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Trombonist and pianist Max
Perkoff was born and raised with jazz in San Francisco. Son
of pianist Si Perkoff and visual artist Sara Goren, his bohemian
upbringing brought him into contact with Elvin Jones and Thelonious
Monk before he ever even went to "school." He got his
old-school education early, and it's evident in his playing. After
high school, Perkoff graduated from Indiana University School of
Music in 1985, and headed to New York, where his gigs included substituting
as lead trombonist for the late great Sonny Costanza.
In 1989, he returned to the San Francisco Bay area,
playing such local classic venues as Yoshi's and Jazz at Pearl's,
and collaborating with several different jazz groups. He has recorded
two CDs, "Monk's
Bones" with Monk's
Music Trio, and "Amazing
Space" with his father Si
Perkoff.
MuST:
Since jazz was so much a part of your life as a child, did you always
want to become a jazz musician?
Max:
From the age of 12, I was certain about becoming a professional
jazz musician. From about the age of 8, it was at the top of my
list, along with being an astronaut or an investigative journalist.
MuST:
How did your father influence you in your music?
Max:
My
earliest memories are of listening to Dad jam with musicians in
our apartment. I loved it from the very beginning. I began "sitting
in" as a 13-year old trombonist with him and the bands he played
with, which always included stellar musicians. I'd also ask him
specific questions, which he'd happily answer and demonstrate for
me.
MuST:
Any favorite childhood memories of your parents' friendship
with people like Elvin Jones and Thelonious and Nellie Monk?
Max:
I
was too young to remember the times I sat on Elvin's lap or was
in the SF apartment with the Monk family. I have fond memories of
my dad playing his keyboard outside in our Mill Valley backyard
during my birthday parties.
MuST:
Can you tell us about some of your favorite music teachers
or mentors?
Max:
Robert
Greenwood was my band, jazz band, and orchestra teacher at Tam High
in Mill Valley. He was a very important mentor & teacher for
me. He believed in me from the beginning, bringing me to the door
of opportunities for advancement.
When I was 19, the famous jazz saxophonist David Leibman was my
group leader at the Jamey Aebersold Jazz Camp. His inspirational
playing and teaching remains with me to this day. He nurtures and
challenges his students with great love, joy, and the power of music.
One year later, on my first trip to NYC, I went to see him play
with Bob Moses (drums) and bassist Eddie Gomez. After the wonderful
gig, he took me in his cab and I spent the wee hours with him at
another jazz club watching him jam with the great Richie Beirach
on piano. That one experience also remains an inspirational flame
in my soul. I've only heard him once live since, (2005), but follow
his playing in recordings and online.
MuST:
You play both the trombone and the piano. How did you choose
those two diverse instruments, and what are some of the interesting
distinctions between each of them?
Max:
I
started the piano because my father was my hero, and I wanted to
do what he did, though I did love the sound and feel of the instrument
right away. Shep Shepherd, another very important mentor of mine
(he's 89 and still composing music) first inspired me to play the
trombone. A musician friend and close family friend, he plays with
beautiful sound and musicianship. When offered free lessons in the
5th grade through my school music program, I jumped at the chance
to add trombone. The look, sound, feel of it has always felt right
to me. I've flirted a few times over the years with concentrating
on one or the other, but ultimately I've decided I'm a two-instrument
person, it's what I do. As soon as I felt at peace with that, I
started getting work playing both on the same gig!
MuST:
Can you compare and contrast the experiences of playing
live versus recording in a studio?
Max:
Playing
live is always ideal, though recording is exciting and rewarding
as well. Playing live is the best way to connect with an audience,
and the best way to connect with fellow musicians. Recording is
a way to leave a legacy, a record of one's individual contribution
to music. Recording is usually a more pressured environment as well.
Live performing is usually more relaxed, which usually produces
better performances.
MuST:
What are some of the pros and cons of playing a large venue,
such as Lincoln
Center, versus a more intimate space, such as Jazz
at Pearl's?
Max:
Large
venues are a thrill. The sound of a few thousand people is so different
than 50 or 100. Playing at Jazz At Lincoln Center was a professional
and artistic thrill. It was packed, and the enthusiastic audience
made it feel as though we could connect with such a large group.
Playing at smaller clubs is still the ideal however, for jazz. With
a good sound person (as they have at Pearl's, but not a lot of clubs),
the intimacy of performance is irreplaceable.
MuST:
What motivated you to be an active music educator, in addition
to your performing career?
Max:
All
of my teachers - private piano and trombone as well as school instructors
- were so wonderful to me, I've always felt the responsibility to
pass it on.
MuST:
Why do you think music education is an important offering
in our schools?
Max:
Music
is one of the original human activities. It is essential for happiness;
connection & mutual understanding between people in different
cultures as well as our own; engages the whole mind; is indeed a
universal language; and provides an open gate to true joy and peace.
MuST:
What advice would you have for aspiring trombone players
out there?
Max:
Get
the best private instructor available, and study hard. Practice
at least 6 days a week, 2 hours a day or more. Listen to orchestral,
jazz, and popular music trombonists. Go to www.maxperkoff.com,
click on Press/Reviews, then Music Education, and take it from there! |
