Andy LaVerne
Andy LaVerne is a jazz pianist/composer and educator who is originally from Brooklyn, New York and now resides in Westchester. Having parents who both played the piano, Andy began his piano journey at the young age of five. After being accepted to the prestigious New York City High School for Music and Art as well as the Juilliard Prep school, Andy had the solid foundation to further his studies. Living in New York City gives you the opportunity to watch top notch musicians in their field. Andy did exactly that and took a liking to jazz music. He decided to continue his education in upstate New York at Ithaca College. After that, he transferred to Berklee and eventually to The New England Conservatory of Music. During this time, Andy became exposed to jazz great Bill Evans and would eventually take lessons from him.
After his schooling, he began to network himself by playing around local clubs with his school friends... developing his chops and paying his musical dues. His break came when a friend of his arranged an audition with Woody Herman. After passing the audition, Andy took to the road to tour the world for the next four years as a member of Woody Herman and the "Young Thundering Herds". A highlight of his tenure with Woody was backing up Frank Sinatra on a tour that culminated at Madison Square Garden on "The Main Event" concert. Andy went on to play with Stan Getz for many years after that. Under Getz, they recorded classic jazz albums that stand the test of time and also toured the world. During Andy's fruitful jazz career, he worked with other jazz greats such as: Lionel Hampton, Chick Corea, Dizzy Gillespie, Elvin Jones, Michael Brecker and more. Andy has produced many solo albums and also has a series of instructional books and videos. I recently talked with him about his experiences as a top notch Jazz pianist.
R.V.B. - Hello Andy. Robert von Bernewitz from New York... how are you?
A.L. –Hi Robert, I’m fine, how are you doing?
R.V.B. - I'm doing pretty good. Are you staying warm?
A.L - Trying to... it's a challenge.
R.V.B. - It's been pretty cold lately. Do you live by the Hartt School in Hartford?
A.L. – I was on the faculty of the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at the Hartt School at the University of Hartford for seventeen years, but I reside in Westchester County, NY. I’m now on the faculty of SUNY Purchase, which I really enjoy. Plus, it’s a much shorter commute.
R.V.B. - It's been pretty cold lately. Thank you very much for taking the time for me. You have a very impressive resume. You've done a lot of adventurous things in music. You must be happy with your accomplishments.
A.L. - I guess I could look back and be proud of them I suppose, but I would rather look forward.
R.V.B. - That's good because music is always changing and it's good to try something different.
A.L. - I like variety, but I have a pretty sharp focus on the type of music that I like and the type of music that I want to play. I'm not looking to go into any other genres or anything like that.
R.V.B. - Jazz is improvisational, and everything is different in nature, and changes often.
A.L. - Yes... to a degree. I think the improvisational aspect gets somewhat overblown because there is a language that everybody has. There is some commonality between people, and individual language that you develop over the years, just by playing and listening. So a lot of what you play, might not be exactly the same as what you played previously but there is similarity, as opposed to a radical difference.
R.V.B. - That's true. So you were born in Brooklyn, and you went to the music high school in New York...
A.L. - At the time, it was known as the High School of Music and Art. Now it's the LaGuardia High School.
R.V.B. - I presume that you had to take a test to get in there?
A.L. - I did have to take a test. It was very competitive and I was lucky to get in.
R.V.B. - Were your parents musical?
A.L. - They both played piano. They weren't professional musicians but they both played classical music.
R.V.B. - How old were you when you got started in music?
A.L. - I was five years old. I was playing through public school and concurrently going to the Juilliard School... the preparatory division. I was there quite a while... through high school.
R.V.B. - Who did you study with at that time?
A.L. - Here name was Mrs. Kurka, wife of the composer Robert Kurka. She was an excellent teacher and was very well versed in classical piano. I also took theory there too.
R.V.B. - After high school prep, you attended Ithaca College. Was there any reason why you chose that school?
A.L. - I actually wanted to attend Juilliard in New York, but my parents kind of wanted to steer me away from music a little bit. They also wanted me to go out on my own... which I'm grateful for. If I hadn't, I'd probably still be living with them. They're no longer with us, but I might never have left. So it was a good move, but I didn't get the musical training that I was hoping for. I transferred from there to The Berklee School of Music, which is now The Berklee College of Music. I transferred to New England Conservatory after that. I was kind of searching for something - musically - in jazz, that I was not finding anywhere. Now, I don't think that I'd have any trouble because there are somany institutions that have great jazz programs... with great instructors.But at that time, that wasn't the case. Even at a place like Berklee, I couldn't get what I was looking for.
R.V.B. - Is that the same time period that you took lessons from Bill Evans?
A.L. - Yes, it was during my early college years. It was before I moved to Boston.
R.V.B. - How big of an event was that for you? Did what he show you stay with your music throughout your career?
A.L. - Yes... absolutely. It was a huge life altering event. At the time, I was a little overwhelmed by it, and I didn't realize how much of an impact it would have on me musically. You were mentioning before about looking back... when I do look back on certain projects that I've done, I see the stamp of Bill all over that. I guess I didn't even realize it until I started thinking about it.
R.V.B. - Can you give me an example of something he said to you, that stuck with you?
A.L. - He was talking about going down different harmonic avenues to reach a particular harmonic goal. In other words, say you're at one place - if you're writing a tune, or if you're re-harmonizing a tune and you have to get to another place - there's usually more than one way to get there, aside from what's written on the page. Years later, I wrote a book called "Handbook of Chord Substitutions" which was on techniques that Bill was talking about. How to re-harmonize tunes. Certainly, on a lot of my recordings, I use that same technique. When I record standards, I usually re-harmonize them to some degree. I don't just play them straight out of the fake book.
R.V.B. - After you received this training, how did you transition into the professional world?
A.L. - I guess I just kind of fell into it. I had no big plan. I was kind of naive in my earlier years. Certainly not as worldly as a lot of younger people are today. I think a lot of musicians at that time, did not have these big plans. We didn't want to get managers, or agents, or record companies, or attorneys... involved in our careers. We didn't even think of it as a career. All we wanted to do was play music, so that's kind of what I did. I was living in Boston, going to school, and from there, I met a lot of musicians that I know to this present day... and play with quite a bit. We got together and had jam sessions - just played music - and started getting some gigs. We had to obviously support ourselves and make money, and pay the rent. We mostly worked, not as jazz musicians, but as pop musicians, playing popular music of that time period... in bars and restaurants, in and around Boston. Then I moved to Westbury, Long Island. From there I met some other people, and then got the gig with Woody Herman. That was my first “name” jazz gig. I had played jazz gigs before but not with anybody particularly well known.
R.V.B. - During that time period, did you see any of the famous jazz players play live?
A.L. - Yes... many. First of all, playing with Woody - we played a lot of festivals, and toured all over the world - so obviously you would meet a lot of other musicians that way, and get to hear a lot of people. Coming from New York and living in New York, I went to The Village Vanguard, The Village Gate, The Top of The Gate... so yeah, I saw a lot of people.
R.V.B. - Give me an example of who you saw at The Village Vanguard.
A.L. - Well first and foremost, Bill Evans! That's where I met him. But I saw Miles and Herbie... Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, Wayne Shorter, and Ron Carter, that group... Stan Getz... just a lot of people.
R.V.B. - Did you have to audition for Woody?
A.L. - No I didn't. I got recommended by a piano player named Mike Abene, who had been working with Maynard Ferguson as a piano player and arranger. The way Woody's band worked was, if somebody left the band, and had to be replaced, they would put the word out. They were on the road all the time, so you couldn't really come and audition. You just had to join the band. They would rely on the people, who had either been in the band previously, or other musicians in other bands, that could recommend someone. That's how it worked. Mike Abene recommended me... they called me, and next thing I knew, I was out on the road with them, playing the gig.
R.V.B. - Did you have a learning period or did you start right into the fire?
A.L. - I actually went the day before so I could hear the piano player... that was playing with them at the time. His name was Harold Danko. I sat there and listened to the band... looked at the charts. I was kind of a Woody Herman fan at the time, so I was familiar with a lot of the tunes. I used to play along with the records. I didn't have the charts but I could hear my way through the changes, so I wasn't going in totally cold. I was pretty familiar with the music and I was anxious to start playing it. At that time, Woody was starting to use the Fender Rhodes piano. He wasn't using acoustic piano anymore. I was really excited because they hadn't really done many recordings with the Fender Rhodes. I was going to be one of the first with Woody's band.
R.V.B. - Was it the Rhodes model that had the speakers that faced both ways?
A.L. - Yes... that's called the suitcase. It was Woody's piano but when I got home, I bought one. I had my own amp so it wasn't as powerful. I look back on those years and I don't know how I did it. I used to schlep that thing in taxi cabs... in New York. I don't know what I was thinking!!! It weighed a ton.
R.V.B. - Where did that first tour with Woody take you, and how exciting was that for you?
A.L. - It was very exciting and I was kinda nervous, and anxious, because I hadn't really traveled very much at that point. I think I had taken one or two airline flights with my parents when I was a young kid. The first gig that I did... I had to take a plane to get there. The guys in the band were really nice and I became really good friends with a number of them. It was a really good experience. It was difficult in certain ways. I didn't really have a place to live because I was on the road the entire time. It's not like today where you might go on tour for two weeks, and then not play with them again for another six months. This was like 365 days a year, that you're out on the road. My home was that seat on the bus. Anything I lived in after that seemed like a mansion.
R.V.B. - Were there any memorable gigs during that time period?
A.L. - Yeah... One in particular was when we did a six week tour with Frank Sinatra. We went all over the country and played all the major cities. It culminated in a gig at Madison Square Garden. It was called The Main Event, and it was televised on ABC-TV. They also made a DVD and a recording out of it.
R.V.B. - I have the vinyl record of that show.
A.L. - That's me playing piano on it. Frank took Woody's band out on the road. He augmented it with a string section and some orchestral instruments.
R.V.B. - I'll have to play the record when we're done chatting.
A.L. - The piano is pretty far down in the mix but there are certain parts where you can hear it. Frank Sinatra is five times louder than the entire Woody Herman band, and the orchestra that was behind them.
R.V.B. - Frank does what Frank does.
A.L. - I loved playing with him. It was a fantastic experience.
R.V.B. - How long was your tenure with the Woody Herman band?
A.L. - It was about four years.
R.V.B. - That's a pretty long time. I gather during that time, you made a lot of friends. Is that how you networked yourself to continue your career afterwards? I see on the resume, people like Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie. How did that come about?
A.L. - Those were two separate things, I played with Lionel Hampton when I was doing the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in Moscow, Idaho. I had done that a number of years. I became friends with Lionel, and we played together out there. I played with Dizzy Gillespie when I was playing with Stan Getz. I can remember one gig... it was the Nice Festival in France. We played with Dizzy there.
R.V.B. - Very nice. You played with Chick Corea - who is another keyboard player - and an adventurous keyboard player at that. How did the two keyboard thing pan out? Was there an adjustment for you with that?
A.L. - There wasn't a big adjustment, because Chick is one of my major influences. I speak his language... (haha) not as well as he does but I certainly understand it. I don't understand everything he's playing, but what I mean is that, I'm very familiar with his style of playing. I think a fair amount of my playing comes out of that. There wasn't any big adjustment musically. I met Chick when I was playing with Stan Getz. We were playing a concert in Telluride, and Chick was backstage watching and listening to us play. I saw him and I got really nervous. I idolized Chick in a certain way. Chick played with Stan Getz prior to me playing with Stan Getz, by a few years. I guess Chick was interested in what Stan was doing with his new band. I met him after the concert and he was really friendly. We had that commonality of being Stan Getz's piano player. We had a lot in common, right off the bat... without even saying anything. We became very friendly and Chick is just a great person... very open and supportive. The first time I played with him was at his Mad Hatter Studio in Los Angeles. We played duo piano for about two hours. It was just fantastic. It was recorded, and some of it came out on a record I did a few years later called "Andy Laverne Plays the Music of Chick Corea." There's an excerpt of our duo playing that I put on that record, it’s called “Heart to Heart”.
R.V.B. - You mentioned a lot of live dates that you did. Is it different playing in the studio where you have to be a little more refined, and the mistakes have to be cut down to a minimum... I'm not saying that you make mistakes live, but if you do make a flub, it just goes off into the air... and you move on. What is the difference for you of playing live as opposed to the studio?
A.L. - You're right about that, in a studio situation, it's like you're under a microscope. Everything is magnified. Whereas when you're playing live, you have to play a little more than you would necessarily have to... to project out into a large audience. You can kind of duplicate what you do live in the studio to a degree. It's kind of an artificial environment, because usually you're wearing headphones to hear the other musicians... you're isolated from other people. There might not be good eye contact between certain people. It's similar in some ways and different in other ways. I really like recording. It's one of my favorite things to do. In a way, I almost like it more than playing live gigs. It just seems less stressful to me. There's always the added level of anxiety with live gigs... getting to the gigs... dealing with the circumstances at the gigs... dealing with the owner of the venue... and worrying about the audience... is anybody going to come and see you? it just goes on and on. When you go into a recording session, you pretty much know the parameters that you are working with. It's a lot less stressful in that regard. But I like playing live too. It's just two different things.
R.V.B. - It's always fun dealing with club owners... "Where's your following?"
A.L. - Exactly. These days you have to bring an entire audience with you.
R.V.B. - Did anything ever go wrong at one of your gigs.
A.L. - (Hahaha) Well, I think a better question would be, did anything ever go right?
R.V.B. - (Hahaha)
A.L. (Haha) Yes... many, many times.
R.V.B. - Anything like a cord shorting out... did the lights ever go out?
A.L. - Yes, lights have gone out. I remember playing a concert at a high school in Westchester County, with Ed Neumeister, a great trombone player. The kid that was running the lights, fell asleep on top of the dimmer switch, and he turned off all of the lights in the entire auditorium.
R.V.B. - (Hahaha)
A.L. - We just kept playing. (Haha) There was nothing else we could do... complete darkness.
R.V.B. - You mentioned that you like to record and I see that you've done a whole lot of albums.
A.L. - Just under my own name now, it's getting close to 70 projects. I have many more as a sideman.
R.V.B. - How do you keep it fresh when you do so many?
A.L. - It' sort of an evolutionary process. I'm not looking for something radically different. I'm always learning new stuff... thinking about and developing things. It's really a progression. Depending on the amount of time between projects, it may be more obvious if it's a longer time period. If it's like six months, you're not going to sound that much different. I do a lot of composing, so I'm always writing new tunes. It's a challenge to play new material all the time.
R.V.B. - I can understand that. What size band did Stan Getz carry?
A.L. - It was basically a quartet... when I started. When I left, it was usually a quintet. It was saxophone, piano, bass and drums... when I started. Sometimes he added another horn player like Bob Brookmeyer. He played with us for a while. He would also add guitar... Chuck Loeb.
R.V.B. - Did you go out on the road a lot with that outfit, as much as you did with Woody?
A.L. - It was similar to life with Woody, except it was better in a way, because it was a much smaller group. The travel was somewhat easier. There weren’t as many "one nighters." We could play at Ronnie Scott’s in London for two weeks... do a tour of Europe, and be at one place for several days. It was the same in the States. We could play Keystone Korner, in San Francisco, for two weeks. With Woody, we were playing mostly "one nighters." That was really hard. You were traveling every single day, and most of it was by bus. Stan's thing was mostly by plane. The distances were a lot farther but you stayed in one place longer.
R.V.B. - What kind of man was Woody to work for? Was there a lot of interaction with him?
A.L. - Woody’s band was made up of mostly young musicians just out of college. So there was a big age difference between most of the band and Woody. Therefore, not much contact with him other than on the bandstand. It wasn’t until a few years later that I got to hang out with Woody. It was at one of the Nice, France festivals. Woody, Stan Getz (who also worked with Woody’s big band when he was younger) and me. We had a great time! I learned a lot while I was in Woody’s band, musically and otherwise. Really not much from Woody directly, more indirectly. It was a growing experience for me.
R.V.B. - Did you have any favorite venues in the States, as well as Europe?
A.L - Keystone Korner was always a highlight. We played at a number of clubs in New York. We played at The Bitter End. We played at Fat Tuesdays... which was a really nice club. There were places all over that were really nice.
R.V.B. - You mentioned the France festival... were there any other jazz festivals that you played at?
A.L. - We played many, many festivals... in France... in Spain... in Italy... Scandinavia (The North Sea) (The Pori Festival)...
R.V.B. - It must have been a fantastic time to go to Europe and mix it up with other musicians, networking and meeting people.
A.L. - Absolutely. One of the first tours that I had with Stan, was a trip to Israel. That was also a highlight for me.There was a documentary made of that trip which is called “Stan Getz, A Musical Odyssey”.
R.V.B. - Were there any challenges playing in large amphitheater type venues?
A.L. - No, not really. When you're playing with groups like that, people are coming specifically to hear that music.
R.V.B. - You do a lot of teaching and you've written a lot of books. That helps put the milk and bread on the table. What kind of work goes into creating those books? Was it time consuming?
A.L - Yes. I'm actually working on a book right now - on Bill Evans. It's going to be part narrative and part musical analysis. I'm going to be talking about my lessons with Bill, and my interactions with Bill through the years. I ended up doing Bill's last gig for him. It was at Fat Tuesdays in New York.
R.V.B. - That had to be an honorable gig for you.
A.L. - It was fantastic. I remember when I got the call for that gig. It was a six night gig and Bill did the first two nights. Then he got ill. I got called to come down and sub for him with his trio, which at the time was Marc Johnson bass, and Joe LaBarbera drums. The place was jam packed and everybody was waiting for Bill. When I walked in, I figured everyone was going to leave. They all stayed and seemed to really enjoy the music. The trio had a great musical chemistry. It was really a highlight but unfortunately, it didn't end so well. I played the last four nights of his gig for him and he died the very next day. That was September 15th, 1980. To answer your question about the books, I enjoy teaching and I enjoy musicalanalysis... thinking about theory and figuring out what's going on. I enjoy writing these books. I write them to make money of course, but that's not my main focus. I'm writing books to express myself, and because I think I have something to share. It can be a long and painstaking process to write a book. My current book that's out is called "Chords in Motion." It took me six years to put it together. That's not working on it every day, of course. I got into writing books when I was writing for Keyboard magazine in 1986. That came as a result of an interview they did with me. They said "You’re pretty articulate. Did you ever think about writing an article for a magazine?" I said "No." They said "How about writing for us?" The first article I ever wrote for them was on Bill Evans... ironically.
R.V.B. - When a college student reaches a certain level, they know what they want to learn and you know what you want to show them. Do you find most of the kids eager and attentive to what you are teaching them?
A.L. - Absolutely. They're trying to soak up as much information as possible.
R.V.B. - What are the size of your classes?
A.L. - Mostly, I teach private lessons at college. I have also taught composition classes. They are not lecture hall type classes. There are maybe a dozen people. I've done some ensemble work as well - not necessarily at college - I also teach at the Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshop in Louisville, and the Langau Jazz Nights in Switzerland. The ensembles are usually eight or nine people there.
R.V.B. - I know you are working on your book now, but do you have any players that you work with to go out and do gigs?
A.L. - I have a new record that just came out. It's called "Faith." It's a quartet, with a fantastic trumpet player by the name of Alex Sipiagin. He's originally from Russia and just one of the most incredible musicians that I've ever heard in my life. It's really inspiring to play with him. Mike Richmond is playing bass and cello. He's a long time friend and he's the one who recommended me for the gig with Stan Getz- back in the late ‘70's. Mike’s a virtuoso bassist and cellist. Jason Tiemann is the drummer, he’s fantastic. I met Jason at the Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops about 20 years ago. It's a really nice group and we really enjoy playing together. We have some gigs coming up in New York... a little bit later this year.In the works is our next recording, which will be the quartet augmented by another long time friend, Jerry Bergonzi, the influential tenor & soprano saxophonist. Alex and Jerry together is going to be amazing! I’m planning on dedicating the recording to John Abercrombie, a dear friend and music colleague for many decades, who was a “Guiding Light” for the “boomer” generation of jazz musicians.
R.V.B. - What are you proud about with your place in music?
A.L. - Just that I have a place in music. (Haha) I don't know what my place is. I think I have a place somewhere. The fact that I was able to pursue what I wanted to do. I never really had another job outside of music. I teach at colleges - I teach privately and I write articles. I write books... do instructional videos. It's not just all playing gigs. It's still all music, and all music that I want to play... music that I'm interested in. That's pretty much what I wanted to accomplish.
R.V.B. - Do you have any other hobbies that you like to do, like take walks... go to the movies?
A.L. - I'm into exercise, so I do quite a bit of that. Running... bike riding... walking… weight training. I'm more or less a vegan, so I'm into nutrition. I like architecture but I didn't become an architect. I can appreciate architecture. Elvin Jones, who I was lucky to play with, called me the “architect of music”. I think architecturally when I play. Probably in my genes, my father was an interior designer.
R.V.B. - You have a real nice career going for yourself. You've accomplished a lot of things and played with a lot of great people. Thank you for taking this time for me.
A.L. - Thank you very much for your interest Robert.
Interview conducted by Robert von Bernewitz
This interview may not be reproduced in any part or form without permission from this site.
For more information on Andy LaVerne visit his website www.andylaverne.com
For more information on this site contact Robvonb247(at)gmail(dot)com
Comments