Interview with Scott Waggoner from the Genesis Jazz Project

Carl Hose: Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Scott. First, I need to make it clear that I've known you for many years and you and your family were a big influence on me musically. You opened me up to worlds of music beyond rock. How long have you been involved in the music scene?

Scott Waggoner: Thanks for giving me the opportunity to do this with you, my friend. You have also opened my eyes, showing me music is music no matter who or what is playing it. Music is the ONLY language in the would that does not need translation.

I basicially grew up in the music scene. As you know, my Dad was a band director in the public schools and a working musician before he retired and got involved with his sheet music store. I would go to rehearsals he was conducting or playing in for as long as I can remember. I didn't start my own musical journey until the 3rd grade when I started private lessons. When I said I wanted to play drums, my Dad insisted I also learn how to play mallets. I am so glad my Dad insisted I learn them because that is also how I learned to read and write music. By the time I was in junior high school, I was reading books about music composition. Then, at age 14, I was getting paid to play drums or percussion for groups. I actually made my living as a musician until I was 30 years old, then I finally got a "real" job. I was teaching privately and at a couple of different colleges, playing with anyone who paid (their check was good) and writing for junior high and high school bands. Then I got mad at the world because music wasn't fun anymore and wasn't considered a "real" job. I quit playing for a couple years and almost quit teaching, but just kept one high school I was working with. I came back to playing and writing again, but now it is for me and not a job.

CH: What are some of your earliest musical influences?

SW: A huge influence on me was, and still is, Frank Zappa. I really got into playing mallets because of Ruth Underwood, Zappa's mallet player. I was also influenced by jazz music. I listened to jazz until I was in high school and discovered rock. Groups like Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Rush, and the like. Around that time I also got in funk. Groups like Earth, Wind & Fire, anything George Clinton. I was into group things rather than specfic players, and how they all interacted with each other. But I was into a couple drummers at the time. Buddy Rich, Steve Gadd, Peter Erskine, and Billy Cobham. And this might sound strange, but three bass players as well. Ron Carter, Stanley Clark and Jaco Pastorious.

CH: You wear many musical hats. What do you enjoy most, writing, arranging, or playing live?

SW: This is a tough question to answer without it sounding like a cop-out answer, but here goes. They are completely different in my mind and my role in each changes. I understand the music business, and because of this, why my role changes. Buisness is why my role in each of those changes. As a sideman, it is my role to make the leader or other players sound good in a concert setting, or to make people dance in a bar or party setting. If the leader is happy, then I will be hired again. If people are dancing they are happy and the bar owner is making money, which will result in the band being hired again. I am so glad you seperated writing/composing from arranging. When I write arrangements for people, they have different needs, depending on ability, instrumentation, or use of the arrangement, so arranging can be very restrictive and sometime harder than just staring at blank piece of paper. Composing I do strictly for myself. I am in total control and don't have to answer to anyone or make anyone happy but myself. As a sideman or arranger, I still can be creative, but have to stay within the limitations of a group. I enjoy them all equally because they are different.

CH: Tell us about your current projects.

SW: Currently I am playing, composing, and arranging for the Genesis Jazz Project. This is a 20 piece big band with a female and male singers. This band is different from most bands because it is a "reading" band. A "reading" band is a band that sight reads music constantly. We rehearse every week and will play 15-20 different tunes during a rehearsal rather than just work on a couple tunes for the entire rehearsal. The band also plays concerts a few times a year. I am also still active as a composer and arranger.

CH: What are you listening to now?

SW: At the moment I am not listening for enjoyment. I am only listening to learn. Then I am taking what I hear and trying to make it my own. I might hear a "sound" I like from a band or a lick from a drummer and I will try to figure out what they did.

CH: How difficult is it to arrange a rock or pop song for marching band or as a jazz chart? Do you have a process you go through to maintain the elements of the original tune? Do you listen to the original song at all before you begin?

SW: It depends on the situation. If some asks for a "record copy," that to me is pretty simple. I just take the sounds I hear on the record and then orchestrate those sounds to the instruments for whatever group I'm arranging for. The process for that is very easy if sheet music for the tune is available. The sheet music will give me the melody and basic harmony and I can easily fill in the rest. A "record copy" to me is more of an exercise than anything creative. If I am given creative license then just about anything is possible. First I make a decision whether to keep the tune in the same style as the original or try something completely different.

I did Somewhere Out There by James Ingram for the Genesis Jazz Project and changed the tune completely from the original. I put the tune in 3 rather than 4, changing it from a slower ballad and making it a quicker waltz. On this one, because I was not concerned with a vocalist having to sing the words, I also could vary the melody. I still paid attention to the intent of the lyrics, but not about how the words worked rhythmically. So the "A" section was still very lyrical with long flowing notes, but I changed the bridge. The original bridge was lots of moving notes in the melody over a constant bass note. I kept the constant bass note but broke up the moving notes in the melody. I basically used the bass note and the melody notes against each other to create tension and build a release back the the "A" section. On this one, I started by getting the chords and melody to work. From there I moved it over to the big band format of 5 saxes, 5 trombones, 5 trumpets, guitar, piano, bass and drums.

CH: What are your favorite rock bands? What about rock drummers? I am particularly interested in your take on Neil Peart from Rush.

SW: I really like the more experimental or creative bands. King Krimson, old Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Dream Theater w/Mike Portnoy, Jeff Beck, pre-Coneheads Red Hot Chili Peppers, and of course Rush. Bill Bruford, Thomas Lang, and someone I have been fortunate enough to meet and hang with, Carmine Appice. He doesn't get the recognition he deserves because he is a sideman. He is a super nice guy. Last I heard he was playing with Ozzy, but I am not sure if that was before or after his rotator cuff surgery. Bruford, Palmer, and Portnoy were all equal parts of a group. Each group interacted so well together and no one member of the group more or less important than the other. Appice and Lang are both hired guns and the ultimate sideman, but both have been very innovative. Lang's feet are as fast if not faster than his hands, and both work at super human speed.

Neil Peart is very interesting to me because he sent me on a history journey. I was reading an article/interview with him in Modern Drummer Magazine years ago, around the time of Moving Pictures. He was talking about some of his influences and named Steve Gadd and Peter Erskine and some of the stuff they where playing, and he was trying to figure it out for himself. So I started looking at their influences and just worked backward. The lick Peart was working on at the time came from "Baby" Dobbs in the early 1920's. Peart became known for that lick in the 80's, Gadd from the 70's, John Bonham in the 60's, Max Roach in the 50's. And over the years I have gained even more respect for Neil as an educator. He did a series of stuff with the Buddy Rich Big Band. I am not sure about the entire story or how it all worked, but he got all different kinds drummers to play tunes with alumni of the Buddy Rich Big Band. Videos were made and the money is part of a sholarship program.

CH: Besides drums, what other instruments do you play?

SW: I went to college to become a band director, so at some point I could get a sound out of most of the band instruments. I have never thought of myself as anything but a drummer or percussionist.

CH: How important is technology to music creation today? Do you feel it is an asset or a hinderence?

SW: For someone like me it is incredibly important and an incredible asset. I understand piano, but by no means can I play piano. Technology lets me input music quickly without having to actually play piano. I use a piano keyboard for pitch and the number pad on the computer keyboard for rhythms. Technology also lets me hear my music with good quality sampled sounds rather than just on a piano. Technology also saves time with printing parts rather than having to hand write parts. For smaller projects it is not as bad, but if you get into larger groups, you could have 40-50 different instruments. And stuff can be emailed. That is just the stuff I use and doesn't even take into account the recording industry.

CH: What is your software of choice for composing?

SW: I use the full version of Finale. That is one of the first programs I used and I just kept up with the updates and upgrades over the years. It is the industry standard for type setting music. Finale is more concerned about the end result and how it looks and  playback is less of a concern. Other programs on the market focus on playback and don't look as good printed. That is just my opinion. I never saw any need to switch to another program because Finale has always done everything I needed.

CH: What is the advice you would give any young musician wanting to begin getting into jazz? Do you have a recommended listening list?

SW: The best advice is to listen to as much as you. And then try to play what you hear. This sounds very simple, but it is a life long process.

Now I will get on my soapbox and give some advice to ALL musician on the business of music. First remember it is a JOB, especially if you are being paid to play! That means be on time, dress appropriately, and NO alcohol. If you want to be taken seriously, act like it is a "real" job. In the "real" world do you get to drink alcohol, show up when you want, or wear whatever you want? Above all, it is a job!!

CH: I love this question. Is it important to live a hard life to really play the blues?

SW: I am not sure if that is important or not. I do believe your environment and life experiences play a role. And exposure to different or diverse things is important, but not necessarily if a hard life is a key aspect.

CH: Thank you for taking the time to talk with me, Scott.

Check out the Genesis Jazz Project on Facebook, and if you are in the St.Louis area, drop by and check them out live and in action.