Dave Holland: Past-Present-Future Luster

R.J. DeLuke

Interviewer since 1999

R.J. DeLuke is an indefatigable jazz fan and arbiter elegantiarum who aspires to ultimate hipness; also an upstate NY freelance writer for various media.

Recent articles (265 total)

Published: September 18, 2006

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Dave Holland AAJ: I’m sure there’s lots of challenges ahead that you’re looking forward to taking on.

DH: Absolutely. The challenge as you get older, I think, is to keep that element of curiosity and growth in your music and openness to new things. Each stage of your life has different elements to it, different qualities to it. You have to discover what each stage is about.

The early stages are just about discovering everything. Then there’s a consolidation period of bringing that all together into some kind of unified form. And then, in the later period of your life, it’s about finding ways to use those things you’ve consolidated and to build on them. To me that’s the challenge now is to build on it.

The most recent evidence of my response to the challenge has been the big band. It’s something I’ve always aspired to, is to write for a big band. Until we put this group together, I never really took the bull by the horns, so to speak. This has really given me a chance to move into a new kind of setting with the music and consider the challenges of what that presents to me as a writer and so on. At this point, it’s about how to build on these things and to find new ways to extend the ideas you’ve found to be the ones that are interesting to you.

Selected Discography

Dave Holland Quintet, Critical Mass (Dare2, 2006)
Dave Holland Big Band, Overtime (Dare2, 2005)
Kenny Wheeler, What Now? (CamJazz, 2005)
Geri Allen, The Life of a Song (Telarc, 2004)
Dave Holland Quintet, Extended Play: Live at Birdland (ECM, 2003)>
Roy Haynes, Love Letters (Columbia, 2003)
Dave Holland Big Band, What Goes Around (ECM, 2002)
Dave Holland Quintet, Not for Nothin' (ECM, 2001)
Bill Frisell, With Dave Holland and Elvin Jones (Nonesuch, 2001)
Dave Holland Quintet, Prime Directive (ECM, 1999)
Cassandra Wilson, Traveling Miles (Blue Note, 1999)
Dave Holland Quintet, Points of View (ECM, 1998)
Joe Lovano, Trio Fascination Edition One (Blue Note, 1998)
Chris Potter, Unspoken (Concord, 1997)
Dave Holland Quartet, Dream of the Elders (ECM, 1996)
Michael Brecker, Tales from the Hudson (Impulse!, 1996)
Kenny Wheeler, Angel Song (ECM, 1996)
Mino Cinelu/Kevin Eubanks/Dave Holland, The World Trio (Intuition, 1995)
Herbie Hancock, The New Standard (Verve, 1995)
Gateway, Homecoming (ECM, 1995)
Dave Holland, Ones All (Intuition, 1993)
Kevin Eubanks, Spiritalk (Blue Note, 1993)
Joe Henderson, So Near, So Far (Musings for Miles) (Verve, 1992)
Don Grolnick, Nighttown (Blue Note, 1992)
Dave Holland Quartet, Extensions (ECM, 1990)
Kenny Wheeler, Music for Large and Small Ensembles (ECM, 1990)
Pat Metheny/Dave Holland/Roy Haynes, Question and Answer (Geffen, 1989)
Dave Holland Trio, Triplicate (ECM, 1988)
Dave Holland Quintet, The Razor's Edge (ECM, 1987)
Kenny Barron, Scratch (Enja, 1986)
Dave Holland Quintet, Seeds of Time (ECM, 1985)
Dave Holland Quintet, Jumpin' In (ECM, 1984)
Dave Holland, Life Cycle (ECM, 1983)
George Adams, Sound Suggestions (ECM, 1979)
Sam Rivers, Contrasts (ECM, 1979)
Dave Holland, Emerald Tears (ECM, 1978)
Gateway, Gateway 2 (ECM, 1977)
Tomasz Stanko, Balladyna (ECM, 1976)
Sam Rivers/Dave Holland, Volume One (Improvising Artists, 1976)
Sam Rivers/Dave Holland, Volume Two (Improvising Artists, 1976)
Anthony Braxton, The Montreux/Berlin Concerts (Arista, 1975)
Kenny Wheeler, Gnu High (ECM, 1975)
Jack DeJohnette, Sorcery (OJC, 1974)
Carla Bley, Tropic Appetites (WATT, 1973)
Dave Holland Quartet, Conference of the Birds (ECM, 1973)
Paul Bley, Paul Bley and Scorpio (Milestone, 1972)
Circle, Paris Concert (ECM, 1971)
Chick Corea, A.R.C. (ECM, 1971)
John McLaughlin, Where Fortune Smiles (Dawn, 1970)
Miles Davis, Bitches Brew (Columbia/Legacy, 1969)
Miles Davis, In a Silent Way (Columbia/Legacy, 1969)