Hit It
The refreshingly capricious and trippy
jazz melodies of Daniel Bennett
by Karen Hofreiter

Jazz—unless you’re a die hard fan, the word probably conjures up memories of crowded elevators or depressing hotel lounges. Perhaps your mind wanders to images of smoky underground clubs, women in slinky red dresses and tux-clad men with cigars. But how about sunny, indigo skies? Or, dusky, Indian summer sunsets and salty sea breezes? How about the feel of wind in your hair from a cross-country convertible ride, the smell of gasoline in the summertime, the swelter of heat reflecting off the jet black surface of a freshly tarred highway?

Local jazz musician/songwriter Daniel Bennett prefers to take you for a drive on that sunny highway, rather than sit you in a gloomy lounge. Uplifting and optimistic though his music may be, simplistic it is not. Bennett’s music moves, propelling you forward with an inexhaustible kinetic energy that’s at once exhilarating and strangely calming. The real brilliance, however, lies in the ability of Bennett to get out of the way of his own tunes, allowing the melodies to filter through, pure and unadulterated. Listening to him, you get a sense of honesty and integrity—there’s nothing behind his music than the music itself.

A Rochester, NY native, Bennett began playing the saxophone at age 10. Twelve years later, he located to Boston to pursue a Master’s at the New England Conservatory, where his studies focused on classical and jazz. But, his time at NEC marked the beginning of a departure from the traditional jazz template, and in breaking away, he was free to find his “voice.”

A few weeks ago I sat down with Daniel to discuss his music, his take on the current jazz scene, and his bold resolve to pursue music his way.

Let’s start with the music—how would you describe your sound?
Melodic. Maybe a little hypnotic, a little trippy, but definitely melodic. It’s something you might find yourself humming a few hours later, something you can really get into—and it’s accessible. People of all ages love it—we have lots of younger kids that come to our shows, and they’ll be up dancing around, totally getting into it. I guess if I had to put our sound in a category, it would be a mix of jazz and folk, in a minimalist style. It’s all acoustic—just saxophone, guitar (played by Chris Hersch and Brant Grieshaber) and bass (played by John Servo). It’s definitely not the typical jazz sound you hear today.

What do you consider the “typical” jazz sound of today?
Jazz has become inaccessible to the majority of people. Back in the 1930’s and 40’s, it was more upbeat and melodic—it was entertainment, and people went to jazz clubs to dance. Today, it’s often dissonant, complex and boastful. It’s more “academic,” in a way, more about long musical runs, complicated fingerings and weird chord and meter changes. It’s meant to impress itself almost. Think about it—who really goes out specifically to hear a jazz band? These days, it’s mostly jazz musicians listening to other jazz musicians. Somewhere in this quest to impress, jazz has lost its fun, whimsical quality, its honesty. The audience isn’t tapping its feet, and they are turning elsewhere for that special musical “it” quality.

So are you on a mission to reclaim the fun in jazz?
Definitely not a mission. I don’t have any agenda. I love jazz. I also love the minimalist works by classical composers Steve Reich and Phillip Glass. I want the attention of the audience fixed around the melodies, and I can do that by tapping into minimalism and folk. This is what jazz can be, and I want to share that with others. I strive to make honest music—so honest that I’ll admit the best melodies come when I’m aimlessly wondering around my apartment in boxers and an old T-shirt, strumming a guitar and humming whatever comes to mind. If I can’t sing it, I don’t write it.

Ok, so given that your goal is to play, have fun and get your music out to everyone you can, how do you go about reaching people?
By being proactive and doing it my way. The whole jazz scene is broken. As a musician, you won’t find many gigs at clubs. If you want to play, it’s weddings and bar mitzvahs, or stuffy college auditoriums. And, sadly, many talented young musicians just accept that reality. They sit around and wait, expecting gigs to fall into their laps. I realized early on that the only person who was going to get me gigs was me.

Admittedly I have to agree. Even being a classically trained musician myself, I don’t seek out jazz and am not particularly fond of it. But your shows are different…
And that’s exactly the point. People will go to jazz shows for the “intellectual” quality, or maybe to impress a date. Secretly, the whole time they’re squirming in their seats, checking their watches and composing tomorrow’s “to-do” list in their heads. I don’t want to be a part of that—I want people to forget about their hectic lives and lose themselves in the music. That’s the kind of music—honest, naked and bare, stripped of pretense—you take with you, that gets under your skin. It’s the music you find yourself humming the next morning, and that’s the kind of music I strive to create.

For more on Daniel Bennett and the Bennett Alliance, visit www.danielbennett.net, www.bennettalliance.com or MySpace at www.myspace.com/danielbennettgroup.