my comfort zone, be a small fish in a big pond and also experience living in the language that I will mostly be singing in, so I moved to NY. I received a scholarship from Manhattan School of Music and moved over in 1989.鈥�

It didn鈥檛 take long until he crossed paths with Hollenbeck, as they began playing together only five years later. When asked, Bleckmann had nothing but positive words to say about their long-running association. 鈥淛ohn is one of my closest and most cherished collaborators. There is no end to the depth of his musicality, knowledge and interest in new compositional forms and sounds. He鈥檚 never predictable to me 鈥� he changes and grows constantly and always comes up with new strange and whacky concepts or ideas.鈥�

鈥淎t the same time he knows his jazz inside and out and can melt everything into one beautiful piece. And he鈥檚 one of the most incredible arrangers and orchestrators. We have worked in every context possible together, from duo performances to large ensemble. The only thing missing here is a full symphony orchestra. John has an inner confidence when improvising but also listens with great empathy. He plays without boundaries and, like myself, is interested foremost in sound and form.鈥�

In addition to Tuesday night鈥檚 concert, Bleckmann will also be conducting a public masterclass, offering a taste of the artist as an educator 鈥� a practice that he describes as both highly enjoyable and exhausting. 鈥淭eaching, for me, is about empathy; about really getting into the student鈥檚 mind-set and figuring out what the best next step would be, both technically and also psychologically. It鈥檚 extremely rewarding when you can give a student a set of tools to not only make them sound better but also make them feel better through it.鈥�

鈥淟ast year, after the summer break, a student of mine came into the lesson crying, saying that over the summer she had a break-through and that, after our first year of intense technique training, she actually liked the way her voice sounded now for the first time in her life, ever! She couldn鈥檛 stop practicing and singing all summer long. That was a powerful and very moving message and I realized what鈥檚 at stake here.鈥�

Finally, Bleckmann offered an advance look into Tuesday night鈥檚 concert program, revealing that the group will be performing mostly his works. 鈥淪ome songs are brand new from my upcoming CD on ECM, which has John Hollenbeck playing on it as well. There are also some choral pieces that I wrote for a small vocal group call MOSS I had (with Luciana Souza, Kate McGarry, Peter Eldridge and Lauren Kinhan) that the jazz choir will be performing along with some members of the band.鈥�

Theo Bleckmann performs with Professor John Hollenbeck and the McGill Jazz Choir on Tuesday, October 4 at 7:30 p.m. in Tanna Schulich Hall. His masterclass will take place on Tuesday, October, 4 at 11:30 a.m. also in Tanna Schulich Hall.