Coming together to create.

[Bhuti]

Hey Janek, I'm curious as to the process you go to when bringing your compositions to musicians to get things organized for a recording or live performance. I remember how you described things going down for "Mystery to Me," so i supposed i'm referencing the sessions you did at 55bar. Mainly from a band leader standpoint i'd like to get your perspective on this process. Contracts, use of sidemen, credits etc.

Thanks alot Janek.

[janekbass]

well when I'm bringing music to a group of musicians for a recording or live performance there are a few things that I consider. I've normally written the music specifically for those musicians, and the amount of written material I bring to the table depends on the style of music I'm writing. Live at the 55bar was a very arranged record with a 7 piece band including three horns. I had all the parts written out and organized, and I had a pretty clear picture of what I wanted out of the musicians. They all brought their ideas and flavours to the table, and we added all of that to what I had written, and ended up with the product you hear on the record.

With my current touring band I bring very little in terms of arrangement and composition to the table. The music is highly improvised, and I'm looking to bring short melodies and phrases to the musicians to see what they do with them. And also, with touring, I'm looking to change the music every night as much as possible to keep interest and freshness in the sound.

Easy,

Janek