Our next featured artist for the "Chats With the Cats" series is pianist Kelly Green.
Growing up in a musical and artistic household, Kelly recalls the sounds of her childhood along with the gigs she attended with her father, a fine bass player himself.
"I grew up hearing John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Wayne Shorter, Miles Davis and many many legendary musicians in our home. We would go to see live shows whenever a big act was in Florida. My dad took me to see Chick Corea, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Ravi Shankar, Maria Schneider, Ahmad Jamal, McCoy Tyner and so many others."
"My father and I would travel to Louisville every year in the summer to attend Jamey Aebersold Jazz Camp together from age 11 for about 7 years. This had a huge impact on my love of the music and community surrounding it. I left Orlando when I was 18 to live in Jacksonville and study at the University of North Florida where I studied with fabulous pianist and educator Lynne Arriale. There I also found much inspiration from the head of the department at the time the great alto player Bunky Green. I also had the opportunity to play and hang with local legend, drummer Von Barlow, who just recently passed. Rest In Peace Von. There are many great musicians in Orlando and Jacksonville, the scene is much much smaller than New York, but each place I’ve lived/traveled always has a high level of top tier musicians playing and making moves."
But while Kelly's development happened in Florida, New York was always the goal.
"It’s the pinnacle because it is the area with the highest concentration of masters of this music. Although there are more musicians, there are also more opportunities; from building your own opportunities to gaining opportunities through playing with older master musicians, which I found most beneficial. There are also many more “pockets” of scenes in NY than anywhere else. Many more styles of “jazz” and also, many great musicians in the tri-state area in CT and NJ. There’s a trad scene, a fusion scene, a bebop scene, many great vocalists, and everything in between, each with their own spots to hang and comingling all together to celebrate this music! It’s beautiful."
Like all of us though, Kelly has been through the difficulties of isolation and quarantine during Covid. However, she has used this time positively.
"I have taken this time to search inward and learn a lot about spirituality and being the best version of myself that I can be. It is a time I feel that we may have needed, especially as working musicians in NYC, to take a ‘mental bath’ and cleanse ourselves of some of the negative aspects that often accompany the musician lifestyle (self judgement, comparing oneself to others, negligence of our physical and mental health, use of alcohol and drugs, etc.) In a way it has evened the playing field because there are not many live performances happening, everyone is in the same predicament. Rather than feel upset or defeatist I believe this is a time to be creative and learn to be self-sustainable and self-loving. Because if you love yourself you have a greater ability to love all."
"I’m looking forward to shedding at home, listening to music (Wayne Shorter, Satie, Bach, Alice Coltrane, Randy Weston, Mulgrew Miller, Tony Williams Trio and traditional African music - Ali Farka Toure, Ballaké Sissoko) growing spiritually and musically, and spending time and playing music with my husband. I’m thinking of making a special record with our duo ‘Green Soul’ from our home during this time until more live performances begin again. I’m also looking forward to working on and releasing a small educational video series and hopefully building a wider student base from home."