Constant Constance: The Andrew D'Angelo Podcast

It’s hard to believe, but today’s conversation marks the last Constant Constance podcast episode of the year! Thirty-three episodes later, we’re so happy to have been able to share the stories and lives of every guest who has joined this show. And there is no better way to mark the end of this first year of Constant Constance than with the one, the only, legendary performer Sheila Jordan. Sheila’s career spans decades and she is still going strong at ninety-three years old. In today’s episode, she shares a lot of anecdotes about her childhood in Detroit, how she got into music, her lifetime of performances and recordings since the 40s, including her work with George Russell, and so much more. Please enjoy the ever vivacious and glamorous vocalist Sheila Jordan, or as Charlie “Bird” Parker used to call her, “the singer with the million dollar ears.”

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Sheila’s website: http://sheilajordanjazz.com/
Sheila on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SheilaJordanTheLegend/
Sheila singing “You Are My Sunshine”: https://youtu.be/GIokpD6lqp8

In today’s episode of Constant Constance, Andrew speaks with Jeremiah Fox, an entrepreneur who owns several businesses, including the restaurant Della as well as the Juice Box wine shop, in Andrew’s ‘quaint’ neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY. This neighborhood, like so many in New York, is full of history, quirks, and people from all over. It’s full of families and elderly folks who have been in the neighborhood their whole lives, and of course a younger generation of people who are moving into the area. Andrew and Jeremiah talk about New York, their neighborhood, its history and the changes happening there, and what it’s like to run a small business. And, in true Constant Constance fashion, Andrew and Jeremiah also talk about Jiujitsu, as Jeremiah happens to also be a martial arts expert, and Andrew (who is wearing his ghee during the episode recording) started training after surviving brain cancer.

Today’s episode is a special one. It’s the 30th episode of Constant Constance, and it’s with Andrew’s longtime childhood friend Chris Speed. Chris, or “Speed” as his friends like to call him, is a brilliant saxophonist, clarinet, and composer and who is celebrated world wide for his musical endeavors. Speed and Andrew take their time walking down memory lane together in this episode, talking about their compositions and music, inspiration, family, reminiscing on old and funny times, the record industry today, and so much more. Join the two as they laugh, with only a little bit of friendly arguing, their way through this conversation, enjoying each other’s company as they go. Learn more about Chris at www.chrisspeed.com.

Today’s episode of Constant Constance features the extremely talented guitarist and video game composer Drummond “Drum” Louis Dominguez-Kincannon. He is the step-son of renowned musician David Douglas, which is how Andrew knows him; Andrew has known Drummond since he was a toddler and used to “baby sit” him back in the day! Now Drum is an audio producer and video game composer and, well, just a super nice guy. This is a sweet conversation about life and music. (And swimming pools! Lest us not forget the fun times growing up with Uncle Andrew).

Today’s episode features the extraordinary pianist and composer Myra Melford. In classical Constant Constance fashion, the conversation between Andrew and Myra spans many topics, from meeting and performing together in England on Andrew’s first tour back after having two brain surgeries, Myra’s extensive body of musical work, the residency they both did out in Seattle (Andrew’s home town) at the University of Washington, to a particularly fun moment when Andrew asks Myra, “what exactly is a rehearsal anyway?”

Learn more about Myra: 

www.myramelford.com, www.facebook.com/myra.melford

Check out Myra’s “Snowy Egret”: www.youtube.com/channel/UC9OUa0at8Wv_ZeCaZwFQlgQ & Myra’s “The Same River Twice”: www.myramelford.com/projects/album/index

Today's episode is with the multidimensional musician, saxophonist, and composer JD Allen. A wide-ranging conversation between two saxophonists, JD and Andrew share their thoughts and experiences around all things music - music creation, the notion of 'practicing' vs. 'playing' your instrument, and so much more, but also dive into topics of family and community, dealing with racism, homophobia, and sexism in schools, addiction, healing, and more. 

Learn more about JD - 

www.jdallentenor.com
www.facebook.com/cross.damon.3
www.discogs.com/label/81490-Savant
Check out “Bloom” by JD Allen: youtu.be/NvZTumAgT1o

We’re taking a break this week, but didn’t want to leave you hanging! So here’s a sneak peak from next week’s conversation with with multidimensional musician, saxophonist, and composer JD Allen. This may be one of the most beautiful descriptions of musical transcribing and listening that we’ve ever heard, we just had to share. Make sure to tune in on Sunday, October 17 at 11 ET for the whole conversation.

Today’s episode of Constant Constance is a special one, and it all started because a guest needed to postpone their interview with Andrew one day. With the last minute time on his hands, Andrew decided to message his nephews Storm and Max to see if they’d hop on Zoom and record an episode for the show. And so today’s episode is a D’Angelo family affair. Storm and Max are both musicians and are the children of Andrew’s younger brother, Thomas, and it’s delightful to hear about Storm and Max’s travails through life. A sweet conversation that wanders through topics both large and small, from music to coffee, Chicago, moving to NYC during the pandemic, and more. Fun family times had by all in this one!

In this episode of Constant Constance, Andrew speaks with Norwegian trumpet player and composer Simen Kill Halvorson, who Andrew met at his “C Minus - Young Artist at Tou Scene” workshop in Stavanger, Norway. (This happened about fifteen years ago when Simen was about fourteen - he’s thirty now, you do the math). This young man has made a huge impact on the Scandinavian music scene and he is an assistant professor at a prestigious Norwegian music academy. Back in August when this episode was recorded, the two take their time to reminisce about the good ‘ol days, and speak to their most current collaboration “Short Pieces” that was recently recorded and performed in New York. Sit back and enjoy the conversation between two long time friends and collaborators.

On today’s episode, Andrew speaks with premier vocalist, composer, and educator Dominique Eade. Eade is an amazing musician with an impressive and glorious discography, and has been described by the press as being a flawless jazz vocalist with a pure tone. She is also someone who deeply values her role as an educator (many of her students describe her as a “master teacher”). At the time of recoridng, Dominique said of her students, “at this time of year, I think of all the amazing New England Conservatory (NEC) students who are graduating and imagine what they will be up to in the years to come. … While I am deeply dedicated to teaching and proud of the work I do, I am especially honored to be part of an institution that fosters such depth of musicianship and creativity, and forges life-long bonds between students who go on to be collaborators and co-conspirators in their artistic lives after NEC.” This wonderful episode of Constant Constance dives deep into what it means to be an artist and teacher, and in our happily biased opinion, is not one to miss.

In today’s episode Andrew speaks with Jason Moran, pianist and composer, educator, scholar, McArthur Fellow, and so much more; really, Jason needs no introduction, as his massive body of work speaks for itself. The scope of today’s conversation is full and broad in scope, but for Andrew, it’s possible that what he’ll treasure most about this interview is the story that Jason retells of a chance meeting between the two of them in the airport in Amsterdam. As Jason remembers it, it was fairly soon after 9/11 and airlines were being strict about carry-on baggage. Jason and Andrew ran into each other at the airport, each heading to their perspective concerts. Andrew had too many carry-on’s and so Jason offered to carry Andrew’s saxophone on the plane. He notes the case was a custom-made pink leopard-patterned saxophone case (which Andrew still has to this day). Fast-forward a few days, and during the band performance at the Molde Jazz Festival in Norway, B.B. King’s band was also performing. At one point Andrew was walking by B.B. King and his band backstage, and one of Mr. King’s band members looked at the leopard sax case and said “man, that sax case is tight!”

Today’s episode is an especially personal one. Our guest, Peter Roth, is the co-founder of the Heart River Center for Intuitive Healing and is a pioneer of ‘Human Design,’ to which Andrew and Peter speak about in great detail during the conversation. Andrew met Peter when he (Andrew) was suffering from brain cancer, and no matter how you feel about alternative medicine, Peter gave Andrew unwavering support and love during a time when he needed it the most. Peter visited Andrew in the hospital after his surgeries, and saw Andrew weekly for healing sessions while he was recovering. We hope you enjoy getting to know the wise elder Peter Roth, he is a lovely human soul.

Today’s guest, Dr. Nicky Hamid, likes to refer to himself as ‘The Professor of Happiness.’ Interested in his work, Andrew connected with Nicky through Facebook asking if they could speak, and the rest, as they say, is history. Calling in from New Zealand, Andrew and Nicky spend some time on what it means to love oneself and why this is so difficult for some of us. Nicky has a PhD in psychology and taught in University for over 40 years, while also maintaining a therapy and counseling practice at the same time. He specialized in self awareness, human potential and social psychology. Nicky writes daily messages for the ‘Soul Tribe’ on Facebook (where Andrew first discovered Nicky) and is one of the sweetest human souls you will ever encounter. We hope you enjoy getting to know Nicky and if nothing else, his energy will lift your spirits to new heights. And as Nicky tells us “I Am that I Am”.

For Constant Constance's 20th episode, Andrew speaks with James Gavin. James is an author who has been writing for eighteen years now; he is currently finishing a biography of George Michael which is due to be published next Spring 2022 (pub. Abrams Books). As Sheila Weller writes of James, "there is no one who writes as eloquently, knowledgeably, and page-turningly about the midcentury music heroes who sang - and lived - our American story." In this expansive conversation, Andrew speaks with James about the history and stories behind his five previously published books, “Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne;” “Deep in a Dream : The Long Night of Chet Baker,” “Is That All There Is? : The Strange Life of Peggy Lee,” and “Intimate Nights: The Golden Age of New York Cabaret,” and so much more, (including a discussion about a little-known story behind the saxophone solo on George Michael’s song ‘Careless Whisper’.) If you’re interested in any of these musical greats, history, or anything really, this is an episode for you.

This episode of Constant Constance is a long one, as James reads from his biography of singer Lena Horne called, “Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne.”

Joining Andrew for today’s podcast is Andrea Parkins, a musician and composer who Andrew has known for decades. Andrea called in from Berlin, Germany, where she currently lives. In this conversation, the two talk at great length about Andrea’s music and composition process, reminisce about the days at Tonic in NYC, another venue now closed. Andrea also shares her experience of moving overseas and what it’s like to be an American living abroad. A wonderful conversation all around. Learn more about Andrea and her music here: www.andreaparkins.com

Shareef Snuggs is a political activist and filmmaker, who is currently working on a documentary, with his film company "There, There Film," about Andrew’s journey with brain cancer. The recording of this conversation for the Constant Constance Podcast was literally the first time Shareef and Andrew had had a personal conversation - prior to this interview, they were on a Zoom meeting about political activism and the work towards healthcare for all in the U.S., and Andrew decided to ask him to come on the podcast. It’s a beautiful and real episode - Shareef’s children are running around and playing in the background, and all the while the conversation takes so many turns into so many important directions, including Shareef's thoughts on the police and what it has been like for him to grow up as a black man in America, and Shareef's organizing work with M4M4ALL (March for Medicare For All). This is an honest and heartfelt discussion on issues that many of us don’t want to acknowledge about the reality of the U.S. and so much more. Not one to miss!

In today's episode, Andrew speaks with Dr. Caroline Davis, a cognitive psychologist (PhD, Northwestern University) who is also a talented saxophonist, singer-songwriter, and vocalist now based in New York City. Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary, scientific study of the mind and its processes, and Caroline and Andrew take a deep dive into the meaning of her intellectual life and how that relates to her artistic life, including how her weekly video performance series called “Oscillations” relates to her fields. Fun fact - a week after this interview was recording, Caroline and Andrew performed together at a venue in Brooklyn, NY to a sold out crowd, a first since the pandemic began. A beautiful experience, and what a strange time!

In today’s episode of Constant Constance, Andrew speaks with legendary guitarist and composer Bill Frisell. Andrew and Bill have known each other for a while, and the conversation sits on a wide spectrum, including some very tough questions about socks. But in all seriousness, what humble, kind, and beautiful human soul Bill Frisell is. This conversation is a delightful walk down memory lane to the early nineties with a walk to present times, spanning topics of music, Bill’s celebrated album “Have A Little Faith,” life, career, and more. And before we start, let us not forget Frisell’s famous saying about a band Andrew was playing in back when the two met: “Those guys play their asses off!”

For this episode of Constant Constance, Andrew is joined by Adam Cooper, a long-time disgruntled New Yorker, political junkie, history buff, linguistics weirdo, amateur genealogist and music enthusiast. Andrew and Adam met through Nicole Federici, a classical and jazz violinist and mutual friend, who is now married to Adam. A true polymath, Adam studied mapmaking and pursued it professionally, but that's a story for another day. He currently works as a software engineer. Join Andrew and Adam for a conversation about many things, including politics, censorship and free speech online, Adam’s experience growing up in the US as a Black man, and much more.

On this episode of Constant Constance, Andrew speaks with Aries Dela Cruz, press secretary to the Manhattan Borough President, Gale Brewer. Andrew and Aries met years ago through Andrew's boyfriend at the time. Aries, a first generation American immigrant and openly gay man, discusses what it is like to be in local government and how his personal experiences as a gay man and immigrant relate to his work, NY’s response to Covid-19, the importance of local politics, and more. Plus, there is a bit of reminiscing about the good days of “Garden Parties,” where the two first met.

Erica is a saxophone and flute player, multi-instrumentalist, educator, and entrepreneur. Andrew first learned about Erica while scrolling through social media - he saw a video that Erica posted of her doing a Life and talking about how no woman instrumentalists were featured at the Blue Note Jazz Festival in New York. Rightfully so, this video went viral. As we all know, sadly, even today most people only think of female-identified people as vocalists and not also instrumentalists, a topic that Erica and Andrew explore, and more, during this episode of Constant Constance.

This is an episode unlike any other Andrew has recorded before (or even after this conversation!) Great friends Henrietta Weekes (from the UK, currently in Mexico) - who is the voice of the intro and outro of this very podcast - and Shelley Harland (based in Australia) joined Andrew for this wild, beautiful ride of a conversation. Initially, everyone thought this would just be a ‘rehearsal’ conversation before they recorded the real episode for this podcast, but of course, it was brilliant as is, and it just had to be shared. Enjoy this casual, fun conversation; one of those podcast episodes that is unedited, raw, and generally about so many things all at once. If nothing else, it’s sure to make you laugh.

Joining Andrew today on Constant Constance is drummer and composer Allan Mednard, who Andrew met on stage at a festival in Porto, Portugal. In this conversation, Andrew and Allan discuss what it was like for Allan growing up in Queens, NY and as a first generation Haitian-American, the ups and downs of the music industry, why jazz musicians still play standards, and more. It’s suffice to say Allan and Andrew are fond of each other’s musical choices. Please enjoy this delightful conversation.

In this episode, we go beyond the music conversations we've gotten used to having. Andrew speaks with Maya Chan (as she likes to call herself), or Maya Rose Lederer, the daughter of Andrew's friend saxophonist, composer, and band leader Jeff Lederer. Maya is a super talented young chef who Andrew has known since she was born - calling him Uncle Andrew is not out of the question. During this conversation, Maya speaks about her experience on Master Chef, running a Japanese restaurant in NYC during the pandemic, what it’s like to work front-of-house as a young person, the many ways in which Covid is changing so many industries, sexism in the restaurant industry, what is being done to shift that tide, and more.

At some point not too long ago, Andrew was scrolling through his social media feed and he came across a post from his friend, film composer and accordionist Ted Reichman, who is on the teaching faculty at New England Conservatory of Music. Ted had posted links to his students’ final projects for his Jazz and Contemporary Improvisation online ensemble. When Andrew clicked on the link to have a listen, he was astounded at the talent Ted was cultivating at NEC. Immediately, Andrew called Ted to invite him and his students on the show. Andrew and Ted started off the conversation by reconnecting and talking about Ted’s work, and were then joined by Adrian Chabla and Cate Byrne, students of Ted’s and marvelous musicians to be sure! Enjoy as the four of them listen to some music and discuss the process Adrian and Cate went through to create such masterful pieces of music at such a young age.

Danish guitarist and composer Jakob Bro joins Andrew on this episode of Constant Constance. As Bro and D’Angelo mingle through their long musical friendship, they delve into many topics. They talk about Bro's various projects, including his new album on ECM 'Uma Elmo,' and tougher topics such as the passing of their friend, the beautiful Danish bassist Nikolai Monk, a very hard loss for so many. They end this conversation on a more joyous note, with Jakob's young child making a special cameo appearance.

Somewhere around 2012, Charlotte Greve reached out to Andrew for a saxophone lesson. At that time, she was attending conservatory in Germany and was coming to visit New York. She wanted to spend some time talking about music and her artistic direction. This was the first time Charlotte and Andrew would meet, but not the last. Only a week or so before they met, Andrew had purchased a vintage saxophone for no particular reason. He ended up selling the vintage horn to her, an instrument that he felt “matched” her energy. Who knew. Now some ten years later she still plays it. In this interview, Charlotte and Andrew talk about that moment in time and what it meant to her music, Charlotte's career, music in Europe and the US, sexism, and more. Maybe most importantly, they also speak at length about Greve's song SEE, which is gorgeous (spoiler alert - wait until you hear it with a huge choir. Amazing!)

Joel Frahm, award-winning, New York-based jazz saxophonist and recording artist, joins Andrew for this episode of Constant Constance. Aside from his live performances, Joel appears on more than 100 recordings as a leader or sideman. His albums include the critically-acclaimed "Don't Explain," a duo with pianist Brad Mehldau and live performances at Smalls and Mezzrow jazz clubs in New York City. He was featured on Freddy Cole's Grammy-nominated album "My Mood is You" and was a member of Dafnis Prieto's big band on "Back to the Sunset," a 2019 Grammy-winning album. Joel and Andrew explore Joel's work, the time they spent together on the road, and more. There are a lot of laughs. “We’re just two very different people," and yet Andrew and Joel discover they’re not that different. The theme song of this episode.

One of the most talented and accomplished musicians of his generation, Grammy Award-winning bassist and composer Eric Revis joins Andrew for this episode of Constant Constance. They discuss the perils of touring and even the more exotic side of the road, including the time spent on tour playing together with their friends. Some of the stories they recollect are too personal, so names may have been changed to protect the innocent. But joking aside, enjoy this wide-ranging episode between two old friends.

Guitarist, composer, and 2019 MachArthur "Genuis" Grant award winner Mary Halvorson joins Andrew on this episode of Constant Constance, filled with humor, music and a bit of politics. At her request, Mary and Andrew tried not to talk about about her new record featuring Robert Wyatt, but of course, in the end they do. Mary ended up being a pandemic bartender for her neighbors, which is definitely also discussed. Andrew and Mary go way back and attempt to figure out how they met. Of course, it was at a show and on a stage.

American jazz drummer Nasheet Waits joins Andrew on this episode of Constant Constance. Friends and colleagues for many years, from touring with guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel to Andrew’s trio, the two have worked tirelessly together in many different contexts. Performing several times on tour together in Europe to playing in Philadelphia, DC and residencies at the Village Vanguard in NYC. Today, they discuss their endeavors as touring musicians, the ups and downs of that life, how it is to be basically live-performance free for a year due to COVID and what this means for the future of live music. In a review of his 2016 album "Between Nothingness and Infinity," one listener describes, “I put Naheet Waits in the Cosmic Pantheon of All Time Jazz Drumming Brilliance. Up there with Jack DeJohnette, Famoudou Don Moye, Andrew Cyrille, Tony Williams, Tony Oxley, Billy Higgins, Paul Motian, Billy Hart, Jon Christensen, Antonio Sanchez, Adam Rudolph, and dare I say, even the Legends' Legend .... ELVIN JONES, there is Nasheet Waits.” Andrew wholeheartedly agrees.

Danae Greenfield, Grammy-award winning keyboardist and composer, joins Andrew on this episode of Constant Constance with a conversation that spans many topics, musical and otherwise. There's the question of how to resolve an Ebmaj/b9/#11/B chord (whatever that means), Danae's contributions to John Legend’s Grammy-award winning song "Conversation in the Dark", as well as a conversation about Danae's own experiences with sexism in the music industry, and more.  Check out Danae's music and learn more at: www.danaegreenfield.com. 

Reid Anderson, bass player, composer and co-founder of The Bad Plus, joins Andrew as the guest for the first episode of Constant Constance. In this interview Reid and Andrew reminisce on the making of "The Vastness of Space" album, delve into the different stages of The Bad Plus, and more.