Our latest artist to feature for Chats with the Cats is trumpeter Mario Abney.
Born and raised in Chicago, Mario remembers his earliest experiences of music were through his family.
"My uncle Arthur, uncle John David, grandmother Nez and Mother, Ora Abney. Arthur, my youngest uncle, played lounge style piano at home and taught me how to play around the age of 7. My uncle John David introduced me to James Brown as it was something he always listened to around us. My grandmother was a huge blues fan and my mother Ora was the choir president. Thus I always heard that soulful Chicago gospel sound that reminds me of jazzy music." Outside of this, hip-hop and 90s rap were important influences from an early age, as well as long time friend and bandmate, drummer Phil Fornett at Thornton Township Highschool.
"I went to an after school jazz band rehearsal and that is when I knew that I was in love with jazz. I was taught by teachers like Phill Crews, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Orbert Davis, Mike Mcgrath, Paul Finna, and legends like Vaughn Freeman and Fred Anderson were also big influences."
Mario's first experiences on a live stage as a young musician in the late 90s and early 2000s was at the Velvet Lounge. The Velvet Lounge was owned and operated by Chicago Saxophone legend Fred Anderson.
"Fred Anderson was a visionary, leader, master musician and a light to the younger cats seeking to learn and play the music. Every Sunday after church my mother, Ora Abney, would take me and my friends to the jam session at the Velvet Lounge located in the South Loop of Chicago. The Velvet Lounge at that time was right next to Harold's Chicken and it was just the perfect hangout for cats young and old. Every Sunday we'd ride from club to club, all the Young Lions.
It was meeting the legendary Roy Hargrove at a jazz band competition which changed his outlook. "Roy showed me that music is a viable option in money making. It was from this point I realized that I wanted to make a career out of music." During a performance at the Dayton RiverWalk festival in 07', Mario became interested in going to New Orleans after hearing the Hot 8 Brass Band perform. "So I decided to move to New Orleans so that I could immerse myself in the roots of jazz music. From there, New Orleans has become my home."
Mario and his band, the Abney Effect participated in a cultural exchange program in 2011.
"I took a ten piece band to Ecuador to perform in a cultural exchange program where we taught music and held music clinics for the young music students locally. We also performed in three major cities: Guayaquil, Quito, and Esmeralda. The cultural exchange program was a week and a half, during this time we were featured at several festivals. This project was intended to be a cultural link between New Orleans and the Esmerelda community."
Mario is planning on releasing new music in Spring 2021 "'Abney Effect Volume II' that includes my latest singles, "I Came To Move", "Sweet Lady", "Midnight Vibe", "Love and Trust", and more." The pandemic though has changed everyone's plans "we have had gigs overseas cancelled along with our upcoming gigs in NYC. I also had promotional gigs lined up for my latest releases "I Came To Move" "Single Lady" and "Love & Trust" However, during the quarantine my wife added on to our home studio and really perfected the art of live virtual performance."
Now, Mario hosts a live stream every Tuesday night with his quintet - performing both original and classical compositions as well as featuring local artists from the NOLA area. "I heard about KU! through my high school teacher Mr. Rudresh. KU! is important because it is a driving force in keeping the arts moving forward. KU! is helping to inspire young musicians and therefore creating a future for music!”